Responses of soil nitrogen fixation to Spartina alterniflora invasion and nitrogen addition in a Chinese salt marsh
Citations Over TimeTop 10% of 2016 papers
Abstract
Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is the major natural process of nitrogen (N) input to ecosystems. To understand how plant invasion and N enrichment affect BNF, we compared soil N-fixation rates and N-fixing microbes (NFM) of an invasive Spartina alterniflora community and a native Phragmites australis community in the Yangtze River estuary, with and without N addition. Our results indicated that plant invasion relative to N enrichment had a greater influence on BNF. At each N level, the S. alterniflora community had a higher soil N-fixation rate but a lower diversity of the nifH gene in comparison with the native community. The S. alterniflora community with N addition had the highest soil N-fixation rate and the nifH gene abundance across all treatments. Our results suggest that S. alterniflora invasion can increase soil N fixation in the high N-loading estuarine ecosystem, and thus may further mediate soil N availability.
Related Papers
- → Role of Spartina alterniflora on sediment dynamics of coastal salt marshes — case study from central Jiangsu and middle Fujian coasts(2008)9 cited
- → Effects of Spartina alterniflora salt marshes on organic carbon acquisition in intertidal zones of Jiangsu Province, China(2007)50 cited
- → Impact of Sediment Supply on Spartina Salt Marshes(2008)2 cited
- Granularity Analysis of Superficial Sediments of Spartina Alterniflora Salt Marsh on South Coast of Hangzhouwan Bay(2006)
- Impact of Sediment Supply on Spartina Salt Marshes(2008)