Arid
DOI10.1111/gcb.14118
Woody encroachment slows decomposition and termite activity in an African savanna
Leitner, Monica1; Davies, Andrew B.2,3; Parr, Catherine L.1,4,5; Eggleton, Paul6; Robertson, Mark P.2
通讯作者Leitner, Monica
来源期刊GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
ISSN1354-1013
EISSN1365-2486
出版年2018
卷号24期号:6页码:2597-2606
英文摘要

Woody encroachment can lead to a complete switch from open habitats to dense thickets, and has the potential to greatly alter the biodiversity and ecological functioning of grassy ecosystems across the globe. Plant litter decomposition is a critical ecosystem process fundamental to nutrient cycling and global carbon dynamics, yet little is known about how woody encroachment might alter this process. We compared grass decay rates of heavily encroached areas with adjacent nonencroached open areas in a semi-arid South African savanna using litterbags that allowed or excluded invertebrates. We also assessed the effect of woody encroachment on the activity of termites-dominant decomposer organisms in savanna systems. We found a significant reduction in decomposition rates within encroached areas, with litter taking twice as long to decay compared with open savanna areas. Moreover, invertebrates were more influential on grass decomposition in open areas and termite activity was substantially lower in encroached areas, particularly during the dry season when activity levels were reduced to almost zero. Our results suggest that woody encroachment created an unfavourable environment for invertebrates, and termites in particular, leading to decreased decomposition rates in these areas. We provide the first quantification of woody encroachment altering the functioning of African savanna ecosystems through the slowing of aboveground plant decomposition. Woody encroachment is intensifying across the globe, and our results suggest that substantial changes to the carbon balance and biodiversity of grassy biomes could occur.


英文关键词bush encroachment Dichrostachys cinerea global change litterbags Macrotermitinae naphthalene nutrient cycle soil fauna Termitoidae woody thickening
类型Article
语种英语
国家South Africa ; USA ; England
收录类别SCI-E
WOS记录号WOS:000433717700030
WOS关键词USE INTENSIFICATION GRADIENT ; SOUTHERN GUINEA SAVANNA ; LITTER DECOMPOSITION ; SHRUB ENCROACHMENT ; LAND-USE ; GLOBAL CHANGE ; MICROBIAL ACTIVITY ; BUSH ENCROACHMENT ; NITROGEN POOLS ; GRASSY BIOMES
WOS类目Biodiversity Conservation ; Ecology ; Environmental Sciences
WOS研究方向Biodiversity & Conservation ; Environmental Sciences & Ecology
资源类型期刊论文
条目标识符http://119.78.100.177/qdio/handle/2XILL650/209745
作者单位1.Univ Pretoria, Dept Zool & Entomol, Pretoria, South Africa;
2.Univ Pretoria, Dept Zool & Entomol, Ctr Invas Biol, Pretoria, South Africa;
3.Carnegie Inst Sci, Dept Global Ecol, Stanford, CA USA;
4.Univ Liverpool, Sch Environm Sci, Liverpool, Merseyside, England;
5.Univ Witwatersrand, Sch Anim Plant & Environm Sci, Johannesburg, South Africa;
6.Nat Hist Museum, Life Sci Dept, London, England
推荐引用方式
GB/T 7714
Leitner, Monica,Davies, Andrew B.,Parr, Catherine L.,et al. Woody encroachment slows decomposition and termite activity in an African savanna[J],2018,24(6):2597-2606.
APA Leitner, Monica,Davies, Andrew B.,Parr, Catherine L.,Eggleton, Paul,&Robertson, Mark P..(2018).Woody encroachment slows decomposition and termite activity in an African savanna.GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY,24(6),2597-2606.
MLA Leitner, Monica,et al."Woody encroachment slows decomposition and termite activity in an African savanna".GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 24.6(2018):2597-2606.
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