Publication
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New publication from Strecker et al. in Ecology and Evolution: Incorporation of mineral nitrogen into the soil food web as affected by plant community composition
Although nitrogen (N) deposition is increasing globally, N availability still limits many organisms, such as microorganisms and mesofauna. However, little is known to which extent soil organisms rely on mineral‐derived…
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New publication from Guimarães‐Steinicke et al. in Journal of Ecology: Biodiversity facets affect community surface temperature via 3D canopy structure in grassland communities
Canopy structure is an important driver of the energy budget of grassland ecosystem and is, at the same time, altered by plant diversity. Diverse plant communities typically have taller and…
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New publication from Marr et al. in Scientific Data: LC-MS based plant metabolic profiles of thirteen grassland species grown in diverse neighbourhoods
In plants, secondary metabolite profiles provide a unique opportunity to explore seasonal variation and responses to the environment. These include both abiotic and biotic factors. In field experiments, such stress…
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New publication from Venjakob et al. in Journal of Insects: Inter-Individual Nectar Chemistry Changes of Field Scabious, Knautia arvensis
Nectar is crucial to maintain plant-pollinator mutualism. Nectar quality (nutritional composition) can vary strongly between individuals of the same plant species. The factors driving such inter-individual variation have however not…
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New publication from Lange et al. in Journal of Ecology: Plant diversity enhances production and downward transport of biodegradable dissolved organic matter
Plant diversity is an important driver of belowground ecosystem functions, such as root growth, soil organic matter (SOM) storage, and microbial metabolism, mainly by influencing the interactions between plant roots…
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New publication from Xu et al. in Proc. R. Soc. B: Species richness promotes ecosystem carbon storage: evidence from biodiversity-ecosystem functioning experiments
Plant diversity has a strong impact on a plethora of ecosystem functions and services, especially ecosystem carbon (C) storage. However, the potential context-dependency of biodiversity effects across ecosystem types, environmental…
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New publication from Ding et al. in Soil Biology and Biochemistry: Characteristics and origin of intact polar lipids in soil organic matter
Membrane lipids and their related acyl and/or alkyl moieties are important biomarkers of the microbial community in environmental samples. Intact polar lipids, which are described by their lipid head groups…
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New publication from Barnes et al. in Science Advances: Biodiversity enhances the multitrophic control of arthropod herbivory
Arthropod herbivores cause substantial economic costs that drive an increasing need to develop environmentally sustainable approaches to herbivore control. Increasing plant diversity is expected to limit herbivory by altering plant-herbivore…
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New publication from van der Plas et al. in Nature Ecology & Evolution: Plant traits alone are poor predictors of ecosystem properties and long-term ecosystem functioning
Earth is home to over 350,000 vascular plant species that differ in their traits in innumerable ways. A key challenge is to predict how natural or anthropogenically driven changes in the…
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New publication from van Moorsel et al. in Ecology: Co‐occurrence history increases ecosystem stability and resilience in experimental plant communities
Understanding factors that maintain ecosystem stability is critical in the face of environmental change. Experiments simulating species loss from grassland have shown that losing biodiversity decreases ecosystem stability. However, as…
