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Lichen responses to nitrogen and phosphorus additions can be explained by the different symbiont responses
Author(s) -
Johansson Otilia,
Olofsson Johan,
Giesler Reiner,
Palmqvist Kristin
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
new phytologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.742
H-Index - 244
eISSN - 1469-8137
pISSN - 0028-646X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2011.03739.x
Subject(s) - lichen , epiphyte , phosphorus , biomass (ecology) , nutrient , botany , biology , nitrogen , algae , ecology , chemistry , organic chemistry
Summary• Responses to simulated nitrogen (N) deposition with or without added phosphorus (P) were investigated for three contrasting lichen species – the N‐sensitive Alectoria sarmentosa , the more N‐tolerant Platismatia glauca and the N 2 ‐fixing Lobaria pulmonaria – in a field experiment. • To examine whether nutrient limitation differed between the photobiont and the mycobiont within the lichen, the biomass responses of the respective bionts were estimated. • The lichenized algal cells were generally N‐limited, because N‐stimulated algal growth in all three species. The mycobiont was P‐limited in one species ( A. sarmentosa ), but the growth response of the mycobionts was complex, as fungal growth is also dependent on a reliable carbon export from the photobiont, which may have been the reason for the decrease of the mycobiont with N addition in P. glauca . • Our findings showed that P availability was an important factor when studying effects of N deposition, as P supply can both mitigate and intensify the negative effects of N on epiphytic lichens.