Effects of enhanced structural complexity on dead-wood microbial diversity and wood decomposition

依赖木材的生物的多样性受到森林管理的严重影响，特别是由于各种枯木资源的清除。栖息在木材上的真菌和细菌是物种最丰富的谱系之一，对森林生态系统的功能作出了重大贡献。然而，我们对不同分类群和随后的生态系统过程中枯木微生物多样性的驱动因素的理解仍然是初级的。在这里，我们利用一个大型的协作实验框架来询问是否以及如何通过人工造林或自然干扰来增强森林中结构α (ESC)和β (ESBC)的复杂性，从而增加微生物多样性并改变以前同质生产森林的生态系统过程（分解）。更具体地说，我们将解开ESB/ESBC提供的因素，即资源特征和微气候条件的可变性在斑块水平上驱动微生物多样性，特别是如何将其转化为地区水平上的beta多样性。这将使我们能够(i)获得对微生物多样性模式和相关组装过程的更深入的机制理解，以及（ii）在森林管理运作的相关空间尺度上维持生产林中微生物多样性和随后分解过程的具体建议。最后，大型合作框架将通过连接生态系统隔间（如枯木和土壤）和/或分类群（如微生物、昆虫、苔藓植物），促进进一步的想法和研究微生物枯木研究之外的问题。

The diversity of wood-dependent organisms suffers strongly from forest management, particularly due to the removal of diverse dead-wood resources. Wood-inhabiting fungi and bacteria are among the most species-rich lineages and contribute substantially to forest ecosystem functioning. However, our understanding of the drivers of the microbial diversity in dead wood across taxa and subsequent ecosystem processes is still rudimentary. We here take advantage of a large collaborative experimental framework to ask whether and how the Enhancement of Structural Alpha (ESC) and Beta (ESBC) Complexity in forests by silviculture or natural disturbances increases microbial diversity and modifies ecosystem processes (decomposition) in former homogeneous production forests. More specifically, we will disentangle the factors provided by ESB/ESBC, that is, variability in resource characteristics and microclimate conditions driving microbial diversity at patch level and particularly how this translates into beta diversity at district level. This will allow us to (i) gain a deeper mechanistic understanding of microbial diversity patterns and related assembly processes and (ii) concrete recommendations to maintain microbial diversity and subsequent decomposition processes in production forests at the relevant spatial scale at which forest management operates. Finally, the large collaborative framework will boost further ideas and study questions beyond microbial dead-wood research via linking ecosystems compartments (e.g., dead-wood and soil) and /or taxa (e.g., microbes, insects, bryophytes).