Leaf litter phosphorus regulates the soil meso- and micro-faunal contribution to home-field advantage effects on litter decomposition along elevation gradients

Home-field advantage (HFA) in litter decomposition implies that litter decomposes faster in its 'home' habitat, i. e., where the litter originates, than in any other distant (i.e., 'away') environment. Soil fauna plays a key role in litter decomposition, while its contribution to HFA may vary greatly. To elucidate how soil fauna interacts with litter quality to influence the occurrence and variability in HFA, leaf litter reciprocal transplant experiments were conducted in the Wuyi Mountains at five different elevations. Naphthalene was used to inhibit soil faunal communities. We found that the magnitude and direction of HFA, and meso- and micro-faunal contributions to HFA varied inconsistently at different elevations. The non-linear direct effects of climate and the variation of soil faunal diversity seemingly led to variations in meso- and micro-faunal contributions to HFA at different elevations. Although HFA was independent of litter quality, meso- and micro-faunal contributions to HFA were significantly related to litter phosphorus. Larger meso- and micro-faunal contributions to decomposition in low leaf litter phosphorus and phosphorus limited habitats may result mainly from the important role of meso- and microfauna in making nutrient-poor soil substrates more accessible to the soil microbial community.