Litter decomposition is a crucial process for soil nutrient transfer and has a significant impact on ecosystem carbon cycling. There have been many studies on the impact of global change on litter decomposition, but the response and control factors of litter decomposition to single and combined change factors at the global scale are still unclear.
Zeng Fanjiang's team from the National Field Scientific Observation and Research Station of Cele Desert Grassland Ecosystem, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, used Meta analysis method to explore the effects of litter decomposition on nitrogen, phosphorus CO2、 The response of single and combined factors such as temperature rise, drought, and precipitation is aimed at revealing the response of litter decomposition rate to global change.
Research has shown that nitrogen addition and drought reduce the decomposition rate of litter; The addition of phosphorus, heating, and increased precipitation increased the decomposition rate of litter, The effect of CO2 increase on the decomposition rate of litter is not significant. Meanwhile, the combined factors showed an antagonistic effect on the decomposition rate of litter. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that the response of litter decomposition rate to global change factors is influenced by litter quality, soil properties, environmental factors, and experimental methods. The quality of litter mainly affects the effect of nitrogen addition on the decomposition rate of litter, while soil properties have a more significant impact on the effect of phosphorus addition. Environmental factors largely determine the response of litter decomposition rate to warming, drought, and increased precipitation. This experimental method affects the response of litter to various global change factors. Meta analysis provides a new perspective for studying the impact of global change on litter decomposition, and highlights the importance of large-scale, long-term, multi factor, and standardized experiments for predicting litter decomposition rates at the global scale.
The relevant research results are titled "Letter composition rate response to multiple global change factors: A meta-analysis" and published in Soil Biology and Biochemistry. The research work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.
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