Nitrogen (N) enrichment shapes litter chemistry, subsequently influencing soil invertebrates and litter decomposition. However, there has been a lack of attention to how soil invertebrates respond to changes in litter chemistry and then drive litter decomposition under N enrichment. Here, trait-based approaches were adopted to explore functional responses of Collembola, a crucial and functional group of invertebrates. We conducted reciprocal transplantation of plant litter between ambient N levels (0 kg N ha yr) and N enrichment (90 kg N ha yr) plots in a field experiment, quantifying Collembola traits and litter mass loss during litter decomposition process. Results showed that N enrichment-derived litter recruited Collembola with long antenna, legs, and strong mandibles in enrichment environment, while Collembola with same traits were recruited by ambient-derived litter in ambient environment. Collembola traits, including antenna to body ratio, leg to body ratio, and mandible width to length ratio, coincided with high litter decomposition rates under N enrichment. Overall, the results provide evidence that Collembola with strong resource acquisition abilities responded to changes in litter chemistry, and such shifts further accelerate litter decomposition under N enrichment. Our findings demonstrate that adopting trait-based approaches to link litter and invertebrates would advance the understanding of ecosystem processes governed by biological regulation under global change.

中文翻译：

---

无脊椎动物性状对凋落物化学的响应在富氮条件下加速分解


氮 (N) 富集影响凋落物化学，进而影响土壤无脊椎动物和凋落物分解。然而，人们缺乏对土壤无脊椎动物如何响应凋落物化学变化，然后在氮富集下驱动凋落物分解的关注。在这里，采用基于性状的方法来探索跳虫的功能反应，跳虫是无脊椎动物的重要功能群体。我们在田间实验中在环境氮水平（0 kg N ha yr）和氮富集（90 kg N ha yr）地块之间进行了植物凋落物的相互移植，量化了凋落物分解过程中的弹虫性状和凋落物质量损失。结果表明，在富氮环境中，富氮来源的凋落物招募了具有长触角、腿和强下颌的跳虫，而环境来源的凋落物在周围环境中招募了具有相同性状的跳虫。弹尾特征，包括触角与身体的比例、腿与身体的比例以及下颌的宽度与长度的比例，与富氮条件下的高凋落物分解率相一致。总体而言，结果提供了证据表明，具有强大资源获取能力的跳虫对凋落物化学变化做出了反应，并且这种变化进一步加速了氮富集下的凋落物分解。我们的研究结果表明，采用基于性状的方法将垃圾和无脊椎动物联系起来将促进对全球变化下生物调节所控制的生态系统过程的理解。