USGS · 70261201
Human activities shape global patterns of decomposition rates in rivers
Abstract
Rivers and streams contribute to global carbon cycling by decomposing immense quantities of terrestrial plant matter. However, decomposition rates are highly variable and large-scale patterns and drivers of this process remain poorly understood. Using a cellulose-based assay to reflect the primary constituent of plant detritus, we generated a predictive model (81% variance explained) for cellulose decomposition rates across 514 globally distributed streams. A large number of variables were important for predicting decomposition, highlighting the complexity of this process at the global scale. Predicted cellulose decomposition rates, when combined with genus-level litter quality attributes, explain published leaf litter decomposition rates with high accuracy (70% variance explained). Our global map provides estimates of rates across vast understudied areas of Earth and reveals rapid decomposition across continental-scale areas dominated by human activities.
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Scott Tiegs, Krista A. Capps, David M. Costello, John Paul Schmidt, Christopher J. Patrick, Jennifer Follstad Shah, Carri J. LeRoy, Vicenc Acuna, Ricardo Albarino, Daniel C. Allen, Cecilia Alonso, Patricio Andino, Clay Arango, Jukka Aroviita, Marcus Barbosa, Leon A. Barmuta, Colden V. Baxter, Brent Bellinger, Luz Boyero, Lyubov Bragina, Lee E. Brown, Andreas Bruder, Denise Bruesewitz, Francis Burdon, Marcos Callisto, Antonio G. Camacho, Cristina Canhoto, Maria Castillo, Eric Chauvet, Joanne Clapcott, Fanny Colas, Checo Colon-Gaud, Julien Cornut, Veronica Crespo-Perez, Wyatt F. Cross, Joseph M. Culp, Michael Danger, Olivier Dangles, Elvira de Eyto, Alison Derry, Veronica Diaz-Villanueva, Michael Douglas, Arturo Elosegi, Andrea Encalada, Sally Entrekin, Rodrigo Espinosa, Veronica Ferreira, Carmen Ferriol, Kyla Flanagan, Alexander Flecker, Tadeusz Fleituch, André Frainer, Nikolai Friberg, Paul C. Frost, Erica A. Garcia, Liliana Garcia-Lago, Pavel Garcia Soto, Mark Gessner, Sudeep Ghate, Darren Giling, Alan Gilmer, Jose Goncalves, Rosario Gonzales, Manuel Graca, Mike Grace, Natalie A. Griffiths, Hans-Peter Grossart, Francois Guerold, Vlad Gulis, Pablo E. Gutiérrez-Fonseca, Luiz Hepp, Scott Higgins, Takuo Hishi, Joseph Huddart, John P. Hudson, Moss Imberger, Carlos Iniguez-Armijos, Mark Isken, Tomoya Iwata, Dave Janetski, Andrea Kirkwood, Aaron A. Koning, Sarian Kosten, Kevin Kuehn, Hjalmar Laudon, Peter Leavitt, Aurea Lemes da Silva, Shawn Leroux, Peter Lisi, Richard Mackenzie, Amy M Marcarelli, Frank Masese, Peter B. McIntyre, Brendan G. McKie, Adriana Medeiros, Kristian Meissner, Marko Milisa, Shailendra Mishra, Yo Miyake, Ashley Moerke. 2024. Human activities shape global patterns of decomposition rates in rivers. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adn1262
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