Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
Variation of dead wood decay rates among tropical trees remains one source of uncertainty in global models of the carbon cycle. Taking advantage of a broad forest plot network surveyed for tree mortality over a 23-year period, we measured the remaining fraction of boles from 367 dead trees from 26 neotropical species widely varying in wood density (0.23–1.24 g cm-3) and tree circumference at death time (31.5–272.0 cm). We modeled decay rates within a Bayesian framework assuming a first order differential equation to model the decomposition process and tested for the effects of forest management (selective logging vs. unexploited), of mode of death (standing vs. downed) and of topographical levels (bottomlands vs. hillsides vs. hilltops) on wood decay rates. The general decay model predicts the observed remaining fraction of dead wood (R2 = 60%) with only two biological predictors: tree circumference at death time and wood specific density. Neither selective logging nor local topography had a differential effect on wood decay rates. Including the mode of death into the model revealed thatstanding dead trees decomposed faster than downed dead trees, but the gain of model accuracy remains rather marginal. Overall, these results suggest that the release of carbon from tropical dead trees to the atmosphere can be simply estimated using tree circumference at death time and wood density.
ISSN: 0029-8549

hal-01094187
https://hal-agroparistech.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01094187
DOI : 10.1007/s00442-010-1602-8

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : The patterns of the distribution of fungal species and their potential interactions with trees remain understudied in Neotropical rainforests, which harbor more than 16,000 tree species, mostly dominated by endomycorrhizal trees. Our hypothesis was that tree species shape the non-mycorrhizal fungal assemblages in soil and litter and that the diversity of fungal communities in these two compartments is partly dependent on the coverage of trees in the Neotropical rainforest. In French Guiana, a long-term plantation and a natural forest were selected to test this hypothesis. Fungal ITS1 regions were sequenced from soil and litter samples from within the vicinity of tree species. A broad range of fungal taxa was found, with 42 orders and 14 classes.Significant spatial heterogeneity in the fungal communities was found without strong variation in the species richness and evenness among the tree plots. However, tree species shaped the fungal assemblages in the soil and litter, explaining up to 18 % of the variation among the communities in the natural forest.These results demonstrate that vegetation cover has an important effect on the structure of fungal assemblages inhabiting the soil and litter in Amazonian forests, illustrating the relative impact of deterministic processes on fungal community structures in these highly diverse ecosystems.
ISSN: 0095-3628

hal-01595373
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01595373
DOI : 10.1007/s00248-016-0839-0
PRODINRA : 395655
PUBMED : 27645139

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : Plant litter diversity effects on decomposition rates are frequently reported, but with a strong bias towards temperate ecosystems. Altered decomposition and nutrient recycling with changing litter diversity may be particularly important in tree species-rich tropical rainforests on nutrient-poor soils. Using 28 different mixtures of leaf litter from 16 Amazonian rainforest tree species, we tested the hypothesis that litter mixture effects on decomposition increase with increasing functional litter diversity. Litter mixtures and all single litter species were exposed in the field for 9 months using custom-made microcosms with soil fauna access. In order to test the hypothesis that the long-term presence of tree species contributing to the litter mixtures increases mixture effects on decomposition, microcosms were installed in a plantation at sites including the respective tree species composition and in a nearby natural forest where these tree species are absent. We found that mixture decomposition deviated from predictions based on single species, with predominantly synergistic effects. Functional litter diversity, defined as either richness, evenness, or divergence based on a wide range of chemical traits, did not explain the observed litter mixture effects. However, synergistic effects in litter mixtures increased with the long-term presence of tree species contributing to these mixtures as the home field advantage hypothesis assumes. Our data suggest that complementarity effects on mixed litter decomposition may emerge through long-term interactions between aboveground and belowground biota.
ISSN: 0029-8549

hal-01032393
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032393
DOI : 10.1007/s00442-011-1966-4

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD BioMed Central
Résumé : [b]Background[/b][br/] [br/] The Amazonian rainforest is predicted to suffer from ongoing environmental changes. Despite the need to evaluate the impact of such changes on tree genetic diversity, we almost entirely lack genomic resources.[br/] [br/] [b]Results[/b][br/] [br/] In this study, we analysed the transcriptome of four tropical tree species (Carapa guianensis, Eperua falcata, Symphonia globulifera and Virola michelii) with contrasting ecological features, belonging to four widespread botanical families (respectively Meliaceae, Fabaceae, Clusiaceae and Myristicaceae). We sequenced cDNA libraries from three organs (leaves, stems, and roots) using 454 pyrosequencing. We have developed an R and bioperl-based bioinformatic procedure for de novo assembly, gene functional annotation and marker discovery. Mismatch identification takes into account single-base quality values as well as the likelihood of false variants as a function of contig depth and number of sequenced chromosomes. Between 17103 (for Symphonia globulifera) and 23390 (for Eperua falcata) contigs were assembled. Organs varied in the numbers of unigenes they apparently express, with higher number in roots. Patterns of gene expression were similar across species, with metabolism of aromatic compounds standing out as an overrepresented gene function. Transcripts corresponding to several gene functions were found to be over- or underrepresented in each organ. We identified between 4434 (for Symphonia globulifera) and 9076 (for Virola surinamensis) well-supported mismatches. The resulting overall mismatch density was comprised between 0.89 (S. globulifera) and 1.05 (V. surinamensis) mismatches/100 bp in variation-containing contigs.[br/] [br/] [b]Conclusion[/b][br/] [br/] The relative representation of gene functions in the four transcriptomes suggests that secondary metabolism may be particularly important in tropical trees. The differential representation of transcripts among tissues suggests differential gene expression, which opens the way to functional studies in these non-model, ecologically important species. We found substantial amounts of mismatches in the four species. These newly identified putative variants are a first step towards acquiring much needed genomic resources for tropical tree species.
ISSN: 1471-2164

hal-01032439
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032439
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032439/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032439/file/art_10-1186_1471-2164-15-238.pdf
DOI : 10.1186/1471-2164-15-238

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : We examined tree-soil habitat associations in lowland forest communities at Paracou, French Guiana. We analyzed a large dataset assembling six permanent plots totaling 37.5 ha, in which extensive LIDAR-derived topographical data and soil chemical and physical data have been integrated with precise botanical determinations. Map of relative elevation from the nearest stream summarized both soil fertility and hydromorphic characteristics, with seasonally inundated bottomlands having higher soil phosphate content and base saturation, and plateaus having higher soil carbon, nitrogen and aluminum contents. We employed a statistical test of correlations between tree species density and environmental maps, by generating Monte Carlo simulations of random raster images that preserve autocorrelation of the original maps. Nearly three fourths of the 94 taxa with at least one stem per ha showed a significant correlation between tree density and relative elevation, revealing contrasted species-habitat associations in term of abundance, with seasonally inundated bottomlands (24.5% of species) and well-drained plateaus (48.9% of species). We also observed species preferences for environments with or without steep slopes (13.8% and 10.6%, respectively). We observed that closely-related species were frequently associated with different soil habitats in this region (70% of the 14 genera with congeneric species that have a significant association test) suggesting species-habitat associations have arisen multiple times in this tree community. We also tested if species with similar habitat preferences shared functional strategies. We found that seasonally inundated forest specialists tended to have smaller stature (maximum diameter) than species found on plateaus. Our results underline the importance of tree-soil habitat associations in structuring diverse communities at fine spatial scales and suggest that additional studies are needed to disentangle community assembly mechanisms related to dispersal limitation, biotic interactions and environmental filtering from species-habitat associations. Moreover, they provide a framework to generalize across tropical forest sites.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01260289
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01260289
PRODINRA : 342930
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0141488

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD CSIRO Publishing
Résumé :  
Leaf traits of tropical tree species display an important inter-specific diversity, as detected for instance in the large range of values of leaf mass : area ratio (LMA). They also demonstrate a large irradiance-elicited plasticity, but there is still debate whether this plasticity differs among species. To address this question, leaf traits were recorded on saplings from 12 rainforest tree species in French Guiana, grown under approximately 5, 10 and 20% relative irradiance. Fifteen structural and physiological leaf traits related to photosynthesis were measured. The irradiance-elicited plasticity was quantified using a relative distance plasticity index. A large inter-specific diversity was detected for all leaf traits. A principal component analysis opposed species with a large mass-based photosynthesis, respiration, N content and photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, to species with a large leaf mass : area ratio, LMA. The two pioneer species used in this study displayed the largest photosynthetic capacity (and lowest LMA) and ranked at one end of the species continuum. Relative irradiance affected almost all traits with the exception of mass-based photosynthesis.Aweak interaction was found between species and relative irradiance and the species ranking was maintained among relative irradiance treatments for the majority of the traits. A principal component analysis of the values of relative-distance plasticity index failed to reveal any consistent patterns of traits or species.Weconcluded that irradiance-elicited plasticity of leaf traits was similar among species irrespective ofLMA and successional status, despite the occurrence of a large inter-specific diversity for the investigated traits
ISSN: 1445-4408

hal-01032129
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032129
DOI : 10.1071/FP09119

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : In the tropical rainforest of Amazonia, the factors driving the evolution of tree species remain poorly understood, and the relative influence of neutral and adaptive processes is continuously debated. In particular, local habitat patchiness draws much attention, as profound changes in the structure and composition of forest communities occur among micro-habitats. Thus, micro-environmental variations related to topography have frequently been invoked as drivers of adaptive radiation leading to sympatric speciation in Neotropical trees. On one hand, the hypothesis of local adaptation has never been investigated at the intra-specific level, i.e. within species currently undergoing population differentiation; on the other hand, many tree species are genetically structured over local scales due to neutral processes, mainly limited gene flow (caused by restricted pollen and seed dispersal). In this study, I used populations of a common tree species of the Guiana Shield - Eperua falcata (Fabaceae) - to study how neutral and adaptive processes shape the distribution of genetic diversity across forest landscapes characterized by local micro-habitat patchiness. I asked three main questions by combining both phenotypic (quantitative genetics) and molecular (population genetics) approaches: 1) How is the genetic diversity structured in forest landscapes of French Guiana? 2) Which evolutionary drivers are relevant to explain the structure of genetic diversity at local scale? 3) Does local adaptation contribute to structure genetic diversity within continuous populations?
En forêt tropicale humide Amazonienne, les facteurs gouvernant l'évolution des espèces d'arbres restent peu connus et continuellement débattus. En particulier, les micro-variations environnementales attirent beaucoup d'attention car elles induisent de profondes modifications de structure et composition des communautés. Les variations micro-environnementales associées à la topographie ont couramment été évoquées comme facteur de radiations adaptatives chez les espèces d'arbres. Cependant, l'hypothèse de l'adaptation locale n'a jamais été testée au niveau intra-spécifique chez les arbres de forêt amazonienne alors que l'on sait que la diversité génétique des arbres tropicaux est couramment structurée à faibles échelles spatiales par des processus neutres (en particulier du fait de restrictions de flux de gènes). Dans cette étude, j'ai étudié le processus de différentiation génétique d'une espèce d'arbre (Eperua falcata, Fabaceae) dans les paysages forestiers de Guyane française grâce à la combinaison d'une approche phénotypique (génétique quantitative) et d'une approche moléculaire (génétique des populations). Je me suis attachée à répondre à trois questions principales : 1) Comment se distribue la diversité génétique dans les paysages forestiers de Guyane française ? 2) Quelles forces évolutives sont impliquées dans le processus de différentiation génétique à faible échelle spatiale ? 3) Est-ce que le processus d'adaptation locale contribue à structurer la diversité génétique à faible échelle spatiale ?
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00967318

NNT : 2013LORR0188
tel-00967318
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00967318
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00967318/document
https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-00967318/file/THESE_Louise_Brousseau.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :
How Quaternary climatic and geological disturbances influenced the composition of Neotropical forests is hotly debated. Rain fall and temperature changes during and/or immediately after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) are thought to have strongly affected the geographical distribution and local abundance of tree species. The paucity of the fossil records in Neotropical forests prevents a direct reconstruction of such processes. To describe community-level historical trends in forest composition, we turned therefore to inferential methods based on the reconstruction of past demographic changes. In particular, we modelled the history of rainforests in the Eastern Guiana Shield over a time scale of several thousand generations, through the application of Approximate Bayesian Computation (ABC) and Maximum Likelihood (ML) methods to diversity data at nuclear and chloroplast loci in eight species or subspecies of rainforest trees. Depending on the species and on the method applied, we detected population contraction, expansion or stability, with a general trend in favour of stability or expansion, with changes presumably having occurred during or after the LGM. These findings suggest that Guiana Shield rain forests have globally persisted, while expanding, through the Quaternary, but that different species have experienced different demographic events, with a trend towards the increase in frequency of light-demanding, disturbance-associated species.
ISSN: 0962-1083

hal-01512150
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01512150/file/Barthe_et_al-_%7B0B6A8C5E-DDFF-4C4E-822C-4E7BC22A6C9B%7D.pdf
DOI : 10.1111/mec.13949

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : This work aimed at understanding the role of mycorrhizal status in phosphorus efficiency of tree seedlings in the tropical rainforest of French Guyana. * Mycorrhizal colonization, growth, phosphorus content, net photosynthesis and root respiration were determined on three occasions during a 9-month growth period for seedlings of two co-occurring species (Dicorynia guianensis and Eperua falcata) grown at three soil phosphorus concentrations, with or without inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizas. * Seedlings of both species were unable to absorb phosphorus in the absence of mycorrhizal association. Mycorrhizal seedlings exhibited coils that are specific of Paris-type mycorrhizae. Both species benefited from the mycorrhizal symbiosis in terms of phosphorus acquisition but the growth of E. falcata seedlings was unresponsive to this mycorrhizal improvement of phosphorus status, probably because of the combination of high seed mass and P reserves, with low growth rate. * The two species belong to two different functional groups regarding phosphorus acquisition, D. guianensis being an obligate mycotrophic species.
ISSN: 0028-646X

hal-01032209
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032209
DOI : 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2004.00978.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : Understanding the pattern in spatial distribution of soil microbial processes is critical to understand the environmental factors that regulate them as well as to scale up these processes to ecosystem. Soil samples from a I ha tropical rainforest plot (Paracou, French Guiana) were analyzed according a nested sampling approach using different separation distances ranging from 0.4 to 40 m. The variability of substrate induced respiration (SIR) and of denitrification enzyme activity (DEA) was characterized in relation to various soil properties (total C and N contents, NIRS related index of soil organic matter quality, SOMQ and index of tree influence potential, IP). The variability of SIR and DEA was higher than that of environmental properties. The patterns of accumulated variance as a function of distance varied among the soil properties. The variability of SIR and DEA mainly occurred at small (1 m) scale (and at the 10-40 m-scales for SIR), probably reflecting the quality of litter input that results of the influence of local assemblage of different tree species, though changes in the soil N and C contents. Indeed, total soil C and N contents explained the microbial properties at every scale. Coefficients of codispersion showed that neither SOMQ nor IP did correlate with SIR and DEA, and confirmed that total C and N contents explained microbial properties in a scale dependent and complex manner. Such spatial dependency underlines the importance of soil heterogeneity in this tropical forest with implications for sampling strategies when studying the microbial processes and their response to disturbances. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
ISSN: 0016-7061

hal-01032409
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032409
DOI : 10.1016/j.geoderma.2012.12.009

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Public Library of Science
Résumé : Climate models for the coming century predict rainfall reduction in the Amazonian region, including change in water availability for tropical rainforests. Here, we test the extent to which climate variables related to water regime, temperature and irradiance shape the growth trajectories of neotropical trees. . We developed a diameter growth model explicitly designed to work with asynchronous climate and growth data. Growth trajectories of 205 individual trees from 54 neotropical species censused every 2 months over a 4-year period were used to rank 9 climate variables and find the best predictive model. . About 9% of the individual variation in tree growth was imputable to the seasonal variation of climate. Relative extractable water was the main predictor and alone explained more than 60% of the climate effect on tree growth, i.e. 5.4% of the individual variation in tree growth. Furthermore, the global annual tree growth was more dependent on the diameter increment at the onset of the rain season than on the duration of dry season. . The best predictive model included 3 climate variables: relative extractable water, minimum temperature and irradiance. The root mean squared error of prediction (0.035 mm.d(-1)) was slightly above the mean value of the growth (0.026 mm.d(-1)). . Amongst climate variables, we highlight the predominant role of water availability in determining seasonal variation in tree growth of neotropical forest trees and the need to include these relationships in forest simulators to test, in silico, the impact of different climate scenarios on the future dynamics of the rainforest.
ISSN: 1932-6203

hal-01268350
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01268350
DOI : 10.1371/journal.pone.0034074
PRODINRA : 215438
PUBMED : 22506012

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Oxford University Press (OUP)
Résumé :  
The maintenance in the long run of a positive carbon balance under very low irradiance is a prerequisite for survival of tree seedlings below the canopy or in small gaps in a tropical rainforest. To provide a quantitative basis for this assumption, experiments were carried out to determine whether construction cost (CC) and payback time for leaves and support structures, as well as leaf life span (i) differ among species and (ii) display an irradiance-elicited plasticity. Experiments were also conducted to determine whether leaf life span correlates to CC and payback time and is close to the optimal longevity derived from an optimization model. Saplings from 13 tropical tree species were grown under three levels of irradiance. Specific-CC was computed, as well as CC scaled to leaf area at the metamer level. Photosynthesis was recorded over the leaf life span. Payback time was derived from CC and a simple photosynthesis model. Specific-CC displayed only little interspecific variability and irradiance-elicited plasticity, in contrast to CC scaled to leaf area. Leaf life span ranged from 4 months to >26 months among species, and was longest in seedlings grown under lowest irradiance. It was always much longer than payback time, even under the lowest irradiance. Leaves were shed when their photosynthesis had reached very low values, in contrast to what was predicted by an optimality model. The species ranking for the different traits was stable across irradiance treatments. The two pioneer species always displayed the smallest CC, leaf life span, and payback time. All species displayed a similar large irradiance-elicited plasticity.
ISSN: 0022-0957

hal-01032198
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032198
DOI : 10.1093/jxb/err092

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : il s'agit d'un type de produit dont les métadonnées ne correspondent pas aux métadonnées attendues dans les autres types de produit : ACTIVITY_REPORT
Understanding genomic evolution in wild populations is of particular importance because evolution is a central process in our understanding of populations’ history and their future response to global changes. In addition to fundamental knowledge, the study of populations’ evolution has wide applications such as conservation/restoration genetics or epidemiology. Indeed, genetic diversity is the ‘fuel’ for populations’ evolution and adaptation to new conditions, and estimating the extent and the geographic structure of genetic diversity, as well as identifying the evolutionary forces behind (demography, gene flow, and adaptation) are thus major challenges in the current context of global changes. [br/]A particular attention is currently devoted to the process of genetic divergence in wild populations, with emphases on gene flow, local adaptation, and their interactions. Indeed, adaptation in wild populations is supported in many species by many kinds of experiments based on both quantitative phenotypic traits and molecular data. However, the processes governing populations’ evolution are poorly understood in the tropical rainforest of Amazonia, and the relative influence of neutral and adaptive processes are continuously discussed. [br/]I am a young scientist interested in the process of genomic divergence in wild (tree) populations. I aimed at understanding how evolution structures the genetic diversity and governs molecular divergence in wild populations, with particular emphases on gene flow and local adaptation. During five years as a young scientist, I worked on answering the following questions, focusing on two tree species occupying vulnerable areas: mainly [i]Eperua falcata[/i] in Amazonia and, to a lesser extent, [i]Abies alba[/i] in the Mediterranean area.[br/][u]Scientific questions:[/u][br/]- Which evolutionary drivers are responsible of the structure of genetic diversity in wild populations occupying wide areas? This question was addressed at different geographical scales: from large (regional) to very local (microgeographic) scales. [br/]- What is the relative influence of neutral (gene flow, inbreeding) and adaptive drivers in the process of genetic divergence?[br/]- Is microgeographic adaptation possible in spite of extensive gene flow between populations occupying the extreme boundaries of an ecological gradient? [br/]- What is the extent of natural selection in the (whole) genome of wild populations? [br/][br/]My research work is at the interface between three promising disciplines: Evolutionary genomics (i.e. the study of populations evolution and the evolutionary drivers behind), Bioinformatics (i.e. the treatment of next-generation data), and Bayesian modelling (i.e. the empirical calibration of complex mechanistic model). I intend to take advantage of the recent advances in sequencing and informatic technologies to bring up to date the field of ecological genetics and evolutionary biology, by developing modern research strategies to study the process of genomic divergence in wild populations.
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204218

hal-01204218
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01204218
PRODINRA : 286326

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier Masson
Résumé : International audience
The maintenance in the long run of a positive carbon balance under very low irradiance is a prerequisite for survival of tree seedlings below the canopy or in small gaps in a tropical rainforest. To provide a quantitative basis for this assumption, experiments were carried out to determine whether construction cost (CC) and payback time for leaves and support structures, as well as leaf life span (i) differ among species and (ii) display an irradiance-elicited plasticity. Experiments were also conducted to determine whether leaf life span correlates to CC and payback time and is close to the optimal longevity derived from an optimization model. Saplings from 13 tropical tree species were grown under three levels of irradiance. Specific-CC was computed, as well as CC scaled to leaf area at the metamer level. Photosynthesis was recorded over the leaf life span. Payback time was derived from CC and a simple photosynthesis model. Specific-CC displayed only little interspecific variability and irradiance-elicited plasticity, in contrast to CC scaled to leaf area. Leaf life span ranged from 4 months to >26 months among species, and was longest in seedlings grown under lowest irradiance. It was always much longer than payback time, even under the lowest irradiance. Leaves were shed when their photosynthesis had reached very low values, in contrast to what was predicted by an optimality model. The species ranking for the different traits was stable across irradiance treatments. The two pioneer species always displayed the smallest CC, leaf life span, and payback time. All species displayed a similar large irradiance-elicited plasticity.
ISSN: 1631-0691

hal-01095975
https://hal-agroparistech.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01095975
DOI : 10.1016/j.crvi.2011.01.007

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : Eperua falcata (Aublet), a late-successional species in tropical rainforest and one of the most abundant tree in French Guiana, has developed an original strategy concerning N-acquisition by largely preferring nitrate, rather than ammonium (H. Schimann, S. Ponton, S. Hattenschwiler, B. Ferry, R. Lensi, A.M. Domenach, J.C. Roggy, Differing nitrogen use strategies of two tropical rainforest tree species in French Guiana: evidence from N-15 natural abundance and microbial activities, Soil Biol, Biochem. 40 (2008) 487-494). Given the preference of this species for nitrate, we hypothesized that root exudates would promote nitrate availability by (a) enhancing nitrate production by stimulating ammonium oxidation or (b) minimizing nitrate losses by inhibiting denitrification. Root exudates were collected in situ in monospecific planted plots. The phytochemical analysis of these exudates and of several of their corresponding root extracts was achieved using UHPLC/DAD/ESI-QTOF and allowed the identification of diverse secondary metabolites belonging to the flavonoid family. Our results show that (i) the distinct exudation patterns observed are related to distinct root morphologies, and this was associated with a shift in the root flavonoid content, (ii) a root extract representative of the diverse compounds detected in roots showed a significant and selective metabolic inhibition of isolated denitrifiers in vitro, and (iii) in soil plots the abundance of nirK-type denitrifiers was negatively affected in rhizosphere soil compared to bulk. Altogether this led us to formulate hypothesis concerning the ecological role of the identified compounds in relation to N-acquisition strategy of this species. (C) 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.
ISSN: 0981-9428

hal-01032437
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032437
DOI : 10.1016/j.plaphy.2013.05.003

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé :  
Tree species-rich tropical rainforests are characterized by a highly variable quality of leaf litter input to the soil at small spatial scales. This diverse plant litter is a major source of energy and nutrients for soil microorganisms, particularly in rainforests developed on old and nutrient-impoverished soils. Here we tested the hypothesis that the variability in leaf litter quality produced by a highly diverse tree community determines the spatial variability of the microbial respiration process in the underlying soil. We analyzed a total of 225 litter-soil pairs from an undisturbed Amazonian rainforest in French Guiana using a hierarchical sampling design. The microbial respiration process was assessed using substrateinduced respiration (SIR) and compared to a wide range of quality parameters of the associated litter layer (litter nutrients, carbon forms, stoichiometry, litter mass and pH). The results show that the variability of both litter quality and SIR rates was more important at large than at small scales. SIR rates varied between 1.1 and 4.0 mg g_1 h_1 and were significantly correlated with litter layer quality (up to 50% of the variability explained by the best mixed linear model). Total litter P content was the individual most important factor explaining the observed spatial variation in soil SIR, with higher rates associated to high litter P. SIR rates also correlated positively with total litter N content and with increasing proportions of labile C compounds. However, contrary to our expectation, SIR rates were not related to litter stoichiometry. These data suggest that in the studied Amazonian rainforest, tree canopy composition is an important driver of the microbial respiration process via leaf litter fall, resulting in potentially strong plant-soil feedbacks. .
ISSN: 0038-0717

hal-01032139
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032139
DOI : 10.1016/j.soilbio.2011.01.018

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé :  
Previous studies in lowland tropical rainforests of French Guiana showed that, among non-N2-fixing trees, two groups of late successional species contrasting in their leaf 15N natural abundance coexist, suggesting two different main ways of nitrogen acquisition. Two abundant late-successional species typically co-occurring in rainforests in French Guiana, namely Eperua falcata and Dicorynia guianensis, were chosen as representative of each group. Stable isotope techniques and measurements of potentials of microbial N transformation were performed to assess to what extent leaf 15N natural abundance of these species could be related to (i) d15N signatures of soil mineral N sources and (ii) the capacity of soil to express nitrification and denitrification (both processes being directly involved in the balance between NH4 + and NO3 - ). Soil d15N-NH4 + was roughly similar to leaf d15N of D. guianensis (around 3.5%), suggesting a preferential use of NH4 +, whereas in E. falcata, leaf d15N values were closer to root d15N-NO3 _ values (0.2 and _2.0%, respectively), suggesting a preferential use of NO3 _. These differences in N source utilization were not accompanied by differences in availability in soil NO3 _ or in intensity of microbial functions responsible for soil N mineral evolution. However, (i) under both tree species, these functions showed clear spatial partitioning, with denitrification occurring potentially in soil and nitrification in the litter layer, and (ii) E. falcata fine roots colonized the litter layer much more strongly than D. guianensis fine roots. This strongly suggests that (i) the contrasted leaf d15N values found in the two late-successional species reveal distinct N acquisition strategies and (ii) the ability of roots to predominantly exploit the litter layer (E. falcata) or the soil (D. guianensis) may constitute an important explanation of the observed differences. A complementarity between tree species, based on mineral N resource partitioning (itself resulting from a spatially structured location of the microbial functions responsible for the balance between NH4 + and NO3 - ), can thus be supposed.
ISSN: 0038-0717

hal-01032035
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032035
DOI : 10.1016/j.soilbio.2007.09.011

Résumé : Les mécanismes à l’origine du maintien de la forte diversité locale des arbres des forêts tropicales humides constituent encore une énigme pour les scientifiques. Cette thèse a pour but d’étudier et de comprendre certains facteurs biotiques et abiotiques qui influencent l’assemblage des communautés des forêts tropicales humides d’Amazonie. A l’aide d’une approche empirique conduite dans les forêts tropicales de Guyane française et du Loreto au Pérou, de nombreuses expériences de terrain ont été mises en place dans le but d’apporter des éléments de réponse sur les mécanismes impliqués dans le maintien de la diversité des communautés d’arbres et d’insectes des forêts amazoniennes. Dans un premier temps, cette thèse permet de souligner l’importance des pressions biotiques exercées sur les communautés d’arbres. En effet, les communautés d’insectes peuvent influencer la composition des communautés d’arbres le long d’un gradient environnemental conduisant à des compromis entre la défense et la croissance. Ces compromis ou tradeoff permettent de maintenir la coexistence des espèces de forêts tropicales humides en favorisant la spécialisation des arbres à leur habitat (Chapitre 1, Annexe 3). Cependant, de nombreux facteurs peuvent engendrer des variations dans les compromis d’allocation exhibés par les plantes, ce qui peut compliquer la validité de ces résultats. Dans ce sens, nous avons souligné l’influence du rôle de la cascade trophique et l’existence chez certaines espèces d’arbres de stratégies d’évitement des insectes (Chapitre 2). Dans un second temps, nous avons montré que les filtres environnementaux et les distances géographiques favorisent un fort turnover de la composition des arthropodes des forêts tropicales (chapitre 3, Annexe 2). Les résultats de cette étude ont des implications fondamentales sur les mécanismes qui expliquent la structuration des communautés d’insectes herbivores. Nous avons souligné l’importance de l’interaction des communautés des insectes herbivores et de leurs plantes associées. De plus, des prédictions sont présentées sur le degré de spécialisation des insectes à leur plante-hôte (Annexe 3), notamment sur les implications possibles dans les compromis d’allocation chez les plantes. Finalement, des perspectives de recherche sont proposées en vue de poursuivre ces travaux de recherche, et notamment des extensions de mes expériences vers d’autres régions tropicales et tempérées et l’intégration de la phylogénie pour comprendre des mécanismes de coévolution entre communautés d’arbres et insectes. Nous proposons également une intégration des résultats de cette thèse dans les stratégies locales et régionales de conservation des forêts tropicales du bassin amazonien.
The mechanisms underlying the maintenance of local diversity of trees in tropical rainforests remain under debate. This dissertation aims to study and understand some biotic and abiotic factors that may influence both tree and insect community assembly in lowland tropical forests of Amazonia. I used an empirical approach to study communities of trees and insects in tropical forests of French Guiana and Peru, to address the extent to which insect herbivores contribute to the turnover of tree species across strong environmental gradients. In Chapter 1, I studied how herbivorous insect communities can influence the composition of tree communities along an environmental gradient by reinforcing tradeoffs between defense and growth that promote habitat specialization (Chapter 1, Appendix 3). The complicated variation in the patterns of growth and defense from this study led me to pursue further observations of an alternative plant defense strategy of time-avoidance of herbivores, which I examined in detail in Chapter 2. I found evidence for coordinated leaf production in some tree species that was consistent with the satiation of herbivores, suggesting that multiple interactions between plants and their herbivores may be responsible for patterns of habitat specialization in trees. In the second part of the dissertation, I examined insect herbivore communities in detail to test for turnover in species composition across geographic and environmental gradients. In Chapter 3, I present evidence for substantial beta-diversity in arthropod communities throughout lowland Amazonian forests. In the discussion I propose research perspectives to complete this research, including the extension of observations to compare tropical and temperate regions and the integration of molecular phylogenetics information to study coevolution of plant lineages and their insect herbivores. I conclude with suggestions for the integration of the results of this thesis in local and regional strategies for the preservation and conservation of tropical forests in the Amazon basin.

http://www.theses.fr/2013AGUY0582/document

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Nature Publishing Group
Résumé : The Amazon basin harbors a diverse ecological community that has a critical role in the maintenance of the biosphere. Although plant and animal communities have received much attention, basic information is lacking for fungal or prokaryotic communities. This is despite the fact that recent ecological studies have suggested a prominent role for interactions with soil fungi in structuring the diversity and abundance of tropical rainforest trees. In this study, we characterize soil fungal communities across three major tropical forest types in the western Amazon basin (terra firme, seasonally flooded and white sand) using 454 pyrosequencing. Using these data, we examine the relationship between fungal diversity and tree species richness, and between fungal community composition and tree species composition, soil environment and spatial proximity. We find that the fungal community in these ecosystems is diverse, with high degrees of spatial variability related to forest type. We also find strong correlations between alpha- and beta-diversity of soil fungi and trees. Both fungal and plant community beta-diversity were also correlated with differences in environmental conditions. The correlation between plant and fungal richness was stronger in fungal lineages known for biotrophic strategies (for example, pathogens, mycorrhizas) compared with a lineage known primarily for saprotrophy (yeasts), suggesting that this coupling is, at least in part, due to direct plant-fungal interactions. These data provide a much-needed look at an understudied dimension of the biota in an important ecosystem and supports the hypothesis that fungal communities are involved in the regulation of tropical tree diversity.
ISSN: 1751-7362

hal-01032405
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032405
DOI : 10.1038/ismej.2013.66

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé :  
Drier periods from the late Pleistocene and early Holocene have been hypothesized to have caused the disappearance of various rainforest species over large geographical areas in South America and restricted the extant populations to mesic sites. Subsequent improvement in climatic conditions has been associated with recolonization. Changes in population size associated with these extinction-recolonization events should have affected genetic diversity within species. However, these historical hypotheses and their genetic consequences have rarely been tested in South America. Here, we examine the diversity of the chloroplast and nuclear genomes in a Neotropical rainforest tree species, Vouacapoua americana (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae) in French Guiana. The chloroplast diversity was analyzed using a polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method (six pairs of primers) in 29 populations distributed over most of French Guiana, and a subset of 17 populations was also analyzed at nine polymorphic microsatellite loci. To determine whether this species has experienced extinction-recolonization, we sampled populations in areas supposedly not or only slightly affected by climatic changes, where the populations would not have experienced frequent extinction, and in areas that appear to have been recently recolonized. In the putatively recolonized areas, we found patches of several thousands of hectares homogeneous for chloroplast variation that can be interpreted as the effect of recolonization processes from several geographical origins. In addition, we observed that, for both chloroplast and nuclear genomes, the populations in newly recolonized areas exhibited a significantly smaller allelic richness than others. Controlling for geographic distance, we also detected a significant correlation between chloroplast and nuclear population differentiation. This result indicates a cytonuclear disequilibrium that can be interpreted as a historical signal of a genetic divergence between fragmented populations. In conclusion, the spatial genetic structure of contemporary V. americana populations shows evidence that this species has experienced large extinction-recolonization events, which were possibly caused by past climatic change.
ISSN: 0014-3820

hal-01032194
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032194
DOI : 10.1111/j.0014-3820.2003.tb01517.x