Soil community history strengthens belowground multitrophic functioning across plant diversity levels in a grassland experiment

Angelos Amyntas (), Nico Eisenhauer, Stefan Scheu, Bernhard Klarner, Krassimira Ilieva-Makulec, Anna-Maria Madaj, Benoit Gauzens, Jingyi Li, Anton M. Potapov, Benjamin Rosenbaum, Leonardo Bassi, Pamela Medina Berkum and Ulrich Brose
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Angelos Amyntas: Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Nico Eisenhauer: German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Stefan Scheu: University of Göttingen
Bernhard Klarner: University of Göttingen
Krassimira Ilieva-Makulec: Cardinal St. Wyszynski University
Anna-Maria Madaj: German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Benoit Gauzens: Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Jingyi Li: Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Anton M. Potapov: German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Benjamin Rosenbaum: Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Leonardo Bassi: Leipzig University
Pamela Medina Berkum: Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology
Ulrich Brose: Friedrich Schiller University Jena

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract Biodiversity experiments revealed that plant diversity loss can decrease ecosystem functions across trophic levels. To address why such biodiversity-function relationships strengthen over time, we established experimental mesocosms replicating a gradient in plant species richness across treatments of shared versus non-shared history of (1) the plant community and (2) the soil fauna community. After 4 months, we assessed the multitrophic functioning of soil fauna via biomass stocks and energy fluxes across the food webs. We find that soil community history significantly enhanced belowground multitrophic function via changes in biomass stocks and community-average body masses across the food webs. However, variation in plant diversity and plant community history had unclear effects. Our findings underscore the importance of long-term community assembly processes for soil fauna-driven ecosystem function, with species richness and short-term plant adaptations playing a minimal role. Disturbances that disrupt soil community stability may hinder fauna-driven ecosystem functions, while recovery may require several years.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-54401-z

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