Ground beetle trophic interactions alter available nitrogen in forest soil
Data files
Oct 04, 2024 version files 12.45 KB
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Cascade_PlotInfo.csv
1.40 KB
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rawdata.csv
4.14 KB
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README.md
2.59 KB
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Season.csv
4.31 KB
Abstract
It is generally held that microbes exert primary control over nitrogen availability in temperate forests. Yet the role of soil and litter-dwelling invertebrates to provide additional control via the breakdown of organic matter is an area of current exploration. Through trophic interactions within soil food webs, predators may indirectly affect prey with cascading effects on litter breakdown and nitrogen availability. The importance of these interactions, however, may be context-dependent, varying with the stage of forest development and associated decomposer species composition given that young and old forests have vast differences in nitrogen availability, vegetation litter, soil properties, and invertebrate functional groups. We examined ground beetle control over soil nitrogen and soil properties using a 68-day mesocosm experiment that manipulated trophic structure (omnivore + predator beetles, predator beetles, and no beetles) in a young and old forest stand in the northeastern United States. In the young forest, net nitrogen mineralization decreased under predator + omnivore and the bulk soil C:N ratio in the old forest. However, we found no response in either forest context to the predator only treatment. Our study demonstrates the potential for ground beetles to strongly impact nitrogen availability and soil properties in forest ecosystems. Therefore, animal trophic interactions and their contexts must be included in our paradigm of nutrient cycles in temperate forests.
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.2547d7x1n
Description of the data and file structure
We collected soil data in June and Sept 2022 at Yale-Myers Forest for “Ground beetle trophic interactions alter available nitrogen in forest soil” including Nitrogen Mineralization, pH, Water Holding Capacity, Total Nitrogen, and Total Carbon.
Files and variables
File: Cascade_PlotInfo.csv
Description: Plot info including plot number, block, treatment applied to plots, forest and significant dates
Variables
- Plot: (individual cage 1-30)
- Treatment (PT, HT, C): Ground beetle treatments (PT- predator only), (HT- predator and omnivore), (C-control no beetles)
- Block: (treatments were grouped into blocks)
- Forest: (Old or Young forest site)
- Initial_Stock: (date of stocking cages with beetles)
- Second_Stock: (date of stocking cages with beetles)
- Final_Soil_Sample: (date of soil sample)
- Notes: any notes taken during sample
File: rawdata.csv
Description: data separated into June and Sept sample periods
Variables
- Plot: (1-30)
- Nmin_June: Net Nitrogen Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nnit_June: Nitrite Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nam_June: Ammonium Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nmin_Sept: Net Nitrogen Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nnit_Sept: Nitrite Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nam_Sept: Ammonium Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- pH_June: Soil pH
- pH_Sept: Soil pH
- WHC_June: Water Holding Capacity (Average % soil moist at 100% WHC)
- WHC_Sept: Water Holding Capacity (Average % soil moist at 100% WHC)
- Temp_Sept: In-situ soil temp (C)
- TN_June: Total Percent Organic Nitrogen
- TC_June: Total Percent Organic Carbon
- TN_Sept: Total Percent Organic Nitrogen
- TC_Sept: Total Percent Organic Carbon
File: Season.csv
Description: Data transformed into long format.
Variables
- Plot: (1-30)
- Season: (June or Sept)
- Nmin: Net Nitrogen Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nnit: Nitrite Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- Nam: Ammonium Mineralization (ug N g-1 day-1)
- pH: Soil pH
- WHC: Water Holding Capacity (Average % soil moist at 100% WHC)
- TN: Total Percent Organic Nitrogen
- TC: Total Percent Organic Carbon
Code/software
csv files are easily accessible
Access information
Other publicly accessible locations of the data: