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Bottom-up or top-down control in forest soil microcosms? Effects of soil fauna on fungal biomass and C/N mineralisation

Lenoir, L ; Persson, T ; Bengtsson, J ; Wallander, Håkan LU orcid and Wiren, A (2007) In Biology and Fertility of Soils 43(3). p.281-294
Abstract
A major question in soil ecology is whether soil food webs are regulated by resources or by predators, i.e. bottom-up (donor) or top-down controlled. We tested the hypothesis that meso- and macrofaunal soil predators can regulate fungivore populations and, thereby cause a top-down cascade effect on fungal biomass and decomposition/mineralisation processes in boreal forest soils. The study was performed as a microcosm experiment with two contrasting soils (humus layers), one poor and one rich in N, and with different combinations of fungivore and predator soil fauna added to "defaunated" soil. In comparison with control microcosms lacking mesofauna (but with nematodes and protozoans), the presence of a diverse Collembola and Oribatida... (More)
A major question in soil ecology is whether soil food webs are regulated by resources or by predators, i.e. bottom-up (donor) or top-down controlled. We tested the hypothesis that meso- and macrofaunal soil predators can regulate fungivore populations and, thereby cause a top-down cascade effect on fungal biomass and decomposition/mineralisation processes in boreal forest soils. The study was performed as a microcosm experiment with two contrasting soils (humus layers), one poor and one rich in N, and with different combinations of fungivore and predator soil fauna added to "defaunated" soil. In comparison with control microcosms lacking mesofauna (but with nematodes and protozoans), the presence of a diverse Collembola and Oribatida fungivore community significantly reduced the FDA-active fungal biomass or tended to reduce the ergosterol fraction of the fungal biomass in the N-poor humus, but no clear effect could be detected in the N-rich humus. Fungivores as well as fungivores plus predators (a predator community consisting of gamasids, spiders and beetles or a subset thereof) reduced C mineralisation and increased net N mineralisation in both soils. The presence of predators (particularly gamasid mites) reduced collembolan numbers and alleviated the negative effect of fungivores on fungal biomass in the N-poor soil. In the N-rich soil, the presence of predators increased fungal biomass (ergosterol) in relation to the "defaunated" soil. Therefore, a top-down trophic cascade could be detected in the N-poor humus but not in the N-rich humus. Our results suggest that the degree of top-down control in soil fauna communities depends on resource quality and soil fertility. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
trophic cascade, top-down, gamasina, oribatida, collembola
in
Biology and Fertility of Soils
volume
43
issue
3
pages
281 - 294
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • wos:000243031300002
  • scopus:33845870940
ISSN
0178-2762
DOI
10.1007/s00374-006-0103-8
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
08c901c2-a6bb-4ea8-9178-da093a7c3093 (old id 167251)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 12:09:38
date last changed
2024-04-09 03:19:37
@article{08c901c2-a6bb-4ea8-9178-da093a7c3093,
  abstract     = {{A major question in soil ecology is whether soil food webs are regulated by resources or by predators, i.e. bottom-up (donor) or top-down controlled. We tested the hypothesis that meso- and macrofaunal soil predators can regulate fungivore populations and, thereby cause a top-down cascade effect on fungal biomass and decomposition/mineralisation processes in boreal forest soils. The study was performed as a microcosm experiment with two contrasting soils (humus layers), one poor and one rich in N, and with different combinations of fungivore and predator soil fauna added to "defaunated" soil. In comparison with control microcosms lacking mesofauna (but with nematodes and protozoans), the presence of a diverse Collembola and Oribatida fungivore community significantly reduced the FDA-active fungal biomass or tended to reduce the ergosterol fraction of the fungal biomass in the N-poor humus, but no clear effect could be detected in the N-rich humus. Fungivores as well as fungivores plus predators (a predator community consisting of gamasids, spiders and beetles or a subset thereof) reduced C mineralisation and increased net N mineralisation in both soils. The presence of predators (particularly gamasid mites) reduced collembolan numbers and alleviated the negative effect of fungivores on fungal biomass in the N-poor soil. In the N-rich soil, the presence of predators increased fungal biomass (ergosterol) in relation to the "defaunated" soil. Therefore, a top-down trophic cascade could be detected in the N-poor humus but not in the N-rich humus. Our results suggest that the degree of top-down control in soil fauna communities depends on resource quality and soil fertility.}},
  author       = {{Lenoir, L and Persson, T and Bengtsson, J and Wallander, Håkan and Wiren, A}},
  issn         = {{0178-2762}},
  keywords     = {{trophic cascade; top-down; gamasina; oribatida; collembola}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{281--294}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Biology and Fertility of Soils}},
  title        = {{Bottom-up or top-down control in forest soil microcosms? Effects of soil fauna on fungal biomass and C/N mineralisation}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00374-006-0103-8}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s00374-006-0103-8}},
  volume       = {{43}},
  year         = {{2007}},
}