Journal
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
Volume 13, Issue 8, Pages -Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10392
Keywords
biogeochemical cycles; ecosystem functioning; functional diversity; mammal traits; soil organic matter composition; SOM recalcitrance; tropical soils
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Mammal diversity affects carbon concentration in Amazonian soils through its impact on soil organic matter accumulation. The functional diversity of mammal assemblages determines the composition of organic remains in the soil, which in turn influences soil carbon content. Understanding the role of mammal traits in carbon sequestration and accumulation can inform biodiversity management plans in the Amazon biome.
Mammal diversity affects carbon concentration in Amazonian soils. It is known that some species traits determine carbon accumulation in organisms (e.g., size and longevity), and are also related to feeding strategies, thus linking species traits to the type of organic remains that are incorporated into the soil. Trait diversity in mammal assemblages - that is, its functional diversity - may therefore constitute another mechanism linking biodiversity to soil organic matter (SOM) accumulation. To address this hypothesis, we analyzed across 83 mammal assemblages in the Amazon biome (Guyana), the elemental (by ED-XRF and CNH analysis) and molecular (FTIR-ATR) composition of SOM of topsoils (401 samples) and trait diversity (functional richness, evenness, and divergence) for each mammal assemblage. Lower mammal functional richness but higher functional divergence were related to higher content of carbonyl and aliphatic SOM, potentially affecting SOM recalcitrance. Our results might allow the design of biodiversity management plans that consider the effect of mammal traits on carbon sequestration and accumulation in soils.
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