Rapid response of moss-associated nitrogen fixation to nutrient additions in tropical montane cloud forests with different successional stages.

ABSTRACT: Nitrogen (N) fixation in association with mosses could be a key source of new N in tropical montane cloud forests since these forests maintain high humidity levels and stable temperatures, both of which are important to N fixation. Here, nutrient availability could be a prominent control of N fixation processes. However, the mechanisms and extent of these controls, particularly in forests at different successional stages, remains unknown to date. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated the impact of N, phosphorus (P) and molybdenum (Mo) additions on moss-associated N fixation in tropical montane cloud forests of two successional stages, an old-growth forest and an early-successional natural regrowth forest. We hypothesized that if N is available, N fixation rates would be rapidly re

SUBMITTER: Clasen LA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11700064 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature