Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-2024
Publisher
Wiley
Source Publication
Oikos
Source ISSN
0030-1299
Original Item ID
DOI: 10.1111/oik.10201
Abstract
Soil moisture reductions during drought often inhibit soil microbial activity and inhibit decomposition rates by reducing microbial biomass or by altering microbial communities. Evidence suggests that soil water must drop below a critical threshold to inhibit microbial activity. Thus, it is likely that the seasonal timing of drought will determine the extent to which belowground processes are adversely impacted by drought. Specifically, the effects of drought might be minimal during cool, wet periods typical of late spring but dramatic during hot summer months with high evapotranspiration rates that lower soil moisture levels below the critical threshold. Here, we present results from a study designed to quantify the effect of drought on soil microbial abundance, community composition, and soil water diffusion across four months, and to then assess how drought impacts the microbial decomposition of leaf matter. We imposed a season-long drought in a Wisconsin tallgrass prairie and measured soil moisture, bacterial composition and abundance, microbial respiration, and decomposition rates throughout the growing season. Bacterial communities varied considerably among dates, but drought did not affect either bacterial abundance or community composition. Microbial respiration declined significantly during periods of drought when soil pores likely became hydrologically isolated, ultimately reducing cumulative microbial respiration by 10%. The reduction in microbial activity in drought treatments caused a 50% decline in the decomposition of refractory material. Our study highlights that sublethal effects of drought on microbial communities, occurring only when soil moisture declined below a tolerance threshold, can have large impacts on microbial carbon release or decomposition, highlighting the need to incorporate such measures into future studies.
Recommended Citation
LeMoine, Nathan P.; Budny, Michelle L.; Rose, Ethan; Lucas, Jane; and Marshall, Christopher, "Seasonal Soil Moisture Thresholds Inhibit Bacterial Activity and Decomposition during Drought in a Tallgrass Prairie" (2024). Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications. 956.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/bio_fac/956
Comments
Accepted version. Oikos, Vol. 2024, No. 2 (February 2024). DOI. © 2024 Wiley. Used with permission.