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The Effects of Soil Bacterial Community Structure on Decomposition in a Tropical Rain Forest

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Abstract

Soil microorganisms are key drivers of terrestrial biogeochemical cycles, yet it is still unclear how variations in soil microbial community composition influence many ecosystem processes. We investigated how shifts in bacterial community composition and diversity resulting from differences in carbon (C) availability affect organic matter decomposition by conducting an in situ litter manipulation experiment in a tropical rain forest in Costa Rica. We used bar-coded pyrosequencing to characterize soil bacterial community composition in litter manipulation plots and performed a series of laboratory incubations to test the potential functional significance of community shifts on organic matter decomposition. Despite clear effects of the litter manipulation on soil bacterial community composition, the treatments had mixed effects on microbial community function. Distinct communities varied in their ability to decompose a wide range of C compounds, and functional differences were related to both the relative abundance of the two most abundant bacterial sub-phyla (Acidobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria) and to variations in bacterial alpha-diversity. However, distinct communities did not differ in their ability to decompose native dissolved organic matter (DOM) substrates that varied in quality and quantity. Our results show that although resource-driven shifts in soil bacterial community composition have the potential to influence decomposition of specific C substrates, those differences may not translate to differences in DOM decomposition rates in situ. Taken together, our results suggest that soil bacterial communities may be either functionally dissimilar or equivalent during decomposition depending on the nature of the organic matter being decomposed.

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Acknowledgments

We thank W. Combronero-Castro, W. Wieder, and P. Taylor for assistance with field work, F. Campos Rivera, the Organización para Estudios Tropicales (OET) and the Ministerio de Ambiente y Energia (MINAE) for assisting with research permits and providing logistical support in Costa Rica. We would also like to thank Marleny Jimenez and the Drake Bay Wilderness Camp for their generous access to field sites. We are very grateful for advice from N. Fierer and S. Reed and laboratory assistance and advice provided by Gaddy Bergmann, J. Aylward, S. Castle, T. Dietzler, A. Keller, M. Keville, S. Reed, and S. Weintraub. A National Science Foundation (DEB-0852916) grant to C.C., D.N. and A.T. and an A.W. Mellon Foundation grant to C.C. supported this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences, College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, 59812, USA

    Jonathan W. Leff & Cory C. Cleveland

  2. Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research and Environmental Study Program, University of Colorado, Campus Box 450, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA

    Diana R. Nemergut

  3. Department of Natural Resources and Environment, University of New Hampshire, G66 James Hall Durham, Durham, New Hampshire, 03824, USA

    A. Stuart Grandy & Kyle Wickings

  4. Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Campus Box 450, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA

    Sean P. O’Neill

  5. Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Study Program, University of Colorado, Campus Box 450, Boulder, Colorado, 80309, USA

    Alan R. Townsend

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  1. Jonathan W. Leff
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  2. Diana R. Nemergut
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  3. A. Stuart Grandy
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  4. Sean P. O’Neill
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  7. Cory C. Cleveland
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Correspondence to Cory C. Cleveland.

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JL, DN, AT, and CC conceived of or designed the study, JL, SG, SO, and KW performed research and analyzed data, and JL, AT, and CC took the lead on writing the manuscript with feedback from all other authors.

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Leff, J.W., Nemergut, D.R., Grandy, A.S. et al. The Effects of Soil Bacterial Community Structure on Decomposition in a Tropical Rain Forest. Ecosystems 15, 284–298 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-011-9510-2

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