Stephan Hättenschwiler

TL;DR: Empirical and theoretical evidence is explored for the functional significance of plant-litter diversity and the extraordinary high diversity of decomposer organisms in the process of litter decomposition and the consequences for biogeochemical cycles.

TL;DR: The significance of polyphenols for nutrient cycling and plant productivity is still uncertain, but it could provide an alternative or complementary explanation for the variability in polyphenol production by plants.

TL;DR: It is suggested that changes in species diversity within and across trophic levels can significantly alter decomposition and this happens through various mechanisms that are broadly similar in forest floors and streams.

TL;DR: Reducing the functional diversity of decomposer organisms and plant litter types slowed the cycling of litter carbon and nitrogen, and the emergence of this general mechanism and the coherence of patterns across contrasting terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems suggest that biodiversity loss has consistent consequences for litter decomposition and the Cycling of major elements on broad spatial scales.

TL;DR: Free air CO2 release in combination with a canopy crane found an immediate and sustained enhancement of carbon flux through 35-meter-tall temperate forest trees when exposed to elevated CO2, but there was no overall stimulation in stem growth and leaf litter production after 4 years.