Effects of ultraviolet(UV) radiation and litter layer thickness on litter decomposition of two tree species in a semi-arid site of Northeast China

Forests and grasslands in arid and semi-arid regions receive high-intensity ultraviolet（UV） radiation year-round. However, how the UV radiation affects the litter decomposition on the forest floor remains unclear. Here, we conducted a field-based experiment in 2011 in the southeastern Horqin Sandy Land, Northeast China, to investigate the effects of UV radiation, litter layer thickness, and their interaction on the mass loss and chemical properties of decomposing litter from Xiaozhuan poplar（Populus × xiaozhuanica） and Mongolian pine（Pinus sylvestris var. mongolica） plantation trees. We found that UV radiation accelerated the decomposition rates of both the Xiaozhuan poplar litter and Mongolian pine litter. For both species, the thick-layered litter had a lower mass loss than the thin-layered litter. The interaction between UV radiation and litter layer thickness significantly affected the litter mass loss of both tree species. However, the effects of UV radiation on the chemical properties of decomposing litter differed between the two species, which may be attributed to the contrasting initial leaf litter chemical properties and morphology. UV radiation mostly had positive effects on the lignin concentration and lignin/N ratio of Xiaozhuan poplar litter, while it had negative effects on the N concentration of Mongolian pine litter. Moreover, litter layer thickness and its interaction with UV radiation showed mostly positive effects on the N concentration and lignin/N ratio of Xiaozhuan poplar litter and the ratios of C/N and lignin/N of Mongolian pine litter, and mostly negative effects on the C/N ratio of Xiaozhuan poplar litter and the N concentration of Mongolian pine litter. Together, these results reveal the important roles played by UV radiation and litter layer thickness in the process of litter decomposition in this semi-arid region, and highlight how changes in the litter layer thickness can exert strong influences on the photodegradation of litter in tree plantations.

Influence of litter layer on ecological environment in northeastern leymus chinensis grassland of China

In this paper, we adopted simulation method to discuss influences of litter layer on plants habitat in grassland. Results indicated that ground surface evaporation, soil moisture, surface temperature, soil pH, soil bulk density and soil porosity were all strongly related to the litter quantity. Potassium （K） and organic materials in the soil covered by litter layer were higher than those in the soil uncovered by litter layer. With 100 g.ln-z increase of litter, the percentage of organic materials increased by 17.9%, nitrogen （N） increased by 7.6%, phosphor （P） increased by 26.4%, and K increased by 3.8%. With the litter accumulation amounting up to 600 g-m-2, the percentage of organic materials increased by 1.8 times, N increased by 81.5%, P increased by 1.8 times and K increased by 26.4%. According to the expected coefficient method of optimization, a mathematical model was established about the optimal accumulation quantity of litter.

Recovery of Collembola in Pinus tabulaeformis Plantations

Large areas of forest plantations have been developed in China. It is important to evaluate the soil fauna in plantations and the conditions needed for their recovery in view of the large areas of plantations in China. Three Pinus tabulaeformis forests, a 26-year-old plantation （P26） and a 45-year-old plantation （P45）, exposed to clear-cutting before plantation, and an 80 260-year-old natural forest （N260）, were chosen to study the effects of different forest ages/types on Collembola community in the lifter and soil layers during 2008 and 2009. Soil conditions in P26 and P45 were significantly deteriorated when compared to N260. A higher value of soil bulk density and lower values of soil organic matter, soil N, litter depth, soil pH, and soil water content were observed in P26 and P45. Totally, the same genera of Collembola tended to occur in the forests of all ages studied; however, the Collembola community structure was significantly impacted by the differences in forest age. Both in the litter and soil layers, the density and generic richness of the Collembola were the highest in N260 and the lowest in P26. Some collembolan groups were sensitive to soil conditions in particular forest ages. N260 was associated with relatively high abundance of Plutomus collembolans and P45 with relatively high abundance of Pseudofolsomia collembolans. The canonical correspondence analysis showed that the community structure of Collembola was mainly affected by forest age in both litter and soil layer. The ordination analysis of non-metric multidimensional scaling also found that the Collembola community did not recover to the level of natural forests in 26-year regeneration after clear-cutting. Even in 45-year regeneration after clear-cutting, the Collembola community only showed a slight recovery to the level of natural forests. Our results clearly showed that both Collembola community and soil conditions did not recover in 26- and 45-year regeneration after clear-cutting in P. tabulaeforrnis plantations; however, they might have the potential to recover in the future because the same genera of Collembola were distributed in the plantations and natural forests.

Soil animal communities at five succession stages in the litter of the evergreen broad-leaved forest in Tiantong,China

Soil animals are abundant in forest litter layer,but little attention has been paid to the vertical distribution of community structure of soil animals in the layers at different plant community succession stages.The forest litter layer can be divided into fresh litter layer(L),fermentation layer(F)and humus layer(H),which may represent different litter decomposition stages.The aim of the study is to ascertain the vertical distribution features of soil animal communities among the three litter layers and the change in the succession process of the Evergreen Broad-Leaved Forest(EBLF)in Tiantong,Zhejiang Province,China.Soil animal communities in the five plant communities at different succession stages were investigated during the 2003 winter.Soil animals,which were collected by using Tullgren funnels,amounted to a total of 13381 individuals falling into 2 phyla,8 classes and 20 orders.The dominant groups were Acarina and Collembola,accounting for 94.24%of the total individuals,with the number of Acarina individuals 7.66 times than that of Collembola.The common group was Diptera.The results indicated that there was a distinctive vertical distribution of the soil animal communities in the forest litter layer,but it differed from that in soil below the litter layer.In contrast to those in the soil,the soil animals in the litter layer generally tended to increase in both group abundance and density from the top fresh litter layer to the bottom humus layer.Altogether 19 groups and 59.03%of total individuals were found in the bottom layer,while only 8 groups and 5.35%of the total individuals in the top.Moreover,there were some variations in the distribution of the soil animals at different plant succession stages.85.19%of Homoptera and 100%of Symphyla were found in the litter layer at the climax succession stage,while 75.61%of Thysanoptera at the intermediate succession stage.Therefore,these groups might be seen as indicative groups.The total numbers of soil animal groups and individuals in the litter layers greatly changed in the succession process of the EBLF.They both were greatest at the climax,moderate at the intermediate and smallest at the primary succession stage.However,the main soil animal groups in the litter at the different succession stages were essentially the same.They were Acarina,Collembola,Diptera and Lepidoptera.Although similarity analysis revealed that the soil animal communities in the litter at the intermediate succession stage were most similar to those at the climax succession stage,they differed greatly from each other in the Shannon-Wiener diversity index.The Shannon-Wiener index was highest at the climax succession stage and lowest at the intermediate succession stage.Finally,the paper discusses the following three questions:the role of soil animals as indicators for plant community succession;the role of different soil animal groups in the litter decomposition at different stages;and the major factors affecting the composition and distribution of soil animals in the litter.This paper provides a new perspective for the research on the succession mechanism of plant communities and the decomposition functions of soil animals.