Oak trees and soil interactions in Mediterranean forests: a positive feedback model
What is the spectrum of variability of chemical elements in a Mediterranean forest ecosystem across the different compartments? Do coexisting tree species with different leaf chemical composition and nutrient cycling distinctly modify soil conditions? Could these species-specific, treegenerated soil changes create a potential positive feedback by affecting longterm species distribution? We sampled and chemically analysed five different ecosystem components: leaves, leaf fall, litter and superficial (0–25 cm) and sub-superficial (25–50 cm) soil beneath the canopies of evergreen Quercus suber and deciduous Q. canariensis trees. We used multiple co-inertia analysis (MCoA) to conjointly analyse the patterns of variability and covariation of eight macro- and micronutrients determined in each of the sampled ecological materials.We implemented a path analysis to investigate alternative causal models of relationships among the chemical properties of the different ecosystem components.
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | artículo biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
International Association for Vegetation Science
2011
|
| Subjects: | Biogeochemical niche, Ecological stoichiometry, Ecosystem functioning, Foliar analysis, Nutrient cycling, Quercus canariensis, Quercus suber, Soil fertility, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/37413 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000780 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|