Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment
Heavy grazing and trampling by reindeer increase nutrient cycling and primary production in areas where grasslands have replaced shrub and moss tundra. One way in which herbivores can affect nutrient cycling is through changing the litter decomposition processes. We studied the effect of herbivory o...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1034%2Fj.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x |
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crwiley:10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x 2024-09-30T14:33:11+00:00 Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment Olofsson, Johan Oksanen, Lauri 2002 http://dx.doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1034%2Fj.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Oikos volume 96, issue 3, page 507-515 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 journal-article 2002 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x 2024-09-17T04:45:42Z Heavy grazing and trampling by reindeer increase nutrient cycling and primary production in areas where grasslands have replaced shrub and moss tundra. One way in which herbivores can affect nutrient cycling is through changing the litter decomposition processes. We studied the effect of herbivory on litter decomposition rate by reciprocal transplantation of litter between lightly grazed and heavily grazed areas, using the litterbag technique. We used litter from two of the most common species on the lightly grazed side, Betula nana and Empetrum nigrum , and two of the most common species on the heavily grazed side, Carex bigelowii and Deschampsia flexuosa . We found that herbivory improved litter quality by favouring species with easily decomposed litter. However, herbivory also improved litter quality by increasing the nitrogen content and lowering the C/N ratio of each species. Decomposition rates even correlated with the abundance of the plant category in question. Shrub litter decomposed faster in the lightly grazed area where shrubs were common, and graminoid litter decomposed faster in the heavily grazed area where graminoids were common. These results indicate that the decomposer micro‐organisms are adapted to the most common litter types. This study shows that detailed information about the effect of herbivory on litter quality is important to understand differences between the short‐term and long‐term effects of herbivory on nutrient cycling and primary production. Article in Journal/Newspaper Betula nana Carex bigelowii Empetrum nigrum Tundra Wiley Online Library Oikos 96 3 507 515 |
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Open Polar |
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Wiley Online Library |
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crwiley |
language |
English |
description |
Heavy grazing and trampling by reindeer increase nutrient cycling and primary production in areas where grasslands have replaced shrub and moss tundra. One way in which herbivores can affect nutrient cycling is through changing the litter decomposition processes. We studied the effect of herbivory on litter decomposition rate by reciprocal transplantation of litter between lightly grazed and heavily grazed areas, using the litterbag technique. We used litter from two of the most common species on the lightly grazed side, Betula nana and Empetrum nigrum , and two of the most common species on the heavily grazed side, Carex bigelowii and Deschampsia flexuosa . We found that herbivory improved litter quality by favouring species with easily decomposed litter. However, herbivory also improved litter quality by increasing the nitrogen content and lowering the C/N ratio of each species. Decomposition rates even correlated with the abundance of the plant category in question. Shrub litter decomposed faster in the lightly grazed area where shrubs were common, and graminoid litter decomposed faster in the heavily grazed area where graminoids were common. These results indicate that the decomposer micro‐organisms are adapted to the most common litter types. This study shows that detailed information about the effect of herbivory on litter quality is important to understand differences between the short‐term and long‐term effects of herbivory on nutrient cycling and primary production. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Olofsson, Johan Oksanen, Lauri |
spellingShingle |
Olofsson, Johan Oksanen, Lauri Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
author_facet |
Olofsson, Johan Oksanen, Lauri |
author_sort |
Olofsson, Johan |
title |
Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
title_short |
Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
title_full |
Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
title_fullStr |
Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
title_full_unstemmed |
Role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
title_sort |
role of litter decomposition for the increased primary production in areas heavily grazed by reindeer: a litterbag experiment |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2002 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1034%2Fj.1600-0706.2002.960312.x https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x |
genre |
Betula nana Carex bigelowii Empetrum nigrum Tundra |
genre_facet |
Betula nana Carex bigelowii Empetrum nigrum Tundra |
op_source |
Oikos volume 96, issue 3, page 507-515 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960312.x |
container_title |
Oikos |
container_volume |
96 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
507 |
op_container_end_page |
515 |
_version_ |
1811637161040019456 |