Initial litter quality drives the consistent negative effects of fauna exclusion on litter decomposition in diverse ecosystems: A global meta-analysis

Aim: Despite the extensive research done on the consequences of faunal impacts on litter decomposition in different experimental contexts, a thorough assessment of their impacts and causes in various habitats around the world is still missing. Here, we aimed to explore general patterns and key drivers (e.g., climate, environment, litter quality) of faunal effects on litter decomposition in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Location: Global. Time period: 1980-2022. Major taxa studied: Plant litter and fauna. Methods: We investigate the effects of fauna exclusion on litter decomposition in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems through a meta-analysis of 819 pairs of observations from 110 studies on terrestrial litter decomposition and 402 pairs of observations from 60 studies on aquatic litter decomposition. Results: Fauna exclusion reduced litter decomposition rates in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems by 34% and 46% on average, respectively. In terrestrial ecosystems, the faunal effects...研究目的：尽管学界已在多种实验场景下针对动物群落对枯落物分解的影响效应开展了大量研究，但目前仍缺乏对全球不同生境中该类影响及其成因的全面系统评估。本研究旨在探索陆地与水生生态系统中，动物群落对枯落物分解的影响的一般规律与关键驱动因子（如气候、环境、枯落物质量）。 研究区域：全球范围 研究时段：1980年—2022年 研究类群：植物枯落物与动物群落 研究方法：本研究通过荟萃分析（meta-analysis），整合了110项陆地枯落物分解研究的819组观测数据，以及60项水生枯落物分解研究的402组观测数据，以此探究动物排除处理对陆地与水生生态系统枯落物分解的影响。 研究结果：动物排除处理分别使陆地与水生生态系统的枯落物分解速率平均降低34%与46%。在陆地生态系统中，动物群落的影响效应……