Short-term sodium inputs attract microbi-detritivores and their predators

Clay, Natalie A.; Yanoviak, Stephen P.; Kaspari, Michael

doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2014.04.021

Cited by 42 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 51 publications

(63 reference statements)

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“…In the Urine+Na treatment and the +Na treatment we increased the Na concentration to 5 g NaCl L −1 . This concentration mimics the upper range of predator urine Na content (Clarke and Berry 1992) and other Na fertilization research (Kaspari et al 2008b(Kaspari et al , 2009Clay et al 2014). Prior to fertilization, we placed a polyester 0.75-cm-mesh litterbag containing pre-weighed and folded Whatman no.…”

Section: Methodssupporting

confidence: 55%

“…This generally drives rapid Na-seeking behavior (Arms et al 1974;Barrows 1974;Kaspari et al 2008b). For example, Clay et al (2014) found that detritivores strongly recruited to Na addition after just 1 day in an interior Peruvian forest near Iquitos. Accordingly, we expected to see similar responses from detritivores on +Na and Urine+Na treatments in inland Ecuador after 2 days, but communities were unaffected by treatment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, termites seemed to recruit to wood rather than cellulose, in which case, termite and urine interactions may impact coarse woody debris in inland tropical forests. A growing body of literature supports termite lust for salt (Kaspari et al 2009Clay et al 2014), and termites are often important drivers of coarse woody debris decomposition, particularly in tropical forests (Lavelle et al 1993). Thus, mammal selection of excretion sites could have a significant impact on the rates of coarse woody debris decomposition and nutrient cycling in tropical forests via termite recruitment and activity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because inland detritivores are likely Na limited (Kaspari et al 2009;Clay et al 2014), Na addition should increase detritivore abundance in inland but not coastal forests. 2.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Urine as an important source of sodium increases decomposition in an inland but not coastal tropical forest

Clay

Kaspari

2014

Oecologia

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decomposition was twofold higher on Urine+Na and +Na plots compared to H 2 O and Urine−Na plots accompanied by >20-fold increases in termite abundance on these plots. Panama, in contrast, showed no effect of Na on decomposition. In both forests, plots fertilized with urine had nearly twofold decrease in detritivores after 2 weeks that was likely a shock effect from ammonification. Moreover, the non-Na nutrients in urine did not enhance decomposition at this time scale. On control plots, Panama had higher decomposition rates for both cellulose and wood than Ecuador, but the addition of Na in Ecuador alleviated these differences. These results support the hypothesis that in Na-poor tropical forests, urine can enhance wood decomposition and generate an important source of heterogeneity in the abundance and activity of brown food webs.

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Section: Methodssupporting

confidence: 55%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because inland detritivores are likely Na limited (Kaspari et al 2009;Clay et al 2014), Na addition should increase detritivore abundance in inland but not coastal forests. 2.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Urine as an important source of sodium increases decomposition in an inland but not coastal tropical forest

Clay

Kaspari

2014

Oecologia

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“…Ecologists are increasingly fascinated with the Na-K pump, a Faustian bargain that ties organismal performance to environmental sodium stocks (3,(7)(8)(9). Na-K pumps are costly in a variety of ways (10).…”

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confidence: 99%

Road salt offers insights into the connections between diet and neural development

Kaspari¹

2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Rewilding soil and litter invertebrates and fungi increases decomposition rates and alters detritivore communities

Contos,

Murphy,

Kayll

et al. 2024

Ecology and Evolution

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Habitat degradation and associated reductions in ecosystem functions can be reversed by reintroducing or ‘rewilding’ keystone species. Rewilding projects have historically targeted restoration of processes such as grazing regimes or top‐down predation effects. Few projects focus on restoring decomposition efficiency, despite the pivotal role decomposition plays in global carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling. Here, we tested whether rewilding entire communities of detritivorous invertebrates and fungi can improve litter decomposition efficiency and restore detritivore communities during ecological restoration. Rewilding was conducted by transplanting leaf litter and soil, including associated invertebrate and fungal communities from species‐rich remnant sites into species‐poor, and geographically isolated, revegetated farmland sites in a temperate woodland region of southeastern Australia. We compared communities in sites under the following treatments: remnant (conservation area and source of litter transplant), rewilded revegetation (revegetated farmland site with litter transplant) and control revegetation (revegetated site, no transplant). In one ‘before’ and three ‘after’ sampling periods, we measured litter decomposition and the abundance and diversity of detritivorous invertebrates and fungi. We quantified the effect of detritivores on the rate of litter decomposition using piecewise Structural Equation Modelling. Decomposition was significantly faster in rewilding sites than in both control and remnant areas and was largely driven by a greater abundance of invertebrate detritivores. Similarly, the abundance of invertebrate detritivores in rewilding revegetation sites exceeded the level of remnant communities, whereas there was little difference between control and remnant sites. In contrast, rewilding did not increase saprotrophic fungi relative abundance/diversity and there was no strong relationship between decomposition and fungal diversity. Our findings suggest the relatively simple act of transplanting leaf litter and soil can increase functional efficiency during restoration and alter community composition. Our methods may prove important across a range of contexts where other restoration methods have failed to restore ecosystem processes to pre‐degradation levels.

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Short-term sodium inputs attract microbi-detritivores and their predators

Cited by 42 publications

References 51 publications

Urine as an important source of sodium increases decomposition in an inland but not coastal tropical forest

Urine as an important source of sodium increases decomposition in an inland but not coastal tropical forest

Road salt offers insights into the connections between diet and neural development

Rewilding soil and litter invertebrates and fungi increases decomposition rates and alters detritivore communities

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