Contrasting effects of deadwood and gaps on the trophic structure of forest soil microarthropods

作者：Yan Zhang, André Junggebauer, Melanie M. Pollierer, Stefan Scheu, Zheng Zhou · 发表于：Functional Ecology · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1111/1365-2435.70228 · 被引用次数：3 · 研究领域：Forest Ecology and Biodiversity Studies、Collembola Taxonomy and Ecology Studies、Isotope Analysis in Ecology

Abstract Understanding the mechanisms driving forest biodiversity is challenging, especially in soil. Trophic niche is the most important perspective to understand how biodiversity changes with disturbances. Deadwood input and gap formation are major disturbances resulting from tree mortality. Both alter the ecological niches of forest organisms, yet their individual and interactive effects on soil animals remain unclear. Trophic diversity, that is the area of trophic niches occupied by organisms, links to the resource processing within food webs and, consequently, to ecosystem functions. Changes in trophic diversity of Collembola communities may result both from changes in species composition and from trophic shifts of individual species. To investigate how the trophic structure of soil fauna responds to forest disturbances, we examined trophic niches of Collembola across three regions in Germany, as influenced by deadwood addition and gap formation using stable isotope analysis ( 13 C, 15 N). Changes in the trophic structure of Collembola associated with deadwood addition and gap formation were distinct and independent. Deadwood addition resulted in higher trophic level (Δ 15 N values) and greater trophic diversity of Collembola communities. These shifts were likely driven by increased habitat heterogeneity resulting in higher trophic differentiation (rather than higher species richness) of Collembola communities. The results highlight the importance of habitat structure in...