Substrate and climate determine terrestrial litter decomposition
Fujian Normal University · Sanming University · +7 more institutions
Abstract
Litter decomposition is a fundamental biogeochemical process for carbon flux and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems, yet the global variation in decomposition rates and their covariations with climate and substrate are not fully understood. Here, we synthesized a global dataset of 6,733 independent observations across six continents to illustrate the climatic and substrate controls over litter decomposition. The average decomposition rates of various litter types ranged from 0.74 to 4.01 y −1 across polar to tropics, showing a large geographical span. Litter substrate and climate directly explained 36 and 30% of the variations in decomposition rates, with the carbon-to-nitrogen ratio identified as the…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 39.00
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 67
Authors
12- QWQiuxia Wu
Fujian Normal University, Sanming University
- XNXiangyin NiCorresponding
Fujian Normal University, Sanming University
- XSXinyao Sun
Fujian Normal University, Sanming University
- ZCZihao Chen
Fujian Normal University, Sanming University
- SHSongbai Hong
Shenzhen University, Peking University, Ministry of Natural Resources
Topics & keywords
- Biogeochemical cycle
- Litter
- Substrate (aquarium)
- Decomposition
- Environmental science
- Carbon cycle
- Ecosystem
- Nutrient cycle
- Climate action