Data from: Decoupled diversity dynamics in green and brown webs during primary succession in a salt marsh

1. Terrestrial ecosystems are characterised by a strong functional connection between the green (plant-herbivore-based) and brown (detritus-detritivore-based) parts of the food web, which both develop over successional time. However, the interlinked changes in green and brown food web diversity patterns in relation to key ecosystem processes are rarely studied. 2. Here, we demonstrate changes in species richness, diversity and evenness over a wide range of invertebrate green and brown trophic groups during 100 years of primary succession in a salt marsh ecosystem, using a well-calibrated chronosequence. 3. We contrast two hypotheses on the relationship between green and brown food web diversity across succession: i) ‘coupled diversity hypothesis’, which predicts that all trophic groups covary similarly with the main drivers of successional ecosystem assembly versus ii) the ‘decoupled diversity hypothesis’, where green and brown trophic groups diversity respond to different drivers during succession. 4. We found that, while species richness for plants and invertebrate herbivores (green web groups) both peaked at intermediate productivity and successional age, the diversity of macro-detritivores, microarthropod microbivores and secondary consumers (brown web groups) continuously increased towards the latest successional stages. These results suggest that green web trophic groups are mainly driven by vegetation parameters, such as the amount of bare soil, vegetation biomass production, and vegetation height, while brown web trophic groups are mostly driven by the production and standing stock of dead organic material and soil development. 5. Our results show that plant diversity cannot simply be used as a proxy for the diversity of all other species groups that drive ecosystem functioning, as brown and green diversity components in our ecosystem responded differently to successional gradients.1. 陆地生态系统的核心特征为：以植物-植食动物为基础的绿色食物网（green food web）与以碎屑-碎屑动物为基础的棕色食物网（brown food web）之间存在紧密的功能关联，二者均随演替时间推进而发育。然而，目前针对绿色与棕色食物网多样性模式随关键生态系统过程发生的联动变化，相关研究仍较为匮乏。 2. 本研究依托一处经过精准校准的盐沼生态系统原生演替时间序列样地（chronosequence），分析了100年原生演替（primary succession）过程中，多类无脊椎动物（invertebrate）的绿色与棕色营养类群（trophic groups）的物种丰富度（species richness）、多样性（diversity）及均匀度（evenness）变化。 3. 本研究针对演替过程中绿色与棕色食物网多样性的关联模式，对比检验了两类假说：其一为耦合多样性假说（coupled diversity hypothesis），该假说预测所有营养类群均会随生态系统演替组装的核心驱动因子呈现相似的协同变化；其二为解耦多样性假说（decoupled diversity hypothesis），该假说认为绿色与棕色营养类群的多样性在演替过程中会响应不同的驱动因子。 4. 研究结果显示，植物与无脊椎动物植食者（绿色食物网类群）的物种丰富度均在中等生产力水平与演替年龄阶段达到峰值，而大型碎屑食性动物（macro-detritivores）、微型节肢动物食微生物类群（microarthropod microbivores）及次级消费者（secondary consumers，棕色食物网类群）的多样性则随演替推进持续升高至最新演替阶段。进一步分析表明，绿色食物网营养类群主要受植被参数调控，包括裸土面积、植被生物量生产及植被高度；而棕色食物网营养类群则主要受死亡有机质生产与现存量以及土壤发育程度的驱动。 5. 本研究结果表明，植物多样性无法直接作为驱动生态系统功能的其他所有物种类群多样性的替代指标（proxy），因为该盐沼生态系统中棕色与绿色多样性组分对演替梯度（successional gradients）的响应模式存在显著差异。