Environment, litter composition and decomposer community are known to be the main drivers of litter decomposition in aquatic ecosystems. However, it remains unclear whether litter quality or functional diversity prevails ...

Leaf litter fuels secondary production in many aquatic ecosystems. Although the identity and species richness of leaf litter have been shown to influence ecosystem functioning and food-web composition, it has been challenging ...

Soil fauna plays a key role in organic matter decomposition. Litter decomposition depends on the relationships of soil fauna and microorganisms as well as climate and litter quality. The decomposer community is sensitive ...

Different components of functional biodiversity, such as functional type richness and composition, have been reported to affect the decomposition of litter mixtures. In spite of the numerous reports of these effects, ...

Aims: We evaluated the combined effects of litter type, UV radiation, and soil water on litter decomposition processes in denuded areas of the arid Patagonian Monte. Methods: We conducted a manipulative experiment with ...

Plant-microbial interactions in the litter layer represent one of the most relevant interactions for biogeochemical cycling as litter decomposition is a key first step in carbon and nitrogen turnover. However, our understanding ...

Leaf litter accumulation can have either positive, negative or neutral effects on seed germination and seedling recruitment. In montane woodlands of the Mediterranean zone of central Chile, large amounts of leaf litter ...

It is increasingly recognized that understanding the functional consequences of landscape change requires knowledge of aboveground and belowground processes and their interactions. For this reason, we provide novel information ...

Forest fragmentation is a component of global change, with substantial impact on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Despite extensive evidence of forest fragmentation effects on aboveground ecological processes, little ...

Aims: Soil processes in arid ecosystems are strongly controlled by resource scarcity. Grazing intensification can induce changes in ecosystem processes through multiple pathways, adding new constraints to those of local ...