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Ecological memory of recurrent drought modifies soil processes via changes in soil microbial community
Alberto Canarini1, Hannes Schmidt2, Lucia Fuchslueger2
1Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. alberto.canarini@hotmail.it.
Nature Communications
|September 7, 2021
Summary
Recurrent droughts alter soil microbial communities, enhancing soil functions and potentially increasing ecosystem resilience. This ecological memory helps soils adapt to future drought events.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Soil Science
- Microbiology
Background:
- Climate change is increasing drought frequency and severity.
- Droughts can have lasting impacts on soil microbial communities, but the concept of 'ecological memory' in soils is not well understood.
- Ecological memory refers to the capacity of past events to influence current ecosystem responses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether recurrent drought events lead to ecological memory formation in soil microbial communities.
- To assess the impact of recurrent droughts on soil microbial community composition and soil multifunctionality.
- To determine if soil ecological memory enhances ecosystem resilience to drought.
Main Methods:
- A long-term field experiment was conducted in a mountain grassland in Austria.
- Experimental treatments included 10 years of recurrent drought, a single drought event, and ambient conditions.
- Soil microbial community composition, enzymatic activities, soil nutrients, microbial biomass stoichiometry, and belowground net primary productivity were measured.
Main Results:
- Recurrent droughts significantly increased the dissimilarity of soil microbial communities compared to control and single drought treatments.
- Soil multifunctionality was enhanced during drought under recurrent drought conditions.
- Soil microbial community composition shifted in parallel with changes in soil functioning.
Conclusions:
- Recurrent droughts induce ecological memory in soil microbial communities.
- This ecological memory is linked to enhanced soil multifunctionality and may improve ecosystem resilience to future drought events.
- Understanding soil ecological memory is crucial for predicting ecosystem responses to climate change.
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