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Changing perspectives on terrestrial nitrogen cycling: The importance of weathering and evolved resource‐use traits for understanding ecosystem responses to global change
Author(s) -
Wooliver Rachel,
Pellegrini Adam F. A.,
Waring Bonnie,
Houlton Benjamin Z.,
Averill Colin,
Schimel Joshua,
Hedin Lars O.,
Bailey Joseph K.,
Schweitzer Jennifer A.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
functional ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.272
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2435
pISSN - 0269-8463
DOI - 10.1111/1365-2435.13377
Subject(s) - cycling , biogeochemical cycle , nutrient cycle , ecosystem , weathering , nitrogen cycle , terrestrial ecosystem , biology , ecology , biogeochemistry , nutrient , nitrogen , history , paleontology , physics , archaeology , quantum mechanics
Our understanding of terrestrial nitrogen (N) cycling is changing as new processes are uncovered, including the sources, turnover and losses of N from ecosystems. We integrate recent insights into an updated N‐cycling framework and discuss how a new understanding integrates eco‐evolutionary dynamics with nutrient cycling. These insights include (a) the significance of rock weathering as a biologically meaningful N source to plants and microbes; (b) the lack of consistent N limitation of organic matter decomposition by soil microbes; (c) species‐specific variation in plant N limitation; and (d) how fire effects on soil N shift with ecosystem properties. Using an eco‐evolutionary framework and revised knowledge of N cycling, we describe how (a) rock N weathering could have contributed more strongly to gradients in soil N availability than previously recognized, (b) evolution and co‐evolution of plant and soil microbial resource‐use traits underlie whether decomposition and production are N‐limited, and (c) the effects of fire on soil N pools are mediated by composition of plant species and time‐scale. Our revised framework of N cycling provides a way forward for improving biogeochemical models to more accurately estimate rates of plant production and decomposition, and total soil N. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.