Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The effects of litter quantity and quality on soil nutrients and litter invertebrates in the understory of two forests in southern China

  • Published:
Plant Ecology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We designed and carried out a short-term litter decomposition experiment to test the direct effects of litter manipulations on soil nutrients and litter invertebrates in a tropical lowland forest and a diverse subtropical montane evergreen broad-leaved forest in southern China. Our experimental design involved testing both litter quantity and litter quality. To test for the effects of litter quantity, we manipulated different depths of mixed litter, with and without periodic topping-up. To test for the effects of litter quality, we compared four different species of litter individually with mixed, natural, litter control plots. The response by soil nutrients to these manipulations was monitored using ion-exchange membranes and the response by litter invertebrates was estimated using pitfall traps. We show a clear difference in the available soil nutrients and litter invertebrate composition between the two sites. The only response detected in the more diverse montane forests was an invertebrate response to litter quantity. In contrast, we detected both nutrient and invertebrate responses to litter quantity and an invertebrate response to litter species (quality) in the lower diversity forests. We conclude that many of the differences may be attributed to the general temperature and rainfall conditions at the two sites. At the local scale, differences in soil nutrients and invertebrate abundance may partially be explained by litter quantity and the diversity of the forests, and litter abundance has a more significant impact on soil nutrients and litter invertebrates than litter species composition.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Total N as a sum of NO3 and NH4 levels.

References

  • Aerts R (1997) Climate, leaf litter chemistry and leaf litter decomposition in terrestrial ecosystems: a triangular relationship. Oikos 79:439–449 (ISSN 0030-1299)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arpin P, Ponge JF, Vannier G (1995) Experimental modifications of litter supplies in a forest mull and reaction of the nematode fauna. Fund Appl Nematol 18:371–389 (ISSN 1164-5571195104)

    Google Scholar 

  • Ayres E, Steltzer H, Simmons BL, Simpson RT, Steinweg JM, Wallenstein MD, Mellor N, Parton WJ, Moore JC, Wall DH (2009) Home-field advantage accelerates leaf litter decomposition in forests. Soil Biol Biochem 41:606–610. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2008.12.022

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ball BA, Carrillo Y, Molina M (2014) The influence of litter composition across the litter-soil interface on mass loss, nitrogen dynamics and the decomposer community. Soil Biol Biochem 69:71–82. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2013.10.048

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barajas-Guzmán G, Alvarez-Sánchez J (2003) The relationship between litter fauna and rates of litter decomposition in a tropical rain forest. Appl Soil Ecol 24:91–100. doi:10.1016/S0929-1393(03)00069-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burghouts T, Ernsting G, Korthals G, De Vries T (1992) Litterfall, leaf litter decomposition and litter invertebrates in primary and selectively logged dipterocarp forest in Sabeh, Malaysia. Philos Trans R Soc Lond 335:407–416. doi:10.1098/rstb.1992.0032

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cao M, Zou X, Warren M, Zhu H (2006) Tropical forests of Xishuangbanna, China. Biotropica 38:306–309. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2006.00146.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carrillo Y, Ball BA, Bradford MA, Jordan CF, Molina M (2011) Soil fauna alter the effects of litter composition on nitrogen cycling in a mineral soil. Soil Biol Biochem 43:1440–1449. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2011.03.011

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Carrillo Y, Ball BA, Strickland MS, Bradford MA (2012) Legacies of plant litter on carbon and nitrogen dynamics and the role of the soil community. Pedobiologia 55:185–192. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2012.02.002

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Corbeels M (2001) Plant litter and decomposition: General concepts and model approaches. Paper presented at the NEE workshop proceedings, Canberra, Australia, 18–20 April 2001

  • Couteaux MM, Mousseau M, Celerier ML, Bottner P (1991) Increased atmospheric CO2 and litter quality: decomposition of sweet chestnut leaf litter with animal food webs of different complexities. Oikos 61:54–64. doi:10.2307/3545406

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Couteaux MM, Bottner P, Berg B (1995) Litter decomposition, climate and litter quality. Trends Ecol Evol 10:63–66. doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(00)88978-8

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • David JF, Ponge JF, Arpin P, Vannier G (1991) Reactions of the macrofauna of a forest mull to experimental perturbations of litter supply. Oikos 61:316–326. doi:10.2307/3545239

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gong H, Yang G, Lu Z, Liu Y (2011) Diversity and spatial distribution patterns of trees in an evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Ailao Mountains, Yunnan. Biodivers Sci 19:143–150. doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2011.08313 (in Mandarin with English Abstract)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heal OW, Anderson JM, Swift MJ (1997) Plant litter quality and decomposition: an historical overview. In: Cadisch G, Giller KE (eds) Driven by nature. Plant litter quality and decomposition. CAB International, Wallingford, pp 3–30

    Google Scholar 

  • Hobbie SE, Reich PB, Oleksyn J, Ogdahl M, Zytkowiak R, Hale C, Karolewski P (2006) Tree species effects on decomposition and forest floor dynamics in a common garden. Ecology 87:2288–2297

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hooper DU, Solan M, Symstad A, Diaz S, Gessner MO, Buchmann N, Degrange V, Grime P, Hulot F, Mermillod-Blondin F, Roy J, Spehn E, van Peer L (2002) Species diversity, functional diversity, and ecosystem functioning. In: Loreau M, Naeem S, Inchausti P (eds) Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: synthesis and perspectives. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 195–208

    Google Scholar 

  • Hooper DU, Chapin FS III, Ewel JJ, Hector H, Inchausti P, Lavorel S, Lawton JH, Lodge DM, Loreau M, Naeem S, Schmid B, Setälä H, Symstad AJ, Vandermeer J, Wardle DA (2005) Effects of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning: a consensus of current knowledge. Ecol Monogr 75:3–35

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King RF, Dromph KM, Bardgett RD (2002) Changes in species evenness of litter have no effect on decomposition processes. Soil Biol Biochem 34:1959–1963. doi:10.1016/S0038-0717(02)00204-3

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Li HT, Chen CH, Hong ZL, Huang JC, Chen CY (2012) Chemical constituents from the leaves of Cinnamomum burmannii. Chem Nat Compd 48:873–874. doi:10.1007/s10600-012-0406-y

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu WY, Fox JED, Xu ZF (2000) Leaf litter decomposition of canopy trees, bamboo and moss in a montane moist evergreen broad-leaved forest in Ailao Mountain, Yunnan, south-west China. Ecol Res 15:435–447. doi:10.1046/j.1440-1703.2000.00366.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu WY, Fox JED, Xu ZF (2002) Litterfall and nutrient dynamics in a montane moist evergreen broad-leaved forest in Ailao mountains, SW China. Plant Ecol 164:157–170. doi:10.1023/A:1021201012950

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loranger G, Ponge JF, Lambert D, Lavelle P (2002) Leaf decomposition in two semi-evergreen tropical forests: influence of litter quality. Biol Fertil Soils 35:247–252. doi:10.1007/s00374-002-0467-3

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lu XT, Yin JX, Tang JW (2010) Structure, tree species diversity and composition of tropical seasonal rainforests in Xishuangbanna, South-west China. J Trop For Sci 22:260–270

    Google Scholar 

  • McCune B, Mefford MJ (2006) PC-ORD: multivariate analysis of ecological data, version 5.31. MjM Software, Gleneden Beach

    Google Scholar 

  • Negrete-Yankelevich S, Fragoso C, Newton AC, Russell G, Heal OW (2008) Species-specific characteristics of trees can determine the litter macroinvertebrate community and decomposition process below their canopies. Plant Soil 307:83–97. doi:10.1007/s11104-008-9585-5

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Orwin KH, Wardle DA, Greenfield LG (2006) Context-dependent changes in the resistance and resilience of soil microbes to an experimental disturbance for three primary plant chronosequences. Oikos 112:196–208. doi:10.1111/j.0030-1299.2006.13813.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parton W, Silver WL, Burke IC, Grassens L, Harmon ME, Currie WS, King JY, Adair EC, Brandt LA, Hart SC, Fasth B (2007) Global-scale similarities in nitrogen release patterns during long-term decomposition. Science 315:361–364. doi:10.1126/science.1134853

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Penuelas J, Sardans J, Llusia J, Owen SM, Silva J, Niinemets U (2010) Higher allocation to low cost chemical defenses in invasive species of Hawaii. J Chem Ecol 36:1255–1270. doi:10.1007/s10886-010-9862-7

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Qian P, Schoenau JJ (2002) Practical applications of ion exchange resins in agricultural and environmental soil research. Can J Soil Sci 82:9–21. doi:10.4141/S00-091

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Qiu XZ, Xie SC, Liu WY (1998) Studies on the forest ecosystem in Ailao Mountains, Yunnan, China. Yunnan Sciences and Technology Press, Kunming

    Google Scholar 

  • Richardson BA, Richardson MJ, Soto-Adames FN (2005) Separating the effects of forest type and elevation on the diversity of litter invertebrate communities in a humid tropical forest in Puerto Rico. J Anim Ecol 74:926–936. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2656.2005.00990.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodriguez-Castaneda G, Dyer LA, Brehm G, Connahs H, Forkner RE, Walla TR (2010) Tropical forests are not flat: how mountains affect herbivore diversity. Ecol Lett 13:1348–1357. doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01525.x

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sayer EJ (2006) Using experimental manipulation to assess the roles of leaf litter in the functioning of forest ecosystems. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 81:1–31. doi:10.1017/S1464793105006846

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sayer EJ, Tanner EVJ, Lacey AL (2006) Effects of litter manipulation on early-stage decomposition and meso-arthropod abundance in a tropical moist forest. For Ecol Manag 229:285–293. doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2006.04.007

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sayer EJ, Sutcliffe LME, Ross RIC, Tanner EVJ (2010) Arthropod abundance and diversity in a lowland tropical forest floor in Panama: the role of habitat space vs. nutrient concentrations. Biotropica 42:194–200. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00576.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sayer EJ, Wright SJ, Tanner EVJ, Yavitt JB, Harms KE, Powers JS, Kaspari M, Garcia MN, Turner BL (2012) Variable responses of lowland tropical forest nutrient status to fertilization and litter manipulation. Ecosystems 15:387–400. doi:10.1007/s10021-011-9516-9

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • SPSS Statistics (2011) SPSS 20.0 SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL

  • Strickland MS, Lauber C, Fierer N, Bradford MA (2009) Testing the functional significance of microbial community composition. Ecology 90:441–451. doi:10.1890/08-0296.1

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sylvain ZA, Wall DH (2011) Linking soil biochemistry and vegetation: implications for a changing planet. Am J Bot 98:517–527. doi:10.3732/ajb.1000305

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tanner EVJ, Vitousek PM, Cuevas E (1998) Experimental investigation of nutrient limitations of forest growth on wet tropical mountains. Ecology 79:10–22. doi:10.2307/176860

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Uetz GW (1979) The influence of variation in litter habitats on spider communities. Oecologia 40:29–42. doi:10.1007/BF00388808

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vitousek PM, Sanford RL (1986) Nutrient cycling in moist tropical forest. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 17:137–167. doi:10.1146/annurev.es.17.110186.001033

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker B, Kinzig A, Langridge J (1999) Plant attribute diversity, resilience, and ecosystem function: the nature and significance of dominant and minor species. Ecosystems 2:95–113. doi:10.1007/s100219900062

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wardle DA, Yeates GW, Barker GM, Bonner KI (2006) The influence of plant litter diversity on decomposer abundance and diversity. Soil Biol Biochem 38:1052–1062. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2005.09.003

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yang XD (2004) Dynamics and community structure of soil meso-microarthropods during leaf litter decomposition in tropical seasonal rain forests of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan. Biodivers Sci 12:252–261

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang XD, Chen J (2009) Plant litter quality influences the contribution of soil fauna to litter decomposition in humid tropical forests, southwestern China. Soil Biol Biochem 41:910–918. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2008.12.028

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yang XD, Warren M, Zhou XM (2007) Fertilization responses of soil litter fauna and litter quantity, quality, and turnover in low and high elevation forests of Puerto Rico. Appl Soil Ecol 37:63–71. doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2007.03.012

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Young SS, Herwitz SR (1995) Floristic diversity and co-occurrences in a subtropical broad-leaved forest and two contrasting regrowth stands in central-west Yunnan Province, China. Vegetation 119:1–13. doi:10.1007/BF00047366

    Google Scholar 

  • Young SS, Carpenter C, Zhi-Jun W (1992) A study of the structure and composition of an old growth and secondary broad-leaved forest in the Ailao Mountains of Yunnan, China. Mt Res Dev 12:269–284. doi:10.2307/3673670

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang RQ, Sun ZJ, Wang C, Yuan TY (2009) Ecological process of leaf litter decomposition in tropical rainforest in Xishuangbanna, southwest China. III. Enzyme dynamics. Front For China 4:28–37. doi:10.1007/s11461-009-0012-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zheng Z, Shanmughavel P, Sha LQ, Cao M, Warren M (2006) Litter decomposition and nutrient release in a tropical seasonal rain forest of Xishuangbanna, Southwest China. Biotropica 38:342–347. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2006.00151.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhu H, Cao M, Hu HB (2006) Geological history, flora, and vegetation of Xishuangbanna, southern Yunnan, China. Biotropica 38:310–317. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2006.00147.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (to RT), the National Basic Research Program of China, 973 Program (No. 2012CB821900; to ZZ-K) and the CAS 135 program (XTBG-F01; to ZZ-K). We are grateful to those who helped in the field (Hu Jin Jin, Wang Li, Su Tao, Mr. Luo, Lainie Qie, Hu Qian, Liu Qiang, Li Jiangwu, and Lu Yun), and those who provided statistical advice (Bill Harrower, Jennie McLaren, Lizzie Wolkovich, and Kyle Demes). We are especially grateful to the staff at both Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, and the Ailaoshan Forest Ecosystem Research Station for logistical support and for the use of labs and equipment.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Botany Department, and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z4, Canada

    Jessica Lu & Roy Turkington

  2. Key Laboratory of Biodiversity and Biogeography, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650201, China

    Zhe-kun Zhou

  3. Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun, Mengla, 666303, Yunnan, China

    Zhe-kun Zhou

Authors
  1. Jessica Lu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Roy Turkington
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Zhe-kun Zhou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jessica Lu.

Additional information

Communicated by Prof. Lauchlan Fraser, Dr. Chris Lortie and Dr. JC Cahill.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 109 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lu, J., Turkington, R. & Zhou, Zk. The effects of litter quantity and quality on soil nutrients and litter invertebrates in the understory of two forests in southern China. Plant Ecol 217, 1415–1428 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-016-0600-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-016-0600-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation