Tag: Ecosystem ecology

ecosystems ecology

Change on the Range: Plant species loss from over-grazing will reduce rangeland carbon storage

Anvar Sanaei, Emma J. Sayer, Zuoqiang Yuan, Hugo Saiz,Manuel Delgado-Baquerizo,Majid Sadeghinia, Parvaneh Ashouri, Sahar Ghafari, Hasan Kaboli, Mansoureh Kargar, Eric W. Seabloom, Arshad Ali This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Livestock grazing in rangelands supports the livelihoods of millions of people in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Unfortunately, over-grazing and climate change … Continue reading Change on the Range: Plant species loss from over-grazing will reduce rangeland carbon storage

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ecosystems ecology

Interactions between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and rhizosphere bacteria increase plant growth

Yunjian Xu, Zhe Chen, Xiaoyu Li, Jing Tan, Fang Liu, Jianping Wu This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. The rhizosphere is defined as the narrow region of soil that surrounds and is influenced by the roots of a plant. Plant roots release exudates into the rhizosphere attracting microorganisms that feed on them. Arbuscular mycorrhizal … Continue reading Interactions between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and rhizosphere bacteria increase plant growth

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ecosystems ecology

Where does organic matter go once it reaches the soil?

Carlos Lozano Fondón, Marco Scotti, Michele Innangi, Cristina Bondavalli, Anna De Marco, Amalia Virzo De Santo, Antonietta Fioretto, Cristina Menta, Antoni Bodini This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Soils host a great variety of organisms that eat each other so that multiple feeding relationships arise through which organic matter is being processed. The transformation … Continue reading Where does organic matter go once it reaches the soil?

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Ecosystem Engineers, Reviews

Ghosts of animals, plants, and microbes: How organisms affect the environment after they’re gone

Lindsey K. Albertson, Leonard S. Sklar, Benjamin B. Tumolo, Wyatt F. Cross, Scott F. Collins, H. Arthur Woods This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology review article which can be found here. Living organisms change the environment in many ways. Beavers create dams for themselves, and these small impoundments and pools they form are habitat for many other organisms. Corals build reefs that … Continue reading Ghosts of animals, plants, and microbes: How organisms affect the environment after they’re gone

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ecosystems ecology

Biocrusts reduce response of microbial C decomposition to increasing temperature compared with bare soil in dryland

Gang Huang, Yan-gui Su＊, Guo-peng Wu, Zheng-yi Huang, Si-nuo Lin, Hao Cheng This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Biocrusts are universal in drylands and are found on the soil surface and in the top few millimeters to centimeters of soil. They are composed of cyanobacteria, lichens, mosses, and algae in different proportions and can … Continue reading Biocrusts reduce response of microbial C decomposition to increasing temperature compared with bare soil in dryland

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ecosystems ecology

Soil carbon is related to tree growth strategy in naturally regenerating tropical forests

Abby Wallwork, Lindsay F. Banin, Daisy H. Dent, Ute Skiba, Emma Sayer This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Forests which are left to naturally regenerate following human disturbance now make up over half of all remaining tropical forest and are increasingly important for their role in the global carbon budget. During forest regrowth, carbon … Continue reading Soil carbon is related to tree growth strategy in naturally regenerating tropical forests

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ecosystems ecology

Specific impact of mesozooplankton feeding strategies on carbon flows

Blanche Saint-Béat, Gérald Darnis, Maxime Leclerc, Marcel Babin, Frederic Maps This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Through their feeding interactions, Arctic marine organisms regulate the transfer of carbon produced during the short summer season and drive the functioning of Arctic marine ecosystems. Mesozooplankton—small animals drifting in oceanic currents—form a crucial hub of matter and … Continue reading Specific impact of mesozooplankton feeding strategies on carbon flows

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ecosystems ecology

What happens to coral colonies after death? Exploring erosion of dead coral colonies

Juliano Morais, Renato Morais, Sterling B. Tebbett, David R. Bellwood This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. One of the main things people may have heard about corals in recent years is that they are dying due to coral bleaching events. Coral bleaching occurs when corals are exposed to high water temperatures for too long. … Continue reading What happens to coral colonies after death? Exploring erosion of dead coral colonies

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ecosystems ecology

Soil nitrogen supply capacity of different plateau grasslands 

Shuya Hu, Changhui Wang, Anita C Risch, Yuan Liu, Yang Li, Lei Li, Xiaohui Xu, Nianpeng He, Xingguo Han, Jianhui Huang This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. Soil nitrogen (N) supply capacity is a key biogeochemical process influencing plant available N and net primary productivity (NPP) in terrestrial ecosystems. However, the spatial variations and … Continue reading Soil nitrogen supply capacity of different plateau grasslands 

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ecosystems ecology

Environmental filtering of macroinvertebrate traits influences ecosystem functioning in a large river floodplain

Natalie K. Rideout, Zacchaeus G. Compson, Wendy A. Monk, Meghann R. Bruce, Mehrdad Hajibabaei, Teresita M. Porter, Michael T.G. Wright, Donald J. Baird This is a plain language summary of a Functional Ecology research article which can be found here. As we enter the Anthropocene, reversing biodiversity loss will require a more inclusive view of nature: to conserve ‘charismatic megafauna’, we must also be mindful … Continue reading Environmental filtering of macroinvertebrate traits influences ecosystem functioning in a large river floodplain

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