TY - JOUR
T1 - Changes in belowground biodiversity during ecosystem development
AU - Delgado-baquerizo, Manuel
AU - Bardgett, Richard D.
AU - Vitousek, Peter M.
AU - Maestre, Fernando T.
AU - Williams, Mark A.
AU - Eldridge, David J.
AU - Lambers, Hans
AU - Neuhauser, Sigrid
AU - Gallardo, Antonio
AU - García-velázquez, Laura
AU - Sala, Osvaldo E.
AU - Abades, Sebastián R.
AU - Alfaro, Fernando D.
AU - Berhe, Asmeret A.
AU - Bowker, Matthew A.
AU - Currier, Courtney M.
AU - Cutler, Nick A.
AU - Hart, Stephen C.
AU - Hayes, Patrick E.
AU - Hseu, Zeng-yei
AU - Kirchmair, Martin
AU - Peña-ramírez, Victor M.
AU - Pérez, Cecilia A.
AU - Reed, Sasha C.
AU - Santos, Fernanda
AU - Siebe, Christina
AU - Sullivan, Benjamin W.
AU - Weber-grullon, Luis
AU - Fierer, Noah
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Belowground organisms play critical roles in maintaining multiple ecosystem processes, including plant productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. Despite their importance, we have a limited understanding of how and why belowground biodiversity (bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates) may change as soils develop over centuries to millennia (pedogenesis). Moreover, it is unclear whether belowground biodiversity changes during pedogenesis are similar to the patterns observed for aboveground plant diversity. Herein, we evaluated the role of resource availability, nutrient stoichiometry and soil abiotic factors in driving belowground biodiversity across 16 soil chronosequences (from centuries to millennia) spanning a wide range of globally-distributed ecosystem types. Changes in belowground biodiversity during pedogenesis followed two main patterns. In lower productivity ecosystems (drier and colder), increases in belowground biodiversity tracked increases in plant cover. In more productive ecosystems (wetter and warmer), increased acidification during pedogenesis was associated with declines in belowground biodiversity. Changes in the diversity of bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates with pedogenesis were strongly and positively correlated worldwide, highlighting that belowground biodiversity share similar ecological drivers as soils and ecosystems develop. In general, temporal changes in aboveground plant diversity and belowground biodiversity were not correlated, challenging the common perception that belowground biodiversity should follow similar patterns to those of plant diversity during ecosystem development. Together, our findings provide evidence that ecological patterns in belowground biodiversity are predictable across major globally-distributed ecosystem types, and suggest that shifts in plant cover and soil acidification during ecosystem development are associated with changes in belowground biodiversity over centuries to millennia.
AB - Belowground organisms play critical roles in maintaining multiple ecosystem processes, including plant productivity, decomposition, and nutrient cycling. Despite their importance, we have a limited understanding of how and why belowground biodiversity (bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates) may change as soils develop over centuries to millennia (pedogenesis). Moreover, it is unclear whether belowground biodiversity changes during pedogenesis are similar to the patterns observed for aboveground plant diversity. Herein, we evaluated the role of resource availability, nutrient stoichiometry and soil abiotic factors in driving belowground biodiversity across 16 soil chronosequences (from centuries to millennia) spanning a wide range of globally-distributed ecosystem types. Changes in belowground biodiversity during pedogenesis followed two main patterns. In lower productivity ecosystems (drier and colder), increases in belowground biodiversity tracked increases in plant cover. In more productive ecosystems (wetter and warmer), increased acidification during pedogenesis was associated with declines in belowground biodiversity. Changes in the diversity of bacteria, fungi, protists, and invertebrates with pedogenesis were strongly and positively correlated worldwide, highlighting that belowground biodiversity share similar ecological drivers as soils and ecosystems develop. In general, temporal changes in aboveground plant diversity and belowground biodiversity were not correlated, challenging the common perception that belowground biodiversity should follow similar patterns to those of plant diversity during ecosystem development. Together, our findings provide evidence that ecological patterns in belowground biodiversity are predictable across major globally-distributed ecosystem types, and suggest that shifts in plant cover and soil acidification during ecosystem development are associated with changes in belowground biodiversity over centuries to millennia.
U2 - 10.1073/pnas.1818400116
DO - 10.1073/pnas.1818400116
M3 - Article
SN - 0027-8424
SP - 201818400
JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
ER -