Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland
Insects are major conduits of resources moving from aquatic to terrestrial systems. While the ecological impacts of insect subsidies are well documented, the underlying mechanisms by which these resources change recipient ecosystems remain poorly understood. Most subsidy inputs enter terrestrial sys...
Published in: | Oikos |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Wiley
2021
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/oik.08032 |
id |
crwiley:10.1111/oik.08032 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
crwiley:10.1111/oik.08032 2024-03-24T09:02:52+00:00 Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland McCary, Matthew A. Kasprzak, Madeline D. Botsch, Jamieson C. Hoekman, David Jackson, Randall D. Gratton, Claudio 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/oik.08032 en eng Wiley http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor Oikos volume 130, issue 9, page 1523-1534 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics journal-article 2021 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.08032 2024-02-28T02:18:32Z Insects are major conduits of resources moving from aquatic to terrestrial systems. While the ecological impacts of insect subsidies are well documented, the underlying mechanisms by which these resources change recipient ecosystems remain poorly understood. Most subsidy inputs enter terrestrial systems as detritus; thus, soil microbes will likely influence the processing of insect subsidies, with implications for plant community composition and net primary productivity (NPP). In a subarctic ecosystem near Lake Mývatn, Iceland where midge (Diptera: Chironomidae) deposition to land is high, we investigated how insect subsidies affected litter processing and microbial communities. We also evaluated how those belowground effects related to changes in inorganic nitrogen, plant composition and NPP. We simulated subsidies by adding midge carcasses to 1‐m 2 heathland plots, where we measured effects on decomposition rates and the plant community. We then studied how fertilization treatments (control, KNO 3 and midge‐carcass addition) affected graminoid biomass and inorganic nitrogen in greenhouse experiments. Lastly, we conducted a soil‐incubation study with a phospholipid fatty acid analysis (PLFA) to examine how midge addition to heathland soils affected microbial respiration, biomass and composition. We found that midge addition to heathland soils increased litter decomposition and graminoid plant cover by 2.6× and 2×, respectively. Greenhouse experiments revealed similar patterns, with midge carcasses increasing graminoid biomass by at least 2× and NH 4 + concentrations by 7×. Our soil‐incubation study found that midge carcasses elevated microbial respiration by 64%, microbial biomass by 43% and shifted microbial functional composition. Our findings indicate that insect subsidies can stimulate soil microbial communities and litter decomposition in subarctic heathlands, leading to increased NPP and changes in plant community composition. Article in Journal/Newspaper Iceland Mývatn Subarctic Wiley Online Library Mývatn ENVELOPE(-16.985,-16.985,65.600,65.600) Oikos |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Wiley Online Library |
op_collection_id |
crwiley |
language |
English |
topic |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
spellingShingle |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics McCary, Matthew A. Kasprzak, Madeline D. Botsch, Jamieson C. Hoekman, David Jackson, Randall D. Gratton, Claudio Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
topic_facet |
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics |
description |
Insects are major conduits of resources moving from aquatic to terrestrial systems. While the ecological impacts of insect subsidies are well documented, the underlying mechanisms by which these resources change recipient ecosystems remain poorly understood. Most subsidy inputs enter terrestrial systems as detritus; thus, soil microbes will likely influence the processing of insect subsidies, with implications for plant community composition and net primary productivity (NPP). In a subarctic ecosystem near Lake Mývatn, Iceland where midge (Diptera: Chironomidae) deposition to land is high, we investigated how insect subsidies affected litter processing and microbial communities. We also evaluated how those belowground effects related to changes in inorganic nitrogen, plant composition and NPP. We simulated subsidies by adding midge carcasses to 1‐m 2 heathland plots, where we measured effects on decomposition rates and the plant community. We then studied how fertilization treatments (control, KNO 3 and midge‐carcass addition) affected graminoid biomass and inorganic nitrogen in greenhouse experiments. Lastly, we conducted a soil‐incubation study with a phospholipid fatty acid analysis (PLFA) to examine how midge addition to heathland soils affected microbial respiration, biomass and composition. We found that midge addition to heathland soils increased litter decomposition and graminoid plant cover by 2.6× and 2×, respectively. Greenhouse experiments revealed similar patterns, with midge carcasses increasing graminoid biomass by at least 2× and NH 4 + concentrations by 7×. Our soil‐incubation study found that midge carcasses elevated microbial respiration by 64%, microbial biomass by 43% and shifted microbial functional composition. Our findings indicate that insect subsidies can stimulate soil microbial communities and litter decomposition in subarctic heathlands, leading to increased NPP and changes in plant community composition. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
McCary, Matthew A. Kasprzak, Madeline D. Botsch, Jamieson C. Hoekman, David Jackson, Randall D. Gratton, Claudio |
author_facet |
McCary, Matthew A. Kasprzak, Madeline D. Botsch, Jamieson C. Hoekman, David Jackson, Randall D. Gratton, Claudio |
author_sort |
McCary, Matthew A. |
title |
Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
title_short |
Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
title_full |
Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
title_fullStr |
Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
title_full_unstemmed |
Aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
title_sort |
aquatic insect subsidies influence microbial composition and processing of detritus in near‐shore subarctic heathland |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/oik.08032 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/oik.08032 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-16.985,-16.985,65.600,65.600) |
geographic |
Mývatn |
geographic_facet |
Mývatn |
genre |
Iceland Mývatn Subarctic |
genre_facet |
Iceland Mývatn Subarctic |
op_source |
Oikos volume 130, issue 9, page 1523-1534 ISSN 0030-1299 1600-0706 |
op_rights |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/oik.08032 |
container_title |
Oikos |
_version_ |
1794403321747865600 |