Dr. Birgit Lang

How does temperature affect soil food webs?
The stability and functioning of soil food webs are critically important for mineralization and nutrient cycling, which supports primary productivity at the base of the above- and belowground communities. For understanding the conditions that determine this stability knowledge of the carbon flows is important. Quantitative food-web models describe those carbon flows between populations in natural communities, using trophic groups, biomasses, metabolic rates, prey preferences and assimilation efficiencies.

According to the last report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) we might face a temperature increase of around 1-6 °C during the next 100 years. Thus it is crucial to include temperature effects on food web parameters in future research.


Agriculturally used field with wheat and corn cultivation.



For my PHD-thesis I work in the DFG-funded research project "Carbon flow in belowground food webs assessed by isotope tracers". The group works on a soil food web of an agriculturally used field in central Germany.

As a first project, a qualitative food web, spanning all trophic levels from fungi and bacteria at the base to predatory macrofauna on the top, was constructed.


The Holtensen soil food web, July 2010

The next project is to quantitatively calculate the energy flows in this web and, in the context of climate change, include temperature effects on the above-mentioned food-web parameters. Therefore, we set up databases both on metabolic rates (Roswitha Ehnes) and assimilation efficiencies. Both databases were analyzed with special emphasis on temperature effects. While metabolic rates show temperature dependency assimilation efficiencies are independent of temperature but strongly influenced by the feeding type (e.g. predator, herbivore, detritivore).


Detritus consumption by Tachypodoiulus niger.



Publications:

2012
Lang, B., Rall, B.C., Brose, U.: Warming effects on consumption and intraspecific interference competition depend on predator metabolism. Journal of Animal Ecology, 81 (3): 516-523

Conference Contributions:


Posters:

Lang, B. and Brose, U.: A small world magnified: Effects of climate change on soil communities, Web of Life 2012, June 5th, University of Montpellier, France
Lang, B., Ehnes, R.B. and Brose, U.: Temperature effects on interaction strengths, Functions and Services of Biodiversity 2011, 20-22 June, University of Göttingen, Germany
Lang, B., Ehnes, R.B. and Brose, U.: Temperature effects on interaction strengths, BES Annual Meeting 2010, 7-9 September, University of Leeds, UK

Talks:

Lang, B., Brose, U.: Illuminating the dark: Effects of climate change on soil communities, GfÖ Annual Conference 2012, 10-14 September, Lüneburg, Germany
Lang, B., Ehnes, R.B. and Brose, U.: How does environmental warming affect trophic interactions?, Oikos Annual Conference 2012, January 31st - February 2nd, Karlstad, Sweden
Lang, B., Ehnes, R.B. and Brose, U.: Effects of environmental warming on trophic interactions, BES Annual Meeting 2011, 12-14 September, University of Sheffield, UK
Lang, B., Ehnes, R.B. and Brose, U.: Effects of environmental warming on trophic interactions, GfÖ Annual Conference 2011, 5-9 September, Oldenburg, Germany

Grants


Since 02/2012: Fazit foundation scholarship