The coupling of biodiversity and productivity in phytoplankton communities: consequences for biomass stoichiometry

There is widespread concern that loss of biodiversity can influence important ecosystem services. A positive relationship between diversity and productivity has been observed in investigations of terrestrial and aquatic plant communities. However, an increase in primary production (carbon assimilation) does not necessarily result in higher nutrient uptake by primary producers. There is a loose coupling between carbon assimilation and nutrient uptake in autotrophs, and their biomass carbon-to-nutrient ratios (stoichiometry) are flexible. We performed controlled laboratory experiments to investigate the effect of phytoplankton biodiversity on phytoplankton stoichiometry. Our results indicate that biodiversity influences carbon assimilation and nutrient uptake of phytoplankton communities in different ways, resulting in variations of biomass stoichiometry. Data from 46 lake communities also support this link. Shifts in the biomass stoichiometry of phytoplankton communities are generally attributed to environmental fluctuations in resources. However, our results show that biodiversity is also important in determining their stoichiometry.