Coordination Funds

耶拿实验的前一阶段提供了新的经验证据，表明在确定生物多样性-生态系统功能(BEF)关系时，生态和进化过程相互交织在一起，长期实验不仅是基本了解这些过程的相对重要性和相互作用的关键，而且也是将这些概念应用于更好地提供生态系统功能和稳定性的关键。然而，这项先前的研究主要集中在各种生态系统功能的大小上，而不是它们的稳定性，尤其缺乏对生物多样性与稳定性关系的机械性见解。因此，在BEF研究中继续发展全生态系统视角是关键。在这一跨学科项目中，我们建议在研究股的第二阶段重点关注生态系统稳定性的生物多样性驱动因素，包括利用独特的时间序列实现时间稳定性，以及应对极端气候事件，如干旱、洪水、高温和异常霜冻时期的稳定性。主要的假设是，由于各种形式的生态互补，高多样性地块的(多功能)稳定性最高，生物多样性与稳定性的关系随着时间的推移而增加。基于生物多样性稳定性理论，我们建议采用野外实验、iDiv Ecotron实验和微观实验相结合的方法。在主要的实验中，我们有大约20年的高分辨率、场级(空气温度、空气湿度、辐射)和特定于地块的数据(土壤温度和湿度)，这些数据将使我们能够识别极端气候事件。综合Δ生物多样性实验的子区数据，我们可以研究土壤历史在长期植物多样性对生态系统功能和稳定性的影响中的作用。来自多个长期实验的独特数据库，结合对多种不同生态系统功能的重复测量，使我们能够研究生物多样性如何在极端气候影响下缓冲生态系统。我们还可以利用这些长期的地块和它们组装的群落，挖掘土壤，让它们以受控的方式暴露在特定的环境条件下，比如在IDIV生态加速器中的极端气候。此外，我们可以使用长期主实验中的土壤(分别选择用于形成合成微生物群落的微生物接种物)进行小规模微型实验，在受控实验室或温室条件下测试额外的应激源或机制。所有分项目将在实地(主实验)以及iDiv Ecotron实验(救援实验)或中心微观世界实验(干实验)中密切合作，而较小的子项目小组将在互补的微观世界实验(漫画实验)中共同工作。广泛的综合工作将整合各子项目和研究平台的数据和信息。

The previous phase of the Jena Experiment provided novel empirical evidence that ecological and evolutionary processes are intertwined in determining biodiversity-ecosystem functioning (BEF) relationships, and long-term experiments are key not only to gain a basic understanding of the relative importance as well as interactions of these processes but also to apply these concepts to better provisioning of ecosystem functions and stability. However, this prior research predominantly focused on the magnitude of various ecosystem functions, rather than on their stability, and mechanistic insights into biodiversity-stability relationships are especially lacking. It is thus key to continue developing a whole-ecosystem perspective in BEF research. In this interdisciplinary project, we propose to focus on the biodiversity drivers of ecosystem stability in the second phase of the Research Unit, including temporal stability using unique time series and stability in response to extreme climate events, such as drought, flooding, hot spells, and exceptional frost periods. The main hypothesis is that (multifunctional) stability is highest in high-diversity plots and biodiversity-stability relationships increase over time, due to a variety of forms of ecological complementarity. We propose to utilize a combination of approaches, with experiments in the field, iDiv Ecotron, and microcosms, based on biodiversity-stability theory. In the Main Experiment, we have ~two decades of high-resolution, field-level (air temperature, air moisture, radiation), and plot-specific data (soil temperature and moisture) that will allow us to identify extreme climate events. Synthesizing data from the subplots of the ΔBEF Experiment allow us to study the role of soil history in long-term plant diversity effects on ecosystem functioning and stability. The unique database from multiple long-term experiments, combined with repeated measurements of a multitude of different ecosystem functions, allows us to study how biodiversity can buffer ecosystems as affected by climate extremes. We can also use these long-term plots and their assembled communities and excavate soil to expose them to certain environmental conditions like climate extremes in a controlled way in the iDiv Ecotron. Moreover, we can use soil (respectively selected microbial inocula which are used to form a synthetic microbial community) taken from the long-term Main Experiment to perform small-scale microcosm experiments, to test additional stressors or mechanisms under controlled laboratory or greenhouse conditions. All subprojects will closely collaborate in the field (Main Experiment) as well as in the iDiv Ecotron Experiment (ResCUE Experiment) or central microcosm experiment (DrY Experiment), while smaller teams of subprojects will work together in Complementary Microcosm Experiments (CoMic Experiments). Extensive synthesis work will integrate data and information across subprojects and research platforms.