dc.creatorPOWERS, Jennifer S.
dc.creatorMONTGOMERY, Rebecca A.
dc.creatorADAIR, E. Carol
dc.creatorBREARLEY, Francis Q.
dc.creatorDEWALT, Saara J.
dc.creatorCASTANHO, Camila T.
dc.creatorCHAVE, Jerome
dc.creatorDEINERT, Erika
dc.creatorGANZHORN, Joerg U.
dc.creatorGILBERT, Matthew E.
dc.creatorGONZALEZ-ITURBE, Jose Antonio
dc.creatorBUNYAVEJCHEWIN, Sarayudh
dc.creatorGRAU, H. Ricardo
dc.creatorHARMS, Kyle E.
dc.creatorHIREMATH, Ankila
dc.creatorIRIARTE-VIVAR, Silvia
dc.creatorMANZANE, Eric
dc.creatorOLIVEIRA, Alexandre A. de
dc.creatorPOORTER, Lourens
dc.creatorRAMANAMANJATO, Jean-Baptiste
dc.creatorSALK, Carl
dc.creatorVARELA, Amanda
dc.creatorWEIBLEN, George D.
dc.creatorLERDAU, Manuel T.
dc.date.accessioned2012-10-20T03:02:21Z
dc.date.accessioned2018-07-04T15:31:37Z
dc.date.available2012-10-20T03:02:21Z
dc.date.available2018-07-04T15:31:37Z
dc.date.created2012-10-20T03:02:21Z
dc.date.issued2009
dc.identifierJOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, v.97, n.4, p.801-811, 2009
dc.identifier0022-0477
dc.identifierhttp://producao.usp.br/handle/BDPI/27384
dc.identifier10.1111/j.1365-2745.2009.01515.x
dc.identifierhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2009.01515.x
dc.identifier.urihttp://repositorioslatinoamericanos.uchile.cl/handle/2250/1624031
dc.description.abstract1. Litter decomposition recycles nutrients and causes large fluxes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. It is typically assumed that climate, litter quality and decomposer communities determine litter decay rates, yet few comparative studies have examined their relative contributions in tropical forests. 2. We used a short-term litterbag experiment to quantify the effects of litter quality, placement and mesofaunal exclusion on decomposition in 23 tropical forests in 14 countries. Annual precipitation varied among sites (760-5797 mm). At each site, two standard substrates (Raphia farinifera and Laurus nobilis) were decomposed in fine- and coarse-mesh litterbags both above and below ground for approximately 1 year. 3. Decomposition was rapid, with >95% mass loss within a year at most sites. Litter quality, placement and mesofaunal exclusion all independently affected decomposition, but the magnitude depended upon site. Both the average decomposition rate at each site and the ratio of above- to below-ground decay increased linearly with annual precipitation, explaining 60-65% of among-site variation. Excluding mesofauna had the largest impact on decomposition, reducing decomposition rates by half on average, but the magnitude of decrease was largely independent of climate. This suggests that the decomposer community might play an important role in explaining patterns of decomposition among sites. Which litter type decomposed fastest varied by site, but was not related to climate. 4. Synthesis. A key goal of ecology is to identify general patterns across ecological communities, as well as relevant site-specific details to understand local dynamics. Our pan-tropical study shows that certain aspects of decomposition, including average decomposition rates and the ratio of above- to below-ground decomposition are highly correlated with a simple climatic index: mean annual precipitation. However, we found no relationship between precipitation and effects of mesofaunal exclusion or litter type, suggesting that site-specific details may also be required to understand how these factors affect decomposition at local scales.
dc.languageeng
dc.publisherWILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC
dc.relationJournal of Ecology
dc.rightsCopyright WILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC
dc.rightsrestrictedAccess
dc.subjectabove ground
dc.subjectbelow ground
dc.subjectclimate decomposition index
dc.subjectdecomposition
dc.subjectdecomposer fauna
dc.subjectlitter type
dc.subjectprecipitation
dc.subjecttropical forests
dc.titleDecomposition in tropical forests: a pan-tropical study of the effects of litter type, litter placement and mesofaunal exclusion across a precipitation gradient
dc.typeArtículos de revistas


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