Abstract
Amazonian forest fragments and second-growth forests often differ substantially from undisturbed forests in their microclimate, plant-species composition, and soil fauna. To determine if these changes could affect litter decomposition, we quantified the mass loss of two contrasting leaf-litter mixtures, in the presence or absence of soil macroinvertebrates, and in three forest habitats. Leaf-litter decomposition rates in second-growth forests (>10 years old) and in fragment edges (<100 m from the edge) did not differ from that in the forest interior (>250 m from the edges of primary forests). In all three habitats, experimental exclusion of soil invertebrates resulted in slower decomposition rates. Faunal-exclosure effects were stronger for litter of the primary forest, composed mostly of leaves of old-growth trees, than for litter of second-growth forests, which was dominated by leaves of successional species. The latter had a significantly lower initial concentration of N, higher C:N and lignin:N ratios, and decomposed at a slower rate than did litter from forest interiors. Our results indicate that land-cover changes in Amazonia affect decomposition mainly through changes in plant species composition, which in turn affect litter quality. Similar effects may occur on fragment edges, particularly on very disturbed edges, where successional trees become dominant. The drier microclimatic conditions in fragment edges and second-growth forests (>10 years old) did not appear to inhibit decomposition. Finally, although soil invertebrates play a key role in leaf-litter decomposition, we found no evidence that differences in the abundance, species richness, or species composition of invertebrates between disturbed and undisturbed forests significantly altered decomposition rates.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Goetz Schroth and two anonymous referees for comments on an early draft of the manuscript, and Emilio Bruna for kindly providing his microclimatic data. We also thank Tânia Pimentel for helping with the chemical analyses, and José Tenaçol Jr. for his assistance in the field. Financial support was provided by the Brazilian Long Term Ecological Research Project (PELD/CNPq), the NASA-LBA Program, and the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (INPA/Smithsonian). This is contribution 437 to the BDFFP technical series.
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Vasconcelos, H.L., Laurance, W.F. Influence of habitat, litter type, and soil invertebrates on leaf-litter decomposition in a fragmented Amazonian landscape. Oecologia 144, 456–462 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0117-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0117-1