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Volume 13
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10.3390/microorganisms13061318
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Article

Thresholds and Trade-Offs: Fire Severity Modulates Soil Microbial Biomass-Function Coupling in Taiga Forests, Northeast of China

by
Huijiao Qu
1,2,†,
Siyu Jiang
1,2,†,
Zhichao Cheng
2,
Dan Wei
2,
Libin Yang
2,3,* and
Jia Zhou
1,*
1
School of Geographical Sciences, Harbin Normal University, Harbin 150025, China
2
Key Laboratory of Biodiversity, Institute of Natural Resources and Ecology, Heilongjiang Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150040, China
3
Heilongjiang Huzhong National Nature Reserve, Huzhong 165038, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Microorganisms 2025, 13(6), 1318; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13061318
Submission received: 24 March 2025 / Revised: 17 May 2025 / Accepted: 3 June 2025 / Published: 5 June 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Genomics and Ecology of Environmental Microorganisms)
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Abstract

Forest fires critically disrupt soil ecosystems by altering physicochemical properties and microbial structure-function dynamics. This study assessed short-term impacts of fire intensities (light/moderate/heavy) on microbial communities in Larix gmelinii forests one year post-fire. Using phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) and Biolog EcoPlate analyses, we found the following: (1) fire reduced soil organic carbon (SOC), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total nitrogen (TN), and available nitrogen/potassium (AN/AK) via pyrolytic carbon release, while heavy-intensity fires enriched available phosphorus (AP), AN, and AK through ash deposition. (2) Thermal mortality and nutrient-pH-moisture stress persistently suppressed microbial biomass and metabolic activity. Moderate fires increased taxonomic richness but reduced functional diversity, confirming “functional redundancy.” (3) Neither soil microbial biomass nor metabolic activity at the fire site reached pre-fire levels after one year of recovery. Our findings advance post-fire soil restoration frameworks and advocate multi-omics integration to decode fire-adapted functional gene networks, guiding climate-resilient forest management.
Keywords: phospholipid fatty acid; microbial functional diversity; soil enzyme activities; Larix gmelinii forest; fire sites phospholipid fatty acid; microbial functional diversity; soil enzyme activities; Larix gmelinii forest; fire sites

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MDPI and ACS Style

Qu, H.; Jiang, S.; Cheng, Z.; Wei, D.; Yang, L.; Zhou, J. Thresholds and Trade-Offs: Fire Severity Modulates Soil Microbial Biomass-Function Coupling in Taiga Forests, Northeast of China. Microorganisms 2025, 13, 1318. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13061318

AMA Style

Qu H, Jiang S, Cheng Z, Wei D, Yang L, Zhou J. Thresholds and Trade-Offs: Fire Severity Modulates Soil Microbial Biomass-Function Coupling in Taiga Forests, Northeast of China. Microorganisms. 2025; 13(6):1318. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13061318

Chicago/Turabian Style

Qu, Huijiao, Siyu Jiang, Zhichao Cheng, Dan Wei, Libin Yang, and Jia Zhou. 2025. "Thresholds and Trade-Offs: Fire Severity Modulates Soil Microbial Biomass-Function Coupling in Taiga Forests, Northeast of China" Microorganisms 13, no. 6: 1318. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13061318

APA Style

Qu, H., Jiang, S., Cheng, Z., Wei, D., Yang, L., & Zhou, J. (2025). Thresholds and Trade-Offs: Fire Severity Modulates Soil Microbial Biomass-Function Coupling in Taiga Forests, Northeast of China. Microorganisms, 13(6), 1318. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms13061318

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