00507nas a2200133 4500008004100000245011300041210006900154300001100223490000800234100002100242700002300263700001800286856006900304 2021 eng d00aHow and why plant ionomes vary across North American grasslands and its implications for herbivore abundance0 aHow and why plant ionomes vary across North American grasslands ae034590 v1021 aKaspari, Michael1 aBeurs, Kirsten, M.1 aWelti, E.A.R. uhttps://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecy.345900645nas a2200181 4500008004100000245010800041210007100149300001600220490000900236100002400245700002100269700002600290700002400316700002300340700002100363700002100384856005800405 2020 eng d00aSalty, mild, and low plant biomass grasslands increase top‐heaviness of invertebrate trophic pyramids0 aSalty mild and low plant biomass grasslands increase top‐heavine a1474 - 14850 v29581 aWelti, Ellen, A. R.1 aKuczynski, Lucie1 aMarske, Katharine, A.1 aSanders, Nathan, J.1 aBeurs, Kirsten, M.1 aKaspari, Michael1 aMadin, Elizabeth uhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/geb.1311901641nas a2200157 4500008004100000245009400041210006900135300001100204490000900215520109300224100002401317700002401341700002301365700002101388856007401409 2019 eng d00aA distributed experiment demonstrates widespread sodium limitation in grassland food webs0 adistributed experiment demonstrates widespread sodium limitation ae026000 v71133 a
Sodium (Na) has a unique role in food webs as a nutrient primarily limiting for plant consumers, but not other trophic levels. Environmental Na levels vary with proximity to coasts, local geomorphology, climate, and with anthropogenic inputs (e.g., road salt). We tested two key predictions across 54 grasslands in North America: Na shortfall commonly limits herbivore abundance, and the magnitude of this limitation varies inversely with environmental Na supplies. We tested them with a distributed pulse experiment and evaluated the relative importance of Na limitation to other classic drivers of climate, macronutrient levels, and plant productivity. Herbivore abundance increased by 45% with Na addition. Moreover, the magnitude of increase on Na addition plots decreased with increasing levels of plant Na, indicating Na satiation at sites with high Na concentrations in plant tissue. Our results demonstrate that invertebrate primary consumers are often Na limited and track local Na availability, with implications for the geography of invertebrate abundance and herbivory.
1 aWelti, Ellen, A. R.1 aSanders, Nathan, J.1 aBeurs, Kirsten, M.1 aKaspari, Michael uhttps://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecy.2600