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Journal Articles Scientific Reports Year : 2017

Riparian plant litter quality increases with latitude

Luz Boyero
  • Function : Author
Manuel A. S. Graça
  • Function : Author
Alan M. Tonin
  • Function : Author
Javier Pérez
  • Function : Author
Andrew J. Swafford
  • Function : Author
Verónica Ferreira
Andrea Landeira-Dabarca
  • Function : Author
Markos A. Alexandrou
  • Function : Author
Mark O. Gessner
  • Function : Author
Brendan G. Mckie
  • Function : Author
Ricardo J. Albariño
  • Function : Author
Leon A. Barmuta
  • Function : Author
Marcos Callisto
Julián Chará
  • Function : Author
Checo Colón-Gaud
  • Function : Author
David Dudgeon
  • Function : Author
Andrea C. Encalada
  • Function : Author
Ricardo Figueroa
  • Function : Author
Alexander S. Flecker
  • Function : Author
Tadeusz Fleituch
André Frainer
  • Function : Author
José F. Gonçalves
  • Function : Author
Julie E. Helson
  • Function : Author
Tomoya Iwata
Jude Mathooko
  • Function : Author
Charles M’erimba
  • Function : Author
Catherine M. Pringle
  • Function : Author
Alonso Ramírez
  • Function : Author
Christopher M. Swan
  • Function : Author
Catherine M. Yule
  • Function : Author
Richard G. Pearson
  • Function : Author

Abstract

Plant litter represents a major basal resource in streams, where its decomposition is partly regulated by litter traits. Litter-trait variation may determine the latitudinal gradient in decomposition in streams, which is mainly microbial in the tropics and detritivore-mediated at high latitudes. However, this hypothesis remains untested, as we lack information on large-scale trait variation for riparian litter. Variation cannot easily be inferred from existing leaf-trait databases, since nutrient resorption can cause traits of litter and green leaves to diverge. Here we present the first global-scale assessment of riparian litter quality by determining latitudinal variation (spanning 107°) in litter traits (nutrient concentrations; physical and chemical defences) of 151 species from 24 regions and their relationships with environmental factors and phylogeny. We hypothesized that litter quality would increase with latitude (despite variation within regions) and traits would be correlated to produce ‘syndromes’ resulting from phylogeny and environmental variation. We found lower litter quality and higher nitrogen:phosphorus ratios in the tropics. Traits were linked but showed no phylogenetic signal, suggesting that syndromes were environmentally determined. Poorer litter quality and greater phosphorus limitation towards the equator may restrict detritivore-mediated decomposition, contributing to the predominance of microbial decomposers in tropical streams.
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Dates and versions

hal-02134621 , version 1 (20-05-2019)

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Luz Boyero, Manuel A. S. Graça, Alan M. Tonin, Javier Pérez, Andrew J. Swafford, et al.. Riparian plant litter quality increases with latitude. Scientific Reports, 2017, 7 (1), pp.1-10. ⟨10.1038/s41598-017-10640-3⟩. ⟨hal-02134621⟩
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