| Abstract: | Aims The objective was to investigate the responses of soil extracellular enzyme activities to carbon input alteration and warming in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest of Ailao Mountain, Yunnan, southwest China.Methods This study was based on two soil depths (0-5 and 5-10 cm) for four treatments under a long-term soil warming experiment in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest of Ailao Mountain, Yunnan, southwest China. Potential activities of β-glucosidase (BG), polyphenol oxidase (POX), peroxidase (PER), β-1,4-N-acetylglucosaminidase (NAG) and acid phosphatase (AP) and their stoichiometric ratios were measured. Soil physical and chemical properties were also analyzed.Important findings The results showed that in the control treatment, activities of all enzymes except POX decreased significantly with soil depth. Compared with the control treatment, long-term litter removal significantly reduced AP and BG activities at 0-5 cm soil depth, but had no significant effect on NAG, PER and POX activities at both 0-5 and 5-10 cm soil depths. Long-term root removal significantly reduced BG activity at 0-5 cm soil depth, while increased PER activity at both soil depths. Long-term root removal and warming treatment significantly reduced AP and BG activities at 0-5 cm soil depth, but had no significant effect on activities of other enzymes at both soil depths. The results of redundancy analysis showed that soil water content and NH4+-N content were likely important factors driving the changes soil enzyme activities among treatments. This research provides critical information on the activities of soil enzymes related to carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in response to global change in this subtropical forest ecosystem. |
