specific features of the structure of the ground litter invertebrate community in forest belt ecosystems in the ukrainian steppe zone have been considered. for 14 years invertebrate fauna of the litter of 176 forest belt sites with different composition has been studied with the aid of soil traps. the main characteristics of litter invertebrate communities (total population, a number of species...

Global changes such as increasing CO2, rising temperature, and land-use change are likely to drive shifts in litter inputs to forest floors, but the effects of such changes on litter decomposition remain largely unknown. We initiated a litter manipulation experiment to test the response of litter decomposition to litter removal/addition in three successional forests in southern China, namely ma...

the present study was carried out during a one year period in 2012-2013 in order to investigation of seasonal density and diversity of diplopoda in a hyrcanian forest (semeskandeh forest) in northern iran. for these purpose, some forest soil sampling were done in two mounth intervals and the samples were collected from leaf litter (ol,f,h), the 0-3 cm and 3-6 cm of soil layer (ah). a total of 7...

One hectare of tropical dry forest in Guanacaste Conservation Area, Cosra Rica was mapped and all trees larger than 10 cm diameter at breast heighr (DBH) identified. The same hectare was sampled for leaf litter and the two data sets, forest and litter, were compared. Dominant and subdominant species of the forest are represented in the leaf litter, whereas rare tree species are highly variable ...

Litter-induced pulses of nutrient availability could play an important role in the productivity and nutrient cycling of forested ecosystems, especially tropical forests. Tropical forests experience such pulses as a result of wet-dry seasonality and during major climatic events, such as strong El Niños. We hypothesized that (1) an increase in the quantity and quality of litter inputs would stimu...

Leaf litter decomposition is the key ecological process that determines the sustainability of managed forest ecosystems, however very few studies hitherto have investigated this process with respect to silvicultural management practices. The aims of the present study were to investigate the effects of forest management practices on leaf litter decomposition rates, nutrient dynamics (C, N, Mg, K...

The total phenol content in decomposing litter not only acts as a crucial litter quality indicator, but is also closely related to litter humification due to its tight absorption to clay particles. However, limited attention has been focused on the total phenol dynamics in foliar litter in relation to forest gaps. Here, the foliar litter of six representative tree species was incubated on the f...

Litterfall is the primary source of carbon and nutrients that determine soil fertility in forest ecosystems. Most current studies have focused on foliar litter, but the seasonal dynamics and allometric scaling relationships among different litter components (e.g., foliar litter, woody litter, reproductive litter, and epiphytic litter) are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the litter prod...

The degree to which ectomycorrhizal fungi rely on decomposing litter as a carbon source in natural ecosystems is unknown. We used a radiocarbon (C) tracer to test for uptake of litter carbon by ectomycorrhizal fungi as part of the Enriched Background Isotope Study (EBIS) in Oak Ridge Reservation, Tennessee. In EBIS, leaf litter from a highly C-labeled Quercus alba (white oak) forest was recipro...

In hyperdiverse tropical forests, the key drivers of litter decomposition are poorly understood despite its crucial role in facilitating nutrient availability for plants and microbes. Selective logging is a pressing land use with potential for considerable impacts on plant-soil interactions, litter decomposition, and nutrient cycling. Here, in Borneo's tropical rainforests, we test the hypothes...