Long-Term Nitrogen Addition Exerts Minor Effects on Microbial Community but Alters Sensitive Microbial Species in a Subtropical Natural Forest

Abstract

Increasing nitrogen (N) deposition profoundly affects nutrient cycling in soil, thereby influencing forest ecosystem productivity and function. Soil microorganisms are integral in driving nutrient turnover; the changes in microbial communities in response to N deposition and the associated soil nutrient availability, especially of limited nutrients, are far from clear. To explore the changes in soil bacterial and fungal communities and their key environmental drivers under N deposition, we conducted a multilevel field N addition experiment in a Castanopsis carlesii natural forest. Soil properties and bacterial and fungal communities were investigated. There were no significant changes in alpha diversities (presented as Chao1 and Shannon’s indexes) and beta diversities of bacteria and fungi among the three treatments. Consistently, the relative abundances of dominant bacterial phyla (i.e., Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, and Planctomycetes) and fungal phyla (i.e., Basidiomycota, Ascomycota, and Rozellomycota) did not change following N addition. These results suggest that N deposition did not alter microbial community diversity and structure. In addition, the results of the Mantel test showed that soil pH, NO3−-N, dissolved organic N (DON), and total phosphorus (TP) predominantly influenced the community diversity and structure in bacteria, but not in fungi. Meanwhile, the relative abundance of some sensitive microbial genera, such as Bryobacter, Bradyrhizobium, Sorangium, and Archaeorhizomyces, were significantly decreased. These results indicate a decreased microbial ability for N fixation and P mobilization induced by N deposition. Moreover, there were significant relationships between Bryobacter, Bradyrhizobium, and Archaeorhizomyces and NO3−-N and available P (AP), suggesting that the responses of sensitive microbial groups to N deposition likely depend on the changes in available nutrients in soil, especially limited N or P. Collectively, 6 years of N addition had no significant influence on microbial communities, but some sensitive microbial groups were associated with N or P turnover. This finding emphasizes the critical roles of sensitive microbial species in meditating limited nutrient cycling in soil under climate change.