Combating soil microbial disruption due to warming through litter removal practices
Abstract
The ongoing global climate change, particularly rising temperatures, has led to significant shifts in soil microbial communities. Warming accelerates microbial activity and alters the composition and function of soil biota, disrupting ecosystem services like nutrient cycling, soil health, and plant productivity. A promising yet underexplored strategy to mitigate these changes is litter removal, which may directly influence microbial populations and functions by modifying the soil microenvironment. This paper examines the role of litter in soil microbial dynamics under warming conditions and explores how litter removal practices may offer a pathway to combat microbial disruptions caused by climate change. The article reviews current literature on the effects of warming on soil microbes, the potential consequences of litter removal, and the mechanisms by which litter removal could mitigate disruptions. Finally, the paper discusses the implications for ecosystem management, sustainability, and future research directions in the context of global warming.