Climate warming is predicted to alter the structure, stability, and functioning of food webs^1,2,3,4,5. Yet, despite the importance of soil food webs for energy and nutrient turnover in terrestrial ecosystems, the effects of warming on these food webs—particularly in combination with other global change drivers—are largely unknown. Here, we present results from two complementary field experiments that test the interactive effects of warming with forest canopy disturbance and drought on energy flux in boreal–temperate ecotonal forest soil food webs. The first experiment applied a simultaneous above- and belowground warming treatment (ambient, +1.7 °C, +3.4 °C) to closed-canopy and recently clear-cut forest, simulating common forest disturbance⁶. The second experiment crossed warming with a summer drought treatment (−40% rainfall) in the clear-cut habitats. We show that warming reduces energy flux to microbes, while forest canopy disturbance and drought facilitates warming-induced increases in energy flux to higher trophic levels and exacerbates the reduction in energy flux to microbes, respectively. Contrary to expectations, we find no change in whole-network resilience to perturbations, but significant losses in ecosystem functioning. Warming thus interacts with forest disturbance and drought, shaping the energetic structure of soil food webs and threatening the provisioning of multiple ecosystem functions in boreal–temperate ecotonal forests.

中文翻译：

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变暖会改变土壤食物网的能量结构和功能，但不会改变其弹性

预计气候变暖会改变食物网^1,2,3,4,5的结构，稳定性和功能。然而，尽管土壤食物网对陆地生态系统的能量和养分转化非常重要，但变暖对这些食物网的影响（尤其是与其他全球变化驱动因素共同作用）仍然未知。在这里，我们提出了两个互补的田间实验的结果，这些实验测试了林冠层扰动和干旱对温带生态温带森林土壤食物网能量通量的相互作用的影响。第一个实验对封闭的林冠层和最近砍伐的森林同时进行了地上和地下变暖处理（环境温度，+ 1.7°C，+ 3.4°C），模拟了常见的森林扰动⁶。第二个实验是在明确的栖息地对夏季进行干旱处理（降雨量为−40％）来应对气候变暖。我们表明，变暖减少了向微生物的能量通量，而林冠层扰动和干旱则促进了变暖导致的能量通量增加，达到较高的营养水平，并分别加剧了向微生物的能量通量的减少。与预期相反，我们发现整个网络对扰动的恢复能力没有变化，但是在生态系统功能方面却造成了重大损失。因此，变暖与森林扰动和干旱相互作用，塑造了土壤食物网的能量结构，并威胁到寒带温带森林生态系统中多种生态系统功能的提供。