More macrophyte litter changed carbon processing without speeding litter disappearance
WHAT THE EVIDENCE SAYS
A 48-day experiment tested all possible one-, two-, four- and six-species mixtures drawn from eight aquatic macrophytes. Increasing litter richness reduced cumulative microbial respiration and increased metabolic efficiency without changing dry-weight loss, while species composition and chemical diversity helped explain non-additive responses.
WHY IT MATTERS / OUR READ
Decomposition metrics are not interchangeable. The same amount of litter can disappear while carbon is partitioned differently between respiration and retained organic matter, so mass loss alone can miss a change in ecosystem carbon processing.
CAVEATS / UNCERTAINTY
This was a controlled microcosm experiment using standardized, ground litter and lagoon water rather than intact field detritus. Several species required non-senescent leaves, and 48-day microbial responses do not establish whole-ecosystem carbon balance.
SOURCE
Aquatic Ecology
View original evidence ↗
In 410 Brazilian lagoon microcosms, litter richness reduced microbial respiration but did not change dry-mass loss, while species identity still mattered.
Read the Wild Lands assessment →