Surface indicators are correlated with soil multifunctionality in global drylands

1. Multiple ecosystem functions need to be considered simultaneously to manage and protect the many ecosystem services that are essential to people and their environments. Despite this, cost effective, tangible, relatively simple, and globally-relevant methodologies to monitor in situ soil multifunctionality, i.e. the provision of multiple ecosystem functions by soils, have not been tested at the global scale. 2. We combined correlation analysis and structural equation modelling to explore whether we could find easily measured, field-based indicators of soil multifunctionality (measured using functions linked to the cycling and storage of soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus). To do this, we gathered soil data from 120 dryland ecosystems from five continents. 3. Two soil surface attributes measured in situ (litter incorporation and surface aggregate stability) were the most strongly associated with soil multifunctionality, even after accounting for geographic location and other drivers...

1. 为管理和保护对人类及其环境至关重要的众多生态系统服务，需同时考量多种生态系统功能。然而，用于监测原位土壤多功能性（in situ soil multifunctionality，即土壤提供多种生态系统功能的能力）的成本效益高、切实可行、相对简便且具全球相关性的方法，尚未在全球尺度上得到验证。
2. 我们结合相关性分析（correlation analysis）与结构方程模型（structural equation modelling），探究能否找到易于测量、基于田间的土壤多功能性（soil multifunctionality）指标（该指标通过与土壤碳、氮、磷循环及储存相关的功能进行测量）。为此，我们收集了五大洲120个旱地生态系统（dryland ecosystems）的土壤数据。
3. 两种原位测量的土壤表面属性——凋落物混入（litter incorporation）和表层团聚体稳定性（surface aggregate stability）——与土壤多功能性的关联最为紧密，即便在考虑地理位置及其他驱动因素后仍是如此……