Speaker
Description
Global change is altering above-belowground multitrophic communities, and this has consequences for ecosystem processes and multifunctionality. The ecosystem-wide effects of such changes depend on the joint interplay of various taxa and their ecological interactions. Our aim is to investigate how above-belowground multifunctionality, multitrophic interaction networks, and energy fluxes respond to aboveground invertebrate decline. Firstly, through data from Insect Armageddon, an iDiv Ecotron Experiment, we will investigate the effects of aboveground invertebrate biomass decline on ecosystem functioning. Secondly, through BadBug, a field experiment in the global BugNet consortium, we will investigate the effects of aboveground insect\mollusc\pathogenic fungi exclusions on ecosystem functioning. Lastly, in FunDrought, another iDiv Ecotron experiment, we have manipulated the structure of the soil communities, under drought stress, and different tree mycorrhizal types, to investigate if there is a causal relationship between soil community structure and ecosystem functioning. Soil microbial respiration, PLFA\NLFA extractions, nematode, mesofauna and macrofauna extraction\sorting\identification, are some of the approaches that will be utilized. For assessing multifunctionality, energy fluxes will be calculated by reconstructing the soil food webs, to quantify the degree to which each treatment provisions integral ecosystem functions, like belowground decomposition, herbivory and predation. Treatments with more diverse aboveground communities, will show more diverse soil fauna, higher microbial biomass and less changes in fatty acid profiles in time, indicating resilience to environmental change. Additionally, more diverse soil communities will be able to simultaneously support high levels of belowground decomposition, productivity, and predation, as measured with the energy flux approach. The results of this study will highlight the importance of soil biodiversity, since Integral ecosystem functions like decomposition and plant productivity are mediated or solely provisioned by the belowground “compartment” of the ecosystems, and yet, we do not know much about how and to which extent this is currently being influenced by global change.
| Status Group | Doctoral Researcher |
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