Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
soil pH
Soil N
Soil Mg
Soil K
Soil Ca
Soil C:N
Soil C
Litter P
Litter N
Litter Mg
Litter Lignin:N
Litter K
Litter Ca
Litter C:N
Reference
Augusto and others 1988
Ayres and others 2006
Bjornlund and others 2005
Cezarz and others 2013
Cools and others 2014
Cortez and others 1998
Cortez and others 1996
Cotrufo and others 1998
De Santo and others 2009
Don and others 2005
Gurmesa and others 2013
Hagen-Thom and others 2004
Hagen-Thom and others 2006
Hobbie and others 2006
Hobbie and others 2010
Jacob and others 2010
Jacob and others2009
Jonard and others 2008
King and others 2002
Ladegaard Pedersen and others
2005
Lagenbruch and others 2012
Lorenz and others 2004
Lummer and others 2012
Marcos and others 2010
Neirynck and others 2000
Norden 1994
Oostra and others 2006
Peichl and others 2012
Petritan and others 2010
Rajapaksha and others 2013
Riutta and others 2012
Sariyildiz and others 2003
Sariyildiz and others 2003
Sariyildiz and others2005
Schadler and others 2005
Shilenkova and others 2013
Decomposition rate
Table S1 References Used for Data on Ecosystem Function of Tree Species
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
1
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Augusto, L., Bonnaud, P. & Ranger, J. (1998) Impact of trees species on forest soil acidification.
Forest Ecology and Management, 105, 67-78
Ayres, E., Dromph, K.M. & Bardgett, R.D. (2006) Do plant species encourage soil biota that specialise
in the rapid decomposition of their litter? Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 38, 183-186.
Bjornlund, L. & Christensen, S. (2005) How does litter quality and site heterogeneity interact on
decomposer food webs of a semi-natural forest? Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 37, 203-213.
Cesarz, S., Fender, A.C., Beyer, F., Valtanen, K., Pfeiffer, B., Gansert, D., Hertel, D., Polle, A., Daniel,
R., Leuschner, C. & Scheu, S. (2013) Roots from beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and ash (Fraxinus
excelsior L.) differentially affect soil microorganisms and carbon dynamics. Soil Biology &
Biochemistry, 61, 23-32.
Cools, N., Vesterdal, L., Vos, B., Vanguelova, E. & Hansen, K. (2014) Tree species is the major factor
explaining C:N ratios in european forest soils. Forest Ecology and Management, 311, 3-16.
Cortez, J. (1998) Field decomposition of leaf litters: Relationships between decomposition rates and
soil moisture, soil temperature and earthworm activity. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 30, 783-793.
Cortez, J., Demard, J.M., Bottner, P. & Monrozier, L.J. (1996) Decomposition of mediterranean leaf
litters: A microcosm experiment investigating relationships between decomposition rates and litter
quality. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 28, 443-452.
Cotrufo, M.F., Briones, M.J.I. & Ineson, P. (1998) Elevated CO2 affects field decomposition rate and
palatability of tree leaf litter: Importance of changes in substrate quality. Soil Biology &
Biochemistry, 30, 1565-1571.
De Santo, A.V., De Marco, A., Fierro, A., Berg, B. & Rutigliano, F.A. (2009) Factors regulating litter
mass loss and lignin degradation in late decomposition stages. Plant and Soil, 318, 217-228.
Don, A. & Kalbitz, K. (2005). Amounts and degradability of dissolved organic carbon from foliar litter at
different decomposition stages. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 37, 2171-2179.
Gurmesa, G., Schmidt, I., Gundersen, P. & Vesterdal, L. (2013) Soil carbon accumulation and
nitrogen retention traits of four tree species grown in common gardens. Forest Ecology and
Management, 309, 47-57.
Hagen-Thorn, A., Callesen, I., Armolaitis, K. & Nihlgard, B. (2004) The impact of six European tree
species on the chemistry of mineral topsoil in forest plantations on former agricultural land. Forest
Ecology and Management, 195, 373-384.
Hagen-Thorn, A., Varnagiryte, I., Nihlgard, B. & Armolaitis, K. (2006) Autumn nutrient resorption and
losses in four deciduous forest tree species. Forest Ecology and Management, 228, 33-39.
Hobbie, S.E., Oleksyn, J., Eissenstat, D.M. & Reich, P.B. (2010) Fine root decomposition rates do not
mirror those of leaf litter among temperate tree species. Oecologia, 162, 505-513.
Hobbie, S.E., Reich, P.B., Oleksyn, J., Ogdahl, M., Zytkowiak, R., Hale, C. & Karolewski, P. (2006)
Tree species effects on decomposition and forest floor dynamics in a common garden. Ecology,
87, 2288-2297.
Jacob, M., Viedenz, K., Polle, A. & Thomas, F.M. (2010) Leaf litter decomposition in temperate
deciduous forest stands with a decreasing fraction of beech (Fagus sylvatica). Oecologia, 164,
1083-1094.
2
soil pH
Soil N
Soil Mg
Soil K
X
Soil Ca
X
Soil C:N
Litter P
X
Soil C
Litter N
X
Litter Mg
Litter K
X
Litter Lignin:N
Litter Ca
Litter C:N
Reference
Slade and others 2012
Tiunov and others 2009
Varnagiryte and others 2005
Vesterdal and others 2008
Vesterdal and others 2012
Decomposition rate
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
Jacob, M., Weland, N., Platner, C., Schaefer, M., Leuschner, C. & Thomas, F.M. (2009) Nutrient
release from decomposing leaf litter of temperate deciduous forest trees along a gradient of
increasing tree species diversity. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 41, 2122-2130.
Jonard, M., Andre, F. & Ponette, Q. (2008) Tree species mediated effects on leaf litter dynamics in
pure and mixed stands of oak and beech. Canadian Journal of Forest Research-Revue
Canadienne de Recherche Forestiere, 38, 528-538.
King, R.F., Dromph, K.M. & Bardgett, R.D. (2002) Changes in species evenness of litter have no
effect on decomposition processes. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 34, 1959-1963.
Ladegaard-Pedersen, P., Elberling, B. & Vesterdal, L. (2005) Soil carbon stocks, mineralization rates,
and CO2 effluxes under 10 tree species on contrasting soil types. Canadian Journal of Forest
Research-Revue Canadienne de Recherche Forestiere, 35, 1277-1284.
Langenbruch, C., Helfrich, M. & Flessa, H. (2012) Effects of beech (Fagus sylvatica), ash (Fraxinus
excelsior) and lime (Tilia spec.) on soil chemical properties in a mixed deciduous forest. Plant and
Soil, 352, 389-403.
Lorenz, K., Preston, C.M., Krumrei, S. & Feger, K.H. (2004). Decomposition of needle/leaf litter from
scots pine, black cherry, common oak and European beech at a conurbation forest site. European
Journal of Forest Research, 123, 177-188.
Marcos, E., Calvo, L., Antonio Marcos, J., Taboada, A. & Tarrega, R. (2010) Tree effects on the
chemical topsoil features of oak, beech and pine forests. European Journal of Forest Research,
129, 25-30.
Neirynck, J., Mirtcheva, S., Sioen, G. & Lust, N. (2000) Impact of Tilia platyphyllos Scop., Fraxinus
excelsior L., Acer pseudoplatanus L., Quercus robur L. and Fagus sylvatica L. On earthworm
biomass and physico-chemical properties of a loamy topsoil. Forest Ecology and Management,
133, 275-286.
Norden, U. (1994) Leaf litterfall concentrations and fluxes of elements in deciduous tree species.
Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research, 9, 9-16.
Oostra, S., Majdi, H. & Olsson, M. (2006) Impact of tree species on soil carbon stocks and soil acidity
in southern sweden. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research, 21, 364-371.
Peichl, M., Leava, N.A. & Kiely, G. (2012) Above- and belowground ecosystem biomass, carbon and
nitrogen allocation in recently afforested grassland and adjacent intensively managed grassland.
Plant and Soil, 350, 281-296.
Petritan, A.M., Von Luepke, B. & Petritan, I.C. (2010) A comparative analysis of foliar chemical
composition and leaf construction costs of beech (Fagus sylvatica L.), sycamore maple (Acer
pseudoplatanus L.) and ash (Fraxinus excelsior L.) saplings along a light gradient. Annals of
Forest Science, 67, 310-618.
Rajapaksha, N., Butt, K., Vanguelova, E., I & Moffat, A. (2013) Earthworm selection of short rotation
forestry leaf litter assessed through preference testing and direct observation. Soil Biology &
Biochemistry, 67, 12-19.
Riutta, T., Slade, E.M., Bebber, D.P., Taylor, M.E., Malhi, Y., Riordan, P., Macdonald, D.W. &
Morecroft, M.D. (2012) Experimental evidence for the interacting effects of forest edge, moisture
and soil macrofauna on leaf litter decomposition. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 49, 124-131.
Sariyildiz, T. & Anderson, J.M.(2003a) Decomposition of sun and shade leaves from three deciduous
tree species, as affected by their chemical composition. Biology and Fertility of Soils, 37, 137-146.
Sariyildiz, T. & Anderson, J.M. (2003b) Interactions between litter quality, decomposition and soil
fertility: A laboratory study. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 35, 391-399.
Sariyildiz, T. & Anderson, J.M. (2005) Variation in the chemical composition of green leaves and leaf
litters from three deciduous tree species growing on different soil types. Forest Ecology and
Management, 210, 303-319.
Schadler, M. & Brandl, R. (2005). Do invertebrate decomposers affect the disappearance rate of litter
mixtures? Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 37, 329-337.
Shilenkova, O.L. & Tiunov, A.V. (2013) Soil-litter nitrogen transfer and changes in delta C-13 and
delta N-15 values in decomposing leaf litter during laboratory incubation. Pedobiologia, 56, 147152.
Slade, E.M. & Riutta, T. (2012) Interacting effects of leaf litter species and macrofauna on
decomposition in different litter environments. Basic and Applied Ecology, 13, 423-431.
Tiunov, A.V. (2009) Particle size alters litter diversity effects on decomposition. Soil Biology &
Biochemistry, 41, 176-178.
3
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
Varnagiryte, I., Hagen-Thorn, A. & Armolaitis, K. (2005) Comparative study of litterfall in deciduous
species plantations. Miskininkyste, 1, 30-36.
Vesterdal, L., Schmidt, I.K., Callesen, I., Nilsson, L.O. & Gundersen, P. (2008) Carbon and nitrogen in
forest floor and mineral soil under six common European tree species. Forest Ecology and
Management, 255, 35-48.
Vesterdal, L. Elberling, B., Christiansen, J.R., Callesen, I. & Schmidt, I.K. (2012). Soil respiration and
rates of soil carbon turnover differ among six common European tree species. Forest Ecology and
Management, 264, 185-196.
4
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
Table S2. Methods Used to Assess Level of Species Associated with Ash
Species group
Data sources and criteria used to assess association
For all lichen species which had been confirmed as recorded on F. excelsior
within the British Lichen Society database (1960-2010), the number of times
that each species had been recorded on F. excelsior as a proportion of the total
number of all records across all substrata (including corticolous, terricolous and
saxicolous records, etc) was calculated. The ‘level of association’ for a species
was considered obligate if 100% of records were from F. excelsior, high if
>50% of records were from F. excelsior, partial if >11.16% of records are from
F. excelsior, and cosmopolitan if the number of records from F. excelsior trees
<11.16%.
Bryophytes
The British Bryological Society (BBS) records and the bryophyte atlases (Hill
and others, 1991, 1992 and 1994).
Fungi
The species assessed was limited to the fungal taxa in The Fungal Records
Database of Britain and Ireland (FRDBI)
http://www.fieldmycology.net/FRDBI/FRDBI.asp which matched the criteria:
more than 10 records with an associated organism of which 25% or more were
with F. excelsior, or had a species epithet suggesting a strong affinity with F.
excelsior. The degree of association with F. excelsior of these taxa falling
within this criteria was assessed as: obligate – 95% or more of the records
were with F. excelsior; highly dependent – 50-95% records were with F.
excelsior, the remaining taxa were considered to be partially dependent on F.
excelsior.
Invertebrates
Initial species selection was guided by Stubbs (2012) together with reference to
the Database of Insects and their Food Plants
(http://www.brc.ac.uk/DBIF/homepage.aspx). Some species were discounted
where the association with F. excelsior was from old references and this
association had not been repeated in more recent and comprehensive reviews
of the species. References to use of F. excelsior solely in captive rearing
situations were also discounted. The initial list of invertebrate species identified
was then supplemented from a wider literature search and consultation with
some species group experts.
Mammals
The handbook of British Mammals (Harris and Yalden, 2008). Retrieved from
http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=w_UJNAAACAAJ was used as the main
information source regarding the association of mammals with F. excelsior,
supplemented with additional literature searches.
The assessment of birds associated with F. excelsior trees was primarily based
Birds
on online searches of peer reviewed literature. Further information was sought
from unpublished reviews on the habitat associations and requirements for
woodland birds.
Hill, M.O., Preston, C.D., Smith, A.J.E., Eds. 1991. Atlas of the bryophytes of Britain and Ireland.
Volume 1 Liverworts (Hepaticae and Anthocerotae). Colchester: Harley Books.
Hill, M.O., Preston, C.D., Smith, A.J.E., eds. 1992. Atlas of the bryophytes of Britain and Ireland.
Volume 2 Mosses (except Diplolepideae). Colchester: Harley Books.
Hill, M.O., Preston, C.D., Smith, A.J.E., eds. 1994. Atlas of the bryophytes of Britain and Ireland.
Volume 3 Mosses (Diplolepideae). Colchester: Harley Books.
Stubbs, A. 2012.Invertebrates associated with Ash.
http://www.buglife.org.uk/Resources/Buglife/Invertebrates associated with Ash .pdf.
Lichens
5
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of
Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
Table S3 Conservation Designation Used to Class the Species as Being of Conservation
Concern
Species group
Mammals
Conservation designation
UK BAP species
Birds
classified as red or amber in the
birds of conservation concern
Red data book
Red data book or BAP species
Fungi
Invertebrates
Lichens
Bryophytes
Classified as Critically
Endangered, Endangered, Near
Threatened or Vulnerable using
IUCN criteria
Classified as Critically
Endangered, Endangered, Near
Threatened or Vulnerable using
IUCN criteria
6
Reference
http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page5717
Eaton and others 2009
Evans and others 2006
Kirby 1992; Conrad and others
2006; Davis 2012
Woods and Coppins 2012
Hodgetts 2011
Quercus robur/petraea
Fagus sylvatica
Ulmus procera/glabra
Corylus avellana
Betula pubescens/pendula
Alnus glutinosa
Sorbus aucuparia
Populus tremula
Crataegus monogyna
Malus sylvestris
Acer campestre
Ilex aquifolium
Tilia platyphyllos
Pinus sylvestris
Carpinus betulus
Prunus spinosa
Prunus avium
Salix caprea
Sorbus aria
Sambucus nigra
Prunus padus
Ligustrum vulgare
Salix cinerea
Taxus baccata
Tilia cordata
Populus nigra
Sorbus torminalis
Acer pseudoplatanus
Aesculus hippocastanum
Larix decidua
Juglans regia
Castanea sativa
Juglans nigra
Platanus x hybrid
Abies alba
Quercus cerris
Acer platanoides
Fraxinus ornus
Quercus rubra
Thuja plicata
Fraxinus americana
Fraxinus pennsylvanica
Ostrya carpinifolia
Pseudotsuga menziesii
Alnus cordata
Fraxinus mandschurica
Carya ovata
Pterocarya fraxinifolia
Number of species
Mitchell and others How to replicate the functions and biodiversity of a threatened tree species? The case of Fraxinus excelsior in Britain. Supplementary material
1000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Native to the UK
Non-native to the UK
Yes
No
Unknown
Figure S1. Use made of 48 alternative tree species by ash-associated species. Alternative tree species are grouped according whether they are native to the
UK, and then ranked by the number of ash-associated species they are known to support. The results also show the number of species for which there was
no data (unknown).
7