The within-species leaf economic spectrum does not predict leaf litter decomposability at either the within-species or whole community levels

Journal of Ecology

Volumn 101, Issue 6, 2013, Pages 1409-1419

  Jackson, Benjamin G ^a   Peltzer, Duane A ^b   Wardle, David A ^a  

^a SWEDISH UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES   (Sweden)

^b LANDCARE RESEARCH   (New Zealand)

Author keywords

Community weighted traits; Effect trait; Intraspecific variation; Leaf economics spectrum; Litter decomposition; Plant soil (below ground) interactions; Response trait; Soil fertility gradients; Temperate rain forest; Trait plasticity

Indexed keywords

COEXISTENCE; DECOMPOSITION; ENVIRONMENTAL FACTOR; INTRASPECIFIC VARIATION; LEAF LITTER; LIFE HISTORY TRAIT; PLANT COMMUNITY; RAINFOREST; SOIL CARBON; SOIL FERTILITY; SOIL NITROGEN; SOIL-VEGETATION INTERACTION; TOPOSEQUENCE; TURNOVER;

NEW ZEALAND;

EID: 84885859498     PISSN: 00220477     EISSN: 13652745     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/1365-2745.12155     Document Type: Article

References (51)

1. Albert, C.H., Thuiller, W., Yoccoz, N.G., Douzet, R., Aubert, S. & Lavorel, S. (2010a) A multi-trait approach reveals the structure and the relative importance of intra- vs. interspecific variability in plant traits. Functional Ecology, 24, 1192-1201.
2. Albert, C.H., Thuiller, W., Yoccoz, N.G., Soudant, A., Boucher, F., Saccone, P. & Lavorel, S. (2010b) Intraspecific functional variability: extent, structure and sources of variation. Journal of Ecology, 98, 604-613.
3. Albert, C.H., Grassein, F., Schurr, F.M., Vieilledent, G. & Violle, C. (2011) When and how should intraspecific variability be considered in trait-based plant ecology? Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics, 13, 217-225.
4. Albert, C.H., de Bello, F., Boulangeat, I., Pellet, G., Lavorel, S. & Thuiller, W. (2012) On the importance of intraspecific variability for the quantification of functional diversity. Oikos, 121, 116-126.
5. Auger, S. & Shipley, B. (2013) Inter-specific and intra-specific trait variation along short environmental gradients in an old-growth temperate forest. Journal of Vegetation Science, 24, 419-428.
6. de Bello, F., Lavorel, S., Albert, C.H., Thuiller, W., Grigulis, K., Dolezal, J., Janeček, S. & Lepš, J., (2011) Quantifying the relevance of intraspecific trait variability for functional diversity. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 2, 163-174.
7. Blakemore, L.C., Searle, P.L. & Daly, B.K. (1987) Methods for chemical analysis of soils. New Zealand Soil Bureau Scientific Report, 80, 1-103.
8. Cornelissen, J.H.C., Lavorel, S., Garnier, E., Díaz, S., Buchmann, N., Gurvich, D.E., Reich, P.B., ter Steege, H., Morgan, H.D., van der Heijden, M.G.A., Pausas, J.G. & Poorter, H. (2003) A handbook of protocols for standardised and easy measurement of plant functional traits worldwide. Australian Journal of Botany, 51, 335-380.
9. Cornwell, W.K., Cornelissen, J.H.C., Amatangelo, K., Dorrepaal, E., Eviner, V.T., Godoy, O. et al. (2008) Plant species traits are the predominant control on litter decomposition rates within biomes worldwide. Ecology Letters, 11, 1065-1071.
10. Crutsinger, G.M., Sanders, N.J. & Classen, A.T. (2009) Comparing intra- and inter-specific effects on litter decomposition in an old-field ecosystem. Basic & Applied Ecology, 10, 535-543.
11. Diaz, S., Hodgson, J.G., Thompson, K., Cabido, M., Cornelissen, J.H.C., Jalili, A., Montserrat-Martõ, G. et al. (2004) The plant traits that drive ecosystems: evidence from three continents. Journal of Vegetation Science, 15, 295-304.
12. Fajardo, A. & Piper, F.I. (2011) Intraspecific trait variation and covariation in a widespread tree species (Nothofagus pumilio) in southern Chile. New Phytologist, 189, 259-271.
13. Fortunel, C., Garnier, E., Joffre, R., Kazakou, E., Quested, H., Grigulis, K. et al. (2009) Leaf traits capture the effects of land use changes and climate on litter decomposability of grasslands across Europe. Ecology, 90, 598-611.
14. Freschet, G.T., Aerts, R. & Cornelissen, J.H.C. (2012) A plant economics spectrum of litter decomposability. Functional Ecology, 26, 56-65.
15. Freschet, G.T., Cornelissen, J.H.C., Logtestijn, R.S.P.Van. & Aerts, R. (2010) Evidence of the "plant economics spectrum" in a subarctic flora. Journal of Ecology, 98, 362-373.
16. Garnier, E., Cortez, J., Billès, G., Navas, M.-L., Roumet, C., Debussche, M., Laurent, G., Blanchard, A., Aubry, D., Bellmann, A., Neill, C. & Toussaint, J.-P. (2004) Plant functional markers capture ecosystem properties during secondary succession. Ecology, 85, 2630-2637.
17. Garnier, E., Lavorel, S., Ansquer, P., Castro, H., Cruz, P., Dolezal, J. et al. (2007) Assessing the effects of land-use change on plant traits, communities and ecosystem functioning in grasslands: a standardized methodology and lessons from an application to 11 European sites. Annals of Botany, 99, 967-985.
18. Grime, J.P. (2001) Plant Strategies, Vegetation Processes, and Ecosystem Properties. Wiley, New York.
19. Grime, J.P., Thompson, K., Hunt, R., Hodgson, J.G., Cornelissen, J.H.C., Rorison, I.H. et al. (1997) Integrated screening validates primary axes of specialisation in plants. Oikos, 79, 259-281.
20. Haase, J.U. (2009) Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: the effects of tree and litter diversity. PhD thesis, Universität Zürich, Zürich.
21. Hessell, J.W.D. (1982) The climate and weather of Westland. New Zealand Meteorological Service Miscellaneous Publication, 115, 10.
22. Jackson, B.G., Peltzer, D.A. & Wardle, D.A. (2013) Are functional traits and litter decomposability coordinated across leaves, twigs, and wood? A test using temperate rainforest tree species. Oikos, 122, 1131-1142.
23. Jung, V., Violle, C., Mondy, C., Hoffmann, L. & Muller, S. (2010) Intraspecific variability and trait-based community assembly. Journal of Ecology, 98, 1134-1140.
24. Lagerström, A., Nilsson, M.-C. & Wardle, D.A. (2013) Decoupled responses of tree and shrub leaf and litter trait values to ecosystem retrogression across an island area gradient. Plant and Soil, 367, 183-197.
25. Lavorel, S. & Garnier, E. (2002) Predicting changes in community composition and ecosystem functioning from plant traits: revisiting the Holy Grail. Functional Ecology, 16, 545-556.
26. Lavorel, S., Grigulis, K., McIntyre, S., Williams, N.S.G., Garden, D., Dorrough, J., Berman, S., Quétier, F., Thébault, A. & Bonis, A. (2008) Assessing functional diversity in the field - methodology matters! Functional Ecology 22, 134-147.
27. Lecerf, A. & Chauvet, E. (2008) Intraspecific variability in leaf traits strongly affects alder leaf decomposition in a stream. Basic & Applied Ecology, 9, 598-605.
28. Lepš, J., de Bello, F., Šmilauer, P. & Doležal, J. (2011) Community trait response to environment: disentangling species turnover vs intraspecific trait variability effects. Ecography, 34, 856-863.
29. LeRoy, C.J., Whitham, T.G., Wooley, S.C. & Marks, J.C. (2007) Within-species variation in foliar chemistry influences leaf-litter decomposition in a Utah river. Journal of the North American Benthological Society, 26, 426-438.
30. Madritch, M.D. & Hunter, M.D. (2003) Intraspecific litter diversity and nitrogen deposition affect nutrient dynamics and soil respiration. Oecologia, 136, 124-128.
31. McGlone, P.S., Richardson, S.J. & Jordan, G.J. (2010) Comparative biogeography of New Zealand trees: species richness, height, leaf traits and range sizes. New Zealand Journal of Ecology, 34, 137-151.
32. Messier, J., McGill, B.J. & Lechowicz, M.J. (2010) How do traits vary across ecological scales? A case for trait-based ecology. Ecology letters, 13, 838-848.
33. Ordoñez, J.C., van Bodegom, P.M., Witte, J.-P.M., Wright, I.J., Reich, P.B. & Aerts, R. (2009) A global study of relationships between leaf traits, climate and soil measures of nutrient fertility. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 18, 137-149.
34. Richardson, S.J., Allen, R.B. & Doherty, J.E. (2008) Shifts in leaf N:P ratio during resorption reflect soil P in temperate rainforest. Functional Ecology, 22, 738-745.
35. Richardson, S.J., Peltzer, D.A., Allen, R.B. & McGlone, M.S. (2005) Resorption proficiency along a chronosequence: responses among communities and within species. Ecology, 86, 20-25.
36. Richardson, S.J., Peltzer, D.A., Allen, R.B. & McGlone, M.S. (2010) Declining soil fertility does not increase leaf lifespan within species: evidence from the Franz Josef chronosequence, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Ecology, 34, 306-310.
37. Santiago, L. (2007) Extending the leaf economics spectrum to decomposition: evidence from a tropical forest. Ecology, 88, 1126-1131.
38. Sariyildiz, T. & Anderson, J.M. (2003) Interactions between litter quality, decomposition and soil fertility: a laboratory study. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 35, 391-399.
39. Schweitzer, J.A., Bailey, J.K., Rehill, B.J., Martinsen, G.D., Hart, S.C., Lindroth, R.L., Keim, P. & Whitham, T.G. (2004) Genetically based trait in a dominant tree affects ecosystem processes. Ecology Letters, 7, 127-134.
40. Srivastava, D.S., Cardinale, B.J., Downing, A.L., Duffy, J.E., Jouseau, C., Sankaran, M. & Wright, J.P. (2009) Diversity has stronger top-down than bottom-up effects on decomposition. Ecology, 90, 1073-1083.
41. Suding, K.N., Lavorel, S., Chapin, F.S., Cornelissen, J.H.C., Díaz, S., Garnier, E., Goldberg, D., Hooper, D.U., Jackson, S.T. & Navas, M.L. (2008) Scaling environmental change through the community-level: a trait-based response-and-effect framework for plants. Global Change Biology, 14, 1125-1140.
42. Sundqvist, M.K., Giesler, R. & Wardle, D.A. (2011) Within- and across-species responses of plant traits and litter decomposition to elevation across contrasting vegetation types in subarctic tundra. PLoS ONE, 6, e27056.
43. Sundqvist, M.K., Wardle, D.A., Olofsson, E., Giesler, R. & Gundale, M.J. (2012) Chemical properties of plant litter in response to elevation: subarctic vegetation challenges phenolic allocation theories Functional Ecology, 26, 1090-1099.
44. Taylor, B.R., Parkinson, D. & Parsons, W.F.J. (1989) Nitrogen and lignin content as predictors of litter decay rates: a microcosm test. Ecology, 70, 97-104.
45. Violle, C., Enquist, B.J., McGill, B.J., Jiang, L., Albert, C.H., Hulshof, C., Jung, V. & Messier, J. (2012) The return of the variance: intraspecific variability in community ecology. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 27, 244-252.
46. Wardle, J. (2012) Wardle's Native Trees of New Zealand and Their Story. Bateson Publishing, Wellington.
47. Wardle, D.A., Bonner, K.I. & Barker, G.M. (2002) Linkages between plant litter decomposition, litter quality, and vegetation responses to herbivores. Functional Ecology, 16, 585-595.
48. Wardle, D., Yeates, G., Barker, G. & Bonner, K. (2006) The influence of plant litter diversity on decomposer abundance and diversity. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 38, 1052-1062.
49. Wardle, D.A., Bardgett, R.D., Walker, L.R. & Bonner, K.I. (2009) Among-and within-species variation in plant litter decomposition in contrasting long-term chronosequences. Functional Ecology, 23, 442-453.
50. Wardle, P. (1991) Vegetation of New Zealand. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
51. Wright, I.J., Reich, P.B., Westoby, M., Ackerly, D.D., Baruch, Z., Bongers, F. et al. (2004) The worldwide leaf economics spectrum. Nature, 428, 821-827.