ArticlePhilosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences2023
Artificial light at night (ALAN) causes shifts in soil communities and functions.
Article in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Artificial Light at Night Consistently Impacts Avian Physiology and Behaviour: A Meta-Analysis.Ecology letters · 2026Pooled it
- Artificial Light at Night Drives Asymmetric Biological Allocation of Soil Carbon and Nitrogen by Fragmenting Micro-Food Webs.Global change biology · 2026Article
- Herbivory rate is elevated but orb-weaver spider growth unaffected by artificial light at night in subtropical forest.Die Naturwissenschaften · 2025Article
- Sustainable Land Use Enhances Soil Microbial Respiration Responses to Experimental Heat Stress.Global change biology · 2025Article
- Artificial light at night reduces earthworm activity but increases growth of invasive ragweed.BMC ecology and evolution · 2024Article
- Artificial light at night decreases plant diversity and performance in experimental grassland communities.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2023Article
- Artificial light at night (ALAN) causes shifts in soil communities and functions.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2023Article
- Light pollution in complex ecological systems.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) is increasing worldwide, but its effects on the soil system have not yet been investigated. We tested the influence of experimental manipulation of ALAN on two taxa of soil communities (microorganisms and soil nematodes) and three aspects of soil functioning (soil basal respiration, soil microbial biomass and carbon use efficiency) over four and a half months in a highly controlled Ecotron facility. We show that during peak plant biomass, increasing ALAN reduced plant biomass and was also associated with decreased soil water content. This further reduced soil respiration under high ALAN at peak plant biomass, but microbial communities maintained stable biomass across different levels of ALAN and times, demonstrating higher microbial carbon use efficiency under high ALAN. While ALAN did not affect microbial community structure, the abundance of plant-feeding nematodes increased and there was homogenization of nematode communities under higher levels of ALAN, indicating that soil communities may be more vulnerable to additional disturbances at high ALAN. In summary, the effects of ALAN reach into the soil system by altering soil communities and ecosystem functions, and these effects are mediated by changes in plant productivity and soil water content at peak plant biomass. This article is part of the theme issue 'Light pollution in complex ecological systems'.
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Registered trials
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