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Linking Predation Risk, Herbivore Physiological Stress and Microbial Decomposition of Plant Litter
10:20

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Published on: March 12, 2013

A trait-based approach for modelling microbial litter decomposition.

S D Allison1

  • 1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA. allisons@uci.edu

Ecology Letters
|May 31, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Trait-based models link microbial traits to ecosystem processes. These models predict litter decomposition rates by considering microbial enzyme production and trade-offs, explaining significant variation.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Microbial Ecology
  • Ecosystem Science

Background:

  • Trait-based models are increasingly used in ecology to connect community dynamics with environmental responses and ecosystem functions.
  • These models represent ecological communities by defining taxa based on trait combinations, which can be influenced by trade-offs.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Develop a model linking microbial community composition and traits to predict litter decomposition rates.
  • Incorporate trade-offs representing alternative microbial resource acquisition strategies.

Main Methods:

  • Developed a trait-based model for microbial communities.
  • Linked microbial physiological and enzymatic traits to predict litter decomposition.
  • Accounted for trade-offs in microbial enzyme production and biochemical traits.

Main Results:

  • The model predicts optimal microbial strategies are dependent on community-level enzyme production, influencing resource availability and decomposition rates.
  • Observed facilitation and competition among microbial taxa, varying with enzyme production and trait trade-offs.
  • The model explained 69% of variation in decomposition rates for 15 Hawaiian litter types and up to 26% of variation in enzyme activities.

Conclusions:

  • Explicitly representing diversity through trait distributions enables trait-based models to predict ecosystem processes.
  • Microbial enzyme production traits are key drivers of litter decomposition rates.