The functional quality of decomposing litter outputs from an Arctic plant community is affected by long-term exposure to enhanced UV-B

Abstract Plant exposure to enhanced UV-B radiation typically induces changes in leaf secondary metabolite profiles which will be inherited in litter, affecting litter breakdown and the carbon (C) dynamics of sensitive plant communities. A key enzyme in the decomposition process is phenol oxidase which is influenced by litter quality and, hence, a decomposition bioindicator. Here we investigated dwarf shrub litter decomposition following experimental community exposure to enhanced UV-B over two decades in the Swedish sub-Arctic. We examined the hypothesis that foliar UV-B exposure would alter litter quality to elevate phenol oxidase activity. This was tested in the field by measuring phenol oxidase activity in freshly collected mixed-community litter from under our experimental vegetation. A laboratory mesocosm was next used in a decomposition assay to investigate individual species responses over eight weeks, with an emphasis on the quality of leachate outputs from decomposing litter (from Empetrum hermaphroditum , Vaccinium vitis-idaea , Vaccinium uliginosum ). In the assay bi-weekly collections of leachate were analysed for phenol oxidase activity, together with total phenolics and dissolved organic C (DOC). At the end of the assay litter mass loss and respired C were also determined. The initial assessment on field mixed-community litter found no enhanced UV-B treatment (henceforth: ‘UV-B treatment’) effect on phenol oxidase activity. However, in the controlled laboratory mesocosm assay, significant species-specific effects of the UV-B treatment were evident, with increased phenol oxidase activity in V. vitis-idaea leachate ( P P  = 0.05) in respired C. Leachate DOC release from the UV-B treatment was greater in both Vaccinium species and the effect on V. uliginosum was significant ( P E. hermaphroditum was greater than both Vaccinum species. Results suggest a species specific role for UV-B in influencing enzyme function and decomposition, dependent on individual traits. This has implications for decomposition dynamics in this system and more widely. Our study highlights the value of using a laboratory assay to gain a mechanistic understanding the species level impacts of a global change factor (UV-B) on decomposition, which are otherwise obscured by community-level responses and difficult to determine under field conditions.