Journal ArticleDOI
Rainforest litter quality and chemical controls on leaf decomposition with near-infrared spectrometry
TLDR
In this paper, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to explore leaf-litter chemical quality and the controls on decomposition in the tropical rainforest region of north Queensland Australia.Abstract:
Plant-litter chemical quality is an important driver of many ecosystem processes, however, what actually constitutes high- or low-quality litter (chemical potential for fast and slow decomposition, respectively) is often interpreted by the indices available. Here, near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to explore leaf-litter chemical quality and the controls on decomposition in the tropical rainforest region of north Queensland Australia. Leaf-litter samples from litterfall collections and litterbag studies were used. NIRS was used to calibrate the chemical compositions of the material (N, P, C, Mg, Ca, acid detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin, α-cellulose, and total phenolics) from a smaller sample set covering the spectral range in the full set of samples. Calibrations were compared for both separate (local) and combined models, for litterbags, and litterfall. Coefficients of determination (r2) in the local models ranged from 0.88 (litterbag Mg) to 0.99 (litterfall N), with residual prediction deviation ratios > 3 for all constituents except Mg (≈ 2.5). Mass loss in the litterbags was strongly related to the NIR spectra, with model r2's of 0.75 (in situ leaves) and 0.76 (common control leaf). In situ decomposability was determined from modeling the initial NIR spectra prior to decomposition with litterbag exponential-decay rates (model r2 of 0.81, n = 85 initial samples). A best subset model including litter-quality, climate, and soil variables predicted decay better than the NIR decomposability model (r2 = 0.87). For litter quality alone the NIR model predicted decay rate better than all of the best predictive litter–chemical quality indices. The decomposability model was used to predict in situ decomposability in the litterfall samples. The chemical variables explaining NIR decomposability for litterfall were initial P, C, and phenolics (linear model r2 = 0.80, n = 2471). NIRS is a holistic technique that is just as, if not more accurate, than litter–chemical quality indices, when predicting decomposition and decomposability, shown here in a regional field study.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Plant secondary metabolites: a key driver of litter decomposition and soil nutrient cycling
Mathilde Chomel,Mathilde Chomel,Mathilde Chomel,Marie Guittonny-Larchevêque,Catherine Fernandez,Christiane Gallet,Annie DesRochers,David Paré,Benjamin G. Jackson,Virginie Baldy +9 more
TL;DR: In this article, a broad and diversified group of compounds, secondary metabolites, are known to govern species interactions in ecosystems, such as plant succession or in the process of litter decomposition, by governing the interplay between plant matter and soil organisms.
Journal ArticleDOI
Trade‐offs between physical and chemical carbon‐based leaf defence: of intraspecific variation and trait evolution
David Eichenberg,David Eichenberg,Oliver Purschke,Christian Ristok,Ludger A. Wessjohann,Helge Bruelheide +5 more
TL;DR: The finding that intraspecific trait variation contributed less to this relationship suggests that the trade-off is dominated by evolutionary constraints rather than by carbon allocation constraints, which hints at the existence of a trade-offs between physical and chemical defence traits.
Journal ArticleDOI
Determinants of the pathways of litter chemical decomposition in a tropical region.
TL;DR: It is suggested that there is general chemical convergence of leaf litter during early decay, but also that divergent chemical pathways occur in locations that experience more intense seasonal drying, and contain species or conditions that promote poor-quality litter.
Journal ArticleDOI
Laboratory-based hyperspectral image analysis for predicting soil carbon, nitrogen and their isotopic compositions
Iman Tahmasbian,Zhihong Xu,Sue E. Boyd,Jun Zhou,Roya Esmaeilani,Rongxiao Che,Shahla Hosseini Bai +6 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the potential of hyperspectral image analysis to predict soil total carbon (TC), total nitrogen (TN), δ13C and δ15N.
Journal ArticleDOI
Spatial Variability in Litterfall, Litter Standing Crop and Litter Quality in a Tropical Rain Forest Region
TL;DR: In this article, the authors assessed spatial patterns in litter processes from local to regional scales, at sites throughout the wet tropical rain forests of northern Australia, and determined the controls (e.g., climate, soil, plant community composition) on annual litter standing crop, annual litterfall rate and in situ leaf litter decomposability.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
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