Responses of soil nematode metabolic rate and energy flow to nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change in a typical northern grassland

doi:10.17520/biods.2024341

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims: Soil nematodes are crucial soil organisms that are highly sensitive to environmental changes. Their diverse groups occupy multiple trophic levels within the soil food web, and their metabolic rates and energy fluxes can thus serve as powerful metrics for assessing ecosystem functioning. Global climate change has resulted in significant shifts in the nitrogen deposition and precipitation pattern in northern temperate grasslands, but it remains largely unknown how these shifts and their interactions might affect soil nematode metabolic rate and energy flow. The study aims to investigate the responses of nematode metabolic rates and energy flows to the interaction between nitrogen addition and precipitation intensity change.
Methods: We conducted an eight-year controlled experiment with precipitation and nitrogen addition in the Duolun region of Inner Mongolia. The experiment assessed five levels of precipitation intensity while maintaining a constant total and varying frequency. The experiment’s total nitrogen addition included 10 g∙m^-2∙yr^-1.
Results: The results showed that the interaction between nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change had significant negative impacts on nematode metabolic rate and energy flux. Under changing precipitation patterns, shifting towards higher intensity and lower frequency events, nematode metabolic rates and energy fluxes initially increased with increasing precipitation intensity, peaking at high intensity before declining. However, this trend was weakened by the effects of interactions between nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change. Under the interaction effects of nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change, nematode metabolic rate and energy flow were primarily driven by bottom-up effects of food resources within the nematode food web.
Conclusions: The experiment showed that soil nematode metabolic rates and energy flows are negatively impacted by the interaction between nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change. This research provides insights into the impacts of multi-factor interactions on underground biological communities in the context of global climate change.

Key words: metabolic rate, energy flow, N addition, precipitation intensity, soil nematode

Mo Xiaomei, Zhang Qi, Yang Jiaxin, Zheng Guo, Hu Zhongmin, Zhang Xiaoke, Liang Siwei, Cui Shuyan. Responses of soil nematode metabolic rate and energy flow to nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change in a typical northern grassland[J]. Biodiv Sci, 2025, 33(3): 24341.

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URL: https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/10.17520/biods.2024341

https://www.biodiversity-science.net/EN/Y2025/V33/I3/24341

Figures/Tables 5

Fig. 1 Research status of the effects of nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern changes on nematode communities

Fig. 2 Effects of precipitation pattern change and nitrogen addition on soil nematode metabolic rate of each trophic group (mean ± SE). N, Nitrogen addition; P, Precipitation pattern change; N × P, The interaction between nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change. N0 and N10 are treatments without and with nitrogen, respectively. Different letters indicate significant differences among different precipitation patterns. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, *** P < 0.001.

Fig. 3 Effects of precipitation pattern change and nitrogen addition on soil nematode energy flux of different trophic groups (mean ± SE). N, Nitrogen addition; P, Precipitation pattern change; N × P, The interaction between nitrogen addition and precipitation pattern change. N0 and N10 are treatments without and with nitrogen, respectively. Different letters indicate significant differences among different precipitation patterns. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01, *** P < 0.001.

Fig. 4 Effects of precipitation pattern change and nitrogen addition on energy flux and fresh biomass distribution within soil nematode food web. N0 and N10 are treatments without and with nitrogen, respectively. R indicates basal resources.

Fig. 5 The nematode metabolic rate and energy flux were related to environmental factors by partial Mantel tests. N0 and N10 are treatments without and with nitrogen, respectively. BF, Bacterivores; FF, Fungivores; PP, Plant parasites; OP, Omnivores/predators; SM, Soil moisture; SOC, Soil organic carbon; DOC, Dissolved organic carbon; MBC, Microbial biomass carbon; MBN, Microbial biomass nitrogen; NH4+-N, Ammonium nitrogen; NO3--N, Nitrate nitrogen; AGB, Aboveground biomass; BGB, Belowground biomass.

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