Connecting ecology and evolution in mathematical models of soil microbial decomposition

Microbes, key drivers of soil biogeochemical cycles, have a strong potential for rapid adaptation. Yet, in microbial models used to predict the response of soil decomposition to climate change, microbial community traits are assumed constant between today and 2100. If evolution occurs at timescales similar to ecological dynamics in microbial communities, how might current soil carbon projections change? This talk applies eco-evolutionary theory to microbial decomposition and reveals conditions under which the response of soil carbon stocks to climate change should be sensitive to microbial evolution.