Changes of the relationships between soil and microbes in carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus stoichiometry during ecosystem succession

AimsThe carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) stoichiometry (C:N:P) of soil profoundly influences the growth, community structure, biomass C:N:P stoichiometry, and metabolism in microbes.However, the relationships between soil and microbes in the C:N:P stoichiometry and their temporal dynamics during ecosystem succession are poorly understood.The aim of this study was to determine the temporal patterns of soil and microbial C:N:P stoichiometry and their relationships during ecosystem succession.Methods An extensive literature search was conducted and data were compiled for 19 age sequences of successional ecosystems, including 13 forest ecosystems and 6 grassland ecosystems, from 18 studies published up to May 2016.Meta-analyses were performed to examine the sequential changes in 18 variables that were associated with soil and microbial C, N and P contents and the stoichiometry.Important findings (1) There was no consistent temporal pattern in soil C:N along the successional stages, whereas the soil C:P and N:P increased with succession; the slopes of the linear relationships between soil C:N:P stoichiometry and successional age were negatively correlated with the initial content of the soil organic C within given chronosequence.(2) There was no consistent temporal pattern in microbial C:N:P stoichiometry along the successional stages.(3) The fraction of microbial biomass C in soil organic C (qMBC), the fraction of microbial biomass N in soil total N, and the fraction of microbial biomass P in soil total P all increased significantly with