Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :  
Distinct ecosystem level carbon : nitrogen : phosphorus (C : N : P) stoichiometries in forest foliage have been suggested to reflect ecosystem-scale selection for physiological strategies in plant nutrient use. Here, this hypothesis was explored in a nutrient-poor lowland rainforest in French Guiana. * Variation in C, N and P concentrations was evaluated in leaf litter and foliage from neighbour trees of 45 different species, and the litter concentrations of major C fractions were also measured. * Litter C ranged from 45.3 to 52.4%, litter N varied threefold (0.68-2.01%), and litter P varied seven-fold (0.009-0.062%) among species. Compared with foliage, mean litter N and P concentrations decreased by 30% and 65%, respectively. Accordingly, the range in mass-based N : P shifted from 14 to 55 in foliage to 26 to 105 in litter. Resorption proficiencies indicated maximum P withdrawal in most species, but with a substantial increase in variation in litter P compared with foliage. * These data suggest that constrained ecosystem-level C : N : P ratios do not preclude the evolution of highly diversified strategies of nutrient use and conservation among tropical rainforest tree species. The resulting large variation in litter quality will influence stoichiometric constraints within the decomposer food web, with potentially far-ranging consequences on nutrient dynamics and plant-soil feedbacks.
ISSN: 0028-646X

hal-01032108
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032108
DOI : 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2008.02438.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé :  
The high spatial variability of soil respiration in tropical rainforests is well evaluated, but influences of biotic factors are not clearly understood. This study underlines the influence of tree species characteristics on soil respiration across a 16-monospecific plot design in a tropical plantation of French Guiana. A large variability of soil CO2 fluxes was observed among plots (i.e. 2.8 to 6.8 μmol m−2 s −1 ) with the ranking being constant across seasons. There were no significant relationships between soil respiration and soil moisture or soil temperature, neither spatially, nor seasonally. The variability of soil respiration was mainly explained by quantitative factors such as leaf litterfall and basal area. Surprisingly, no significant relationship was observed between soil respiration and root biomass. However, the influence of substrate quality was revealed by a strong relationship between soil respiration and litterfall P (and litterfall N, to a lesser extent).
ISSN: 0032-079X

hal-01032069
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032069
DOI : 10.1007/s11104-008-9866-z