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Research article2013Peer reviewedOpen access

Soil and Freshwater and Marine Sediment Food Webs: Their Structure and Function

Krumins, Jennifer Adams; van Oevelen, Dick; Bezemer, T.M.; De Deyn, Gerlinde B.; Hol, W.H.G.; van Donk, E.; de Boer, Wietse; De Ruiter, Peter C.; Middelburg, Jack; Monroy, Fernando; Soetaert, Karline; Thébault, Elisa; van de Koppel, J; van Veen, Johannes A.; Viketoft, Maria; van der Putten, Wim H

Abstract

The food webs of terrestrial soils and of freshwater and marine sediments depend on adjacent aboveground or pelagic ecosystems for organic matter input that provides nutrients and energy. There are important similarities in the flow of organic matter through these food webs and how this flow feeds back to primary production. In both soils and sediments, trophic interactions occur in a cycle in which consumers stimulate nutrient cycling such that mineralized resources are made available to the primary producers. However, aquatic sediments and terrestrial soils differ greatly in the connectivity between the production and the consumption of organic matter. Terrestrial soils and shallow aquatic sediments can receive organic matter within hours of photosynthesis when roots leak carbon, whereas deep oceanic sediments receive organic matter possibly months after carbon assimilation by phytoplankton. This comparison has implications for the capacity of soils and sediments to affect the global carbon balance.

Keywords

soil; sediment; organic matter; food web and trophic control; stoichiometry

Published in

Bioscience
2013, Volume: 63, number: 1, pages: 35-42
Publisher: AMER INST BIOLOGICAL SCI

    Sustainable Development Goals

    SDG14 Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

    UKÄ Subject classification

    Ecology

    Publication identifier

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/bio.2013.63.1.8

    Permanent link to this page (URI)

    https://res.slu.se/id/publ/51432