Drivers of nitrogen transfer in stream food webs across continents

Norman, Beth C.; Whiles, Matt R.; Collins, Sarah M.; Flecker, Alexander S.; Hamilton, Steve K.; Johnson, Sherri L.; Rosi, Emma J.; Ashkenas, Linda R.; Bowden, William B.; Crenshaw, Chelsea L.; Crowl, Todd; Dodds, Walter K.; Hall, Robert O.; El-Sabaawi, Rana; Griffiths, Natalie A.; Marti, Eugenia; McDowell, William H.; Peterson, Scot D.; Rantala, Heidi M.; Riis, Tenna; Simon, Kevin S.; Tank, Jennifer L.; Thomas, Steven A.; von Schiller, Daniel; Webster, Jackson R.

doi:10.1002/ecy.2009

Title: Drivers of nitrogen transfer in stream food webs across continents

Journal Article · 25 October 2017 · Ecology

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.2009 · OSTI ID:1412045

Norman, Beth C. ^[1]; Whiles, Matt R. ^[2];

^[3]; Flecker, Alexander S. ^[4]; Hamilton, Steve K. ^[5]; Johnson, Sherri L. ^[6]; Rosi, Emma J. ^[7]; Ashkenas, Linda R. ^[8]; Bowden, William B. ^[9]; Crenshaw, Chelsea L. ^[10]; Crowl, Todd ^[11]; Dodds, Walter K. ^[12];

^[13]; El-Sabaawi, Rana ^[14];

^[15]; Marti, Eugenia ^[16]; McDowell, William H. ^[17]; Peterson, Scot D. ^[18]; Rantala, Heidi M. ^[19]; Riis, Tenna ^[20] more »

Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI (United States)
Southern Illinois Univ., Carbondale, IL (United States)
Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)
Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States)
Michigan State Univ., Hickory Corners, MI (United States)
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Corvallis, OR (United States)
Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY (United States)
Oregon State Univ., Corvallis, OR (United States)
Univ. of Vermont, Burlington, VT (United States)
Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States)
Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States)
Kansas State Univ., Manhattan, KS (United States)
Univ. of Wyoming, Laramie, WY (United States)
Univ. of Victoria, Victoria (Canada)
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Centre d'Estudis Avancats de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), Blanes (Spain)
Univ. of New Hampshire, Durham, NH (United States)
Murray State Univ., Murray, KY (United States)
Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources, St. Paul, MN (United States)
Aarhus Univ., Aarhus (Denmark)
Univ. of Auckland, Auckland (New Zealand)
Univ. of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN (United States)
Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE (United States)
Univ. of the Basque Country, Bilbao (Spain)
Virginia Polytechnic Inst. and State Univ. (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA (United States)

Studies of trophic-level material and energy transfers are central to ecology. The use of isotopic tracers has now made it possible to measure trophic transfer efficiencies of important nutrients and to better understand how these materials move through food webs. We analyzed data from thirteen ¹⁵N-ammonium tracer addition experiments to quantify N transfer from basal resources to animals in headwater streams with varying physical, chemical, and biological features. N transfer efficiencies from primary uptake compartments (PUCs; heterotrophic microorganisms and primary producers) to primary consumers was lower (mean: 11.5%, range: <1%-43%) than N transfer efficiencies from primary consumers to predators (mean: 80%, range: 5%- >100%). Total N transferred (as a rate) was greater in streams with open compared to closed canopies and overall N transfer efficiency generally followed a similar pattern, although was not statistically significant. We used principal component analysis to condense a suite of site characteristics into two environmental components. Total N uptake rates among trophic levels were best predicted by the component that was correlated with latitude, DIN:SRP, GPP:ER, and % canopy cover. N transfer efficiency did not respond consistently to environmental variables. Here, our results suggest that canopy cover influences N movement through stream food webs because light availability and primary production facilitate N transfer to higher trophic levels.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1412045

Journal Information:: Ecology, Vol. 98, Issue 12; ISSN 0012-9658

Publisher:: Ecological Society of America (ESA)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Citation Metrics:

Cited by: 10 works

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
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Title: Drivers of nitrogen transfer in stream food webs across continents

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