caa a22 4500 606219560 CHVBK 20210128101119.0 cr unu---uuuuu 210128e20150101xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s11104-014-2256-9 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s11104-014-2256-9 Aspects of soil lichen biodiversity and aggregation interact to influence subsurface microbial function [Elektronische Daten] [Andrea Castillo-Monroy, Matthew Bowker, Pablo García-Palacios, Fernando Maestre] Background and aims: Many previous studies have evaluated aboveground-heterotrophic belowground interactions such as plant-soil feedbacks, plant-mycorrhizal fungi associations or plant-actinorhizal symbioses. However, few studies have used biocrusts, which are specialized soil communities of autotrophic cyanobacteria, mosses, lichens and non-photosynthetic fungi and bacteria that are prevalent in drylands worldwide. These communities largely influence ecosystem functioning, and can be used as a model system for studying above-belowground interactions. In this study, we evaluated how biocrusts affect the functional diversity and biomass of microbial diversities beneath biocrusts. Methods: We performed two microcosm experiments using biocrust-forming lichens where we manipulated their biotic attributes to test independently the effects of species richness (from two to eight species), composition, evenness (maximal and low evenness) and spatial pattern (clumped and random distribution) on the microbial catabolic profile and microbial functional diversity. Results: Microcosms with a random pattern had a higher microbial catabolic profile than those with a clumped pattern. Significant richness × evenness × pattern and richness × evenness interactions were found when analyzing microbial catabolic profile and biomass, respectively. Microcosms with a random pattern, intermediate number of species, and maximal evenness level had higher microbial catabolic profile. At the maximal evenness level, assemblages had higher microbial catabolic profile and microbial biomass when they contained four species. The richness × evenness × pattern interaction was the most informative predictor of variations in microbial catabolic profile. Conclusions: Our results indicate that soil microorganisms are influenced by biocrusts, just as they are influenced by plants, and highlight the importance of higher order interactions among species richness, evenness, and spatial pattern as drivers of microbial communities. The results also emphasize the importance of studying several biotic attributes simultaneously when studying biocrust-soil microorganism interactions, as in nature, community properties do not exert their influence in isolation. Springer International Publishing Switzerland, 2014 Richness nationallicence Evenness nationallicence Spatial pattern nationallicence Microbial biomass nationallicence Basal respiration nationallicence Microbial communities and biological soil crusts nationallicence Castillo-Monroy Andrea Área de Biodiversidad y Conservación, Departamento de Biología y Geología, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933, Móstoles, Spain aut Bowker Matthew School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, 200 E. Pine Knoll, PO Box 15018, 86011, Flagstaff, AZ, USA aut García-Palacios Pablo Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive, CEFE-CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, 34293, Montpellier, France aut Maestre Fernando Área de Biodiversidad y Conservación, Departamento de Biología y Geología, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933, Móstoles, Spain aut Plant and Soil Springer International Publishing 386/1-2(2015-01-01), 303-316 0032-079X 386:1-2<303 2015 386 11104 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2256-9 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2256-9 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Castillo-Monroy Andrea Área de Biodiversidad y Conservación, Departamento de Biología y Geología, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933, Móstoles, Spain aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Bowker Matthew School of Forestry, Northern Arizona University, 200 E. Pine Knoll, PO Box 15018, 86011, Flagstaff, AZ, USA aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- García-Palacios Pablo Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle & Evolutive, CEFE-CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, 34293, Montpellier, France aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Maestre Fernando Área de Biodiversidad y Conservación, Departamento de Biología y Geología, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, 28933, Móstoles, Spain aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Plant and Soil Springer International Publishing 386/1-2(2015-01-01), 303-316 0032-079X 386:1-2<303 2015 386 11104