Effects of hyperaccumulated nickel on decomposition of leaves of Senecio coronatus, a South African nickel hyperaccumulator
We determined if leaf Ni status (hyperaccumulator vs. non-hyperaccumulator) affected leaf decomposition rates of Senecio coronatus. Dried leaf fragments from hyperaccumulator and non-hyperaccumulator plants were placed in nylon decomposition bags and placed onto three types of field sites (hyperaccumulator serpentine, non-hyperaccumulator serpentine, and non- serpentine). Sets of hags were recovered after 1, 3.5 and 8 months and mass loss and Ni concentrations determined. For the serpentine sites, at 1 and 3.5 months there was no effect of leaf Ni status or site on decomposition rates, but by 8 months there were significant leaf Ni status and site effects for one pair of sites (the other pair was lost from the study after 7 months due to a fire). Hyperaccumulator leaves decomposed more slowly than accumulator leaves, and leaves of both types decomposed more slowly on the accumulator site. At the non-serpentine site, leaves differed in decomposition rate, with those containing the most Ni decomposing most slowly. We conclude that the unusual leaf Ni concentration of hyperaccumulator plants can affect ecosystem processes such as decomposition.
Decomposition ecosystem processes Ni hyperaccumulation
R. S. Boyd M. A. Davis K. Balkwill
Department of Biological Sciences, 101 Life Sciences Building, Auburn University, AL 36849-5407, USA Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-5018, U C. E. Moss Herbarium, School of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Private
国际会议
第九届痕量元素生物地球化学国际会议(9th International Conference on the Biogeochemistry of Trace Elements)
北京
英文
1008-1009
2007-07-15（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）