There is increasing evidence that spatial and temporal dynamics of biodiversity and ecosystem functions play an essential role in biodiversity–ecosystem-functioning (BEF) relationships. Despite the known importance of soil processes for forest ecosystems, belowground functions in response to tree diversity and spatiotemporal dynamics of ecological processes and conditions remain poorly described. We propose a novel conceptual framework integrating spatiotemporal dynamics in BEF relationships and hypothesized a positive tree species richness effect on soil ecosystem functions through the spatial and temporal stability of biotic and abiotic soil properties based on species complementarity and asynchrony. We tested this framework within a long-term tree diversity experiment in Central Germany by assessing soil ecosystem functions (soil microbial properties and litter decomposition) and abiotic variables (soil moisture and surface temperature) for two consecutive years in high spatial and temporal resolution. Tree species richness and identity had significant effects on soil properties (e.g., soil microbial biomass). Structural equation modeling revealed that overall soil microbial biomass was partly explained by (1) enhanced temporal stability of soil surface temperature and (2) decreased spatial stability of soil microbial biomass. Overall, spatial stability of soil microbial properties was positively correlated with their temporal stability. These results suggest that spatiotemporal dynamics are indeed crucial determinants in BEF relationships and highlight the importance of vegetation-induced microclimatic conditions for stable provisioning of soil ecosystem functions and services.

中文翻译：

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非生物和生物特性的时空动态解释了生物多样性-生态系统-功能关系

越来越多的证据表明，生物多样性和生态系统功能的时空动态在生物多样性-生态系统功能 (BEF) 关系中发挥着重要作用。尽管已知土壤过程对森林生态系统的重要性，但响应树木多样性和生态过程和条件的时空动态的地下功能仍然很少被描述。我们提出了一个新的概念框架，将时空动态整合到 BEF 关系中，并假设通过基于物种互补性和异步性的生物和非生物土壤特性的时空稳定性，树种丰富度对土壤生态系统功能产生积极的影响。我们在德国中部的一项长期树木多样性实验中测试了这个框架，通过连续两年以高空间和时间分辨率评估土壤生态系统功能（土壤微生物特性和凋落物分解）和非生物变量（土壤水分和地表温度）。树种的丰富度和特性对土壤特性（例如，土壤微生物生物量）有显着影响。结构方程模型表明，整体土壤微生物生物量可以部分解释为（1）土壤表面温度的时间稳定性增强和（2）土壤微生物生物量的空间稳定性降低。总体而言，土壤微生物特性的空间稳定性与其时间稳定性呈正相关。