We develop a compartment model inspired by producer–herbivore–microbe soil food webs and determine how the naturally occurring seasonal variation in producer and detrital quality affects microbial nutrient cycling and the feedback to primary production. We show that seasonal changes in the stoichiometric quality of the producer coupled with the efficiency of herbivore grazing could induce a switch in the stoichiometric signature and therefore the functioning of the microbial community. Microbial decomposers are responsible for the flux of essential nutrients through an ecosystem. Our model enables one to quantitatively understand the tipping points between bacterially or fungally dominated decomposer communities, and more generally, the complex relationships between microbial decomposers, primary production, and nutrient cycling.

我们开发了一个由生产者—草食动物—微生物土壤食物网启发的区室模型，并确定生产者和碎屑质量的自然季节性变化如何影响微生物养分循环以及对初级生产的反馈。我们表明生产者的化学计量质量的季节性变化加上草食动物放牧的效率可能会导致化学计量特征发生变化，从而导致微生物群落的功能发生变化。微生物分解者负责通过生态系统的基本营养素的流动。我们的模型使人们能够定量地了解以细菌或真菌为主的分解者群落之间的临界点，更普遍地，了解微生物分解者，初级生产和养分循环之间的复杂关系。