Long-term nitrogen deposition reduces the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants

Biological nitrogen fixation is a fundamental part of ecosystem functioning. Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition and climate change may, however, limit the competitive advantage of nitrogen-fixing plants, leading to reduced relative diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants. Yet, assessments of changes of nitrogen-fixing plant long-term community diversity are rare. Here, we examine temporal trends in the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants and their relationships with anthropogenic nitrogen deposition while accounting for changes in temperature and aridity. We used forest-floor vegetation resurveys of temperate forests in Europe and the United States spanning multiple decades. Nitrogen-fixer richness declined as nitrogen deposition increased over time but did not respond to changes in climate. Phylogenetic diversity also declined, as distinct lineages of N-fixers were lost between surveys, but the "winners" and "losers" among nitrogen-fixing lineages varied among study sites, suggesting that losses are context dependent. Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition reduces nitrogen-fixing plant diversity in ways that may strongly affect natural nitrogen fixation.

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Publication Details

Journal
Science Advances
Published
2024-10-18
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adp7953
Citations
15
Primary Topic
Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
10.36
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Long-term nitrogen deposition reduces the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants

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Long-term nitrogen deposition reduces the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants

Pieter De Frenne, Donald M. Waller, Tibor Standovár, Wolfgang Schmidt, Martin Macek, Balázs Teleki, Ryan A. Folk, Robert Guralnick, Antoine Becker‐Scarpitta, Frank S. Gilliam, Rohit Raj Jha, Hans Van Calster, Kris Verheyen, Alina Stachurska‐Swakoń, Flavia A. Montaño‐Centellas, Bogdan Jaroszewicz, Ondřej Vild, Frantíšek Máliš, John‐Arvid Grytnes, Jörg Brunet, Kamila Reczyńska, Guillaume Decocq, Markus Bernhardt‐Römermann, Markéta Chudomelová, Thilo Heinken, Imre Berki, Déborah Closset‐Kopp, Daijiang Li, Pablo Moreno‐García, Fride Høistad Schei, Petr Petřík, Anna Orczewska, Martin Kopecký, Jonathan Lenoir, Krzysztof Świerkosz, Yu Liu, Radim Hédl, Tobias Naaf, Lander Baeten, Evelin Y. Reyes-Mendez
article en
15 citations

Abstract

Biological nitrogen fixation is a fundamental part of ecosystem functioning. Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition and climate change may, however, limit the competitive advantage of nitrogen-fixing plants, leading to reduced relative diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants. Yet, assessments of changes of nitrogen-fixing plant long-term community diversity are rare. Here, we examine temporal trends in the diversity of nitrogen-fixing plants and their relationships with anthropogenic nitrogen deposition while accounting for changes in temperature and aridity. We used forest-floor vegetation resurveys of temperate forests in Europe and the United States spanning multiple decades. Nitrogen-fixer richness declined as nitrogen deposition increased over time but did not respond to changes in climate. Phylogenetic diversity also declined, as distinct lineages of N-fixers were lost between surveys, but the "winners" and "losers" among nitrogen-fixing lineages varied among study sites, suggesting that losses are context dependent. Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition reduces nitrogen-fixing plant diversity in ways that may strongly affect natural nitrogen fixation.

Science AdvancesVol. 10(42)
Eötvös Loránd University (HU), Louisiana State University (US), Jagiellonian University (PL), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (FR), Florida Museum of Natural History (US), University of Wisconsin–Madison (US), University of Arizona (US), University of Potsdam (DE), Czech Academy of Sciences (CZ), Research Institute for Nature and Forest (BE), Czech University of Life Sciences Prague (CZ), University of Wrocław (PL), German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (DE), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SE), Ghent University (BE), University of Florida (US), Technická univerzita vo Zvolene (SK), Evolutionary Genomics (United States) (US), Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (DE), Institute of Environmental Protection (PL), Ecologie et Dynamique des Systèmes Anthropisés (FR), Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Botany (CZ), Peuplements végétaux et bioagresseurs en milieu tropical (RE), Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NO), Oldham Council (GB), Instytut Sportu (PL), University of Bergen (NO), University of Warsaw (PL), Palacký University Olomouc (CZ), University of Göttingen (DE), Friedrich Schiller University Jena (DE), University of West Florida (US), University of Sopron (HU), University of Silesia in Katowice (PL), Mississippi State University (US)
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Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
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