Journal Article

Biotic and abiotic variables influencing plant litter breakdown in streams: a global study

Catherine M. Pringle, José F. Gonçalves, Tomoya Iwata, Charles M'Erimba, Leon A. Barmuta, David Dudgeon, Markos A. Alexandrou, Ricardo J. Albariño, Catherine M. Yule, Ricardo Figueroa, Luz Boyero, Alonso Ramírez, Tajang Jinggut, Marcelo S. Moretti, Andrea C. Encalada, Richard G. Pearson, Lavenia Ratnarajah, Cang Hui, Muthukumarasamy Arunachalam, Jude M. Mathooko, Russell G. Death, Eric Chauvet, Alexander S. Flecker, Verónica Ferreira, Julie E. Helson, Bradley J. Cardinale, Catherine Mathuriau, Manuel A. S. Graça, Marcos Callisto, Andreas Bruder, Javier Pérez, Andrew J. Boulton, Mark O. Gessner, José Rincón

2016

Overview

Plant litter breakdown is a key ecological process in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. Streams and rivers, in particular, contribute substantially to global carbon fluxes. However, there is little information available on the relative roles of different drivers of plant litter breakdown in fresh waters, particularly at large scales. We present a global-scale study of litter breakdown in streams to compare the roles of biotic, climatic and other environmental factors on breakdown rates. We conducted an experiment in 24 streams encompassing latitudes from 47.8° N to 42.8° S, using litter mixtures of local species differing in quality and phylogenetic diversity (PD), and alder (Alnus glutinosa) to control for variation in litter traits. Our models revealed that breakdown of alder was driven by climate, with some influence of pH, whereas variation in breakdown of litter mixtures was explained mainly by litter quality and PD. Effects of litter quality and PD and stream pH were more positive at higher temperatures, indicating that different mechanisms may operate at different latitudes. These results reflect global variability caused by multiple factors, but unexplained variance points to the need for expanded global-scale comparisons.

• Publisher: The Royal Society,Royal Society, The
• Subject: [SDV.EE] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment / [SDV.EE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology / Biodegradation, Environmental / Biodiversity / Biota / Carbon Cycle / Climate / Decomposition / Detritivore Shredders / Ecologie / Ecologie, Environnement / Ecology, environment / Ecosystem / environment / Environnement / FoR 06 (Biological Sciences) / FoR 07 (Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences) / FoR 11 (Medical and Health Sciences) / Hydrogen-Ion Concentration / Latitudinal Gradient / Life Sciences / Litter Quality / Phylogeny / Plants / Rivers