Micro-decomposer communities and decomposition processes in tropical lowlands as affected by land use and litter type

We investigated how the land-use change from rainforest into jungle rubber, intensive rubber and oil palm plantations affects decomposers and litter decomposition in Sumatra, Indonesia. Litterbags containing three litter types were placed into four land-use systems and harvested after 6 and 12 months. Litter mass loss and litter element concentrations were measured, and different microbial groups including bacteria, fungi and testate amoebae were studied. After 12 months 81, 65, 63 and 53% of litter exposed in rainforest, jungle rubber in oil palm and rubber plantations was decomposed. In addition to land use, litter decomposition varied strongly with litter type and short-term effects differed markedly from long-term effects. After 6 months, oil palm and rubber litter decomposed faster than rainforest litter, but after 12 months, decomposition of rainforest litter exceeded that of oil palm and rubber litter, reflecting adaptation of bacteria and fungi to decompose structural compounds in rainforest litter but not (or less) in rubber and oil palm litter. Bacterial and fungal community composition and testate amoeba species number and density varied strongly with litter type, but little with land use. However, community composition of testate amoebae was mainly affected by land use. Generally, changes in bacteria, fungi and testate amoebae were linked to changes in litter element concentrations, suggesting that element ratios of litter material as basal resource for the decomposer food web shape the structure of decomposer communities and decomposition processes via bottom-up forces. Overall, changing rainforest to monoculture plantations shifts the decomposer community structure and negatively affects litter decomposition.