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Wang X, Chen X, Xu J, Ji Y, Du X, Gao J. Precipitation Dominates the Allocation Strategy of Above- and Belowground Biomass in Plants on Macro Scales. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:2843. [PMID: 37570997 PMCID: PMC10421374 DOI: 10.3390/plants12152843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023]
Abstract
The allocation of biomass reflects a plant's resource utilization strategy and is significantly influenced by climatic factors. However, it remains unclear how climate factors affect the aboveground and belowground biomass allocation patterns on macro scales. To address this, a study was conducted using aboveground and belowground biomass data for 486 species across 294 sites in China, investigating the effects of climate change on biomass allocation patterns. The results show that the proportion of belowground biomass in the total biomass (BGBP) or root-to-shoot ratio (R/S) in the northwest region of China is significantly higher than that in the southeast region. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found in BGBP or R/S among different types of plants (trees, shrubs, and herbs plants), with values for herb plants being significantly higher than shrubs and tree species. On macro scales, precipitation and soil nutrient factors (i.e., soil nitrogen and phosphorus content) are positively correlated with BGBP or R/S, while temperature and functional traits are negatively correlated. Climate factors contribute more to driving plant biomass allocation strategies than soil and functional trait factors. Climate factors determine BGBP by changing other functional traits of plants. However, climate factors influence R/S mainly by affecting the availability of soil nutrients. The results quantify the productivity and carbon sequestration capacity of terrestrial ecosystems and provide important theoretical guidance for the management of forests, shrubs, and herbaceous plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xianxian Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi 830054, China; (X.W.); (X.C.); (J.X.); (Y.J.)
| | - Xiaohong Chen
- College of Life Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi 830054, China; (X.W.); (X.C.); (J.X.); (Y.J.)
| | - Jiali Xu
- College of Life Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi 830054, China; (X.W.); (X.C.); (J.X.); (Y.J.)
| | - Yuhui Ji
- College of Life Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi 830054, China; (X.W.); (X.C.); (J.X.); (Y.J.)
| | - Xiaoxuan Du
- Coastal Agriculture Research Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 41566, Republic of Korea
| | - Jie Gao
- College of Life Sciences, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi 830054, China; (X.W.); (X.C.); (J.X.); (Y.J.)
- Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes of Ministry of Education, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
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Dang H, Zhao W, Zhang T, Cheng Y, Dong J, Zhuang L. Great gerbil burrowing-induced microbial diversity shapes the rhizosphere soil microenvironments of Haloxylon ammodendron in temperate deserts. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:960594. [PMID: 36051766 PMCID: PMC9427191 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.960594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
In the Gurbantunggut Desert of northwest China, the main habitat of Rhombomys opimus (great gerbil) is under the thickets of Haloxylon ammodendron, the main construction species. In the long-term coexistence, continuous gerbil activities (burrowing, defecating, and gnawing) limited the growth of H. ammodendron, affected the root microenvironment under the H. ammodendron forest, and weakened the desert ecosystem. However, there is a lack of general understanding about the response of desert soil microhabitats to such gerbil disturbance. Accordingly, this study examined the effects of different intensities of gerbil disturbance (none, mild, moderate, or severe disturbances) on soil nutrients content and used high-throughput sequencing to explore the change in diversity and structure of microbial communities (bacteria and fungi) in H. ammodendron rhizosphere at different soil depths (0–20, 20–40, and 40–60 cm). In the arid desert ecosystem, compared with the soil fungal community, the alpha diversity of the soil bacterial community was significantly affected by gerbil disturbance. Meanwhile, both soil depth and gerbil disturbance significantly impacted the beta diversity and relative abundance of soil bacterial and fungal communities. In addition, gerbil disturbance significantly altered the soil characteristics affecting the distribution and composition of soil microbial communities in H. ammodendron rhizosphere, especially the soil bacterial community. This survey provides evidence that remold impact of gerbil disturbance on soil microenvironment of H. ammodendron rhizosphere in desert ecosystems in northwest China, which helps to further understand the potential correlations with changes in the microbial community at a regional scale.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanli Dang
- College of Life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
| | - Wenqin Zhao
- College of Life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
- Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Key Laboratory of Oasis Town and Mountain-basin System Ecology, College of life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
- *Correspondence: Wenqin Zhao,
| | - Tao Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Oasis Eco-agriculture, College of Agriculture, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
| | - Yongxiang Cheng
- College of Life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
| | - Jianrui Dong
- College of Life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
| | - Li Zhuang
- College of Life Sciences, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, China
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Zhao W, Dang H, Zhang T, Dong J, Chen H, Xiang W. Nutrient variation induced by rodent disturbance in Haloxylon ammodendron as a target transfer strategy. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:17260-17272. [PMID: 34938506 PMCID: PMC8668756 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Revised: 10/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Nutrients form a link between herbivores and plant. This study explored the physiological and ecological response mechanism of Haloxylon ammodendron population to rodent disturbance in Gurbantunggut Desert from the perspective of nutrient cycle. Through field investigation, we quantified rodent disturbance intensity (DI) to H. ammodendron and analyzed the ecological response mechanism of H. ammodendron population to rodent disturbance from the perspective of plant and soil nutrient cycling and changes. The results indicated that moderate rodent DI (number of effective burrows = 3-6) was the maximum limit that can be tolerated by H. ammodendron; the threshold for optimal H. ammodendron response to rodent disturbance was mild (number of burrows = 1-3). Meanwhile, the rodent disturbance caused significant nutrient enrichment (e.g., organic carbon, available phosphorus, and available potassium) in the deeper soil (at 20-40 and 40-60 cm depth) and significantly reduced the soil total salt content (p < .05). Furthermore, as the DI increased, the branches of H. ammodendron showed significantly increased soluble total sugar, crude fiber, and total nitrogen contents (p < .05) but significantly decreased crude fat and crude protein contents (p < .05); these results are related to the nutritional target transfer strategy evolved by H. ammodendron for long-term resistance to rodent disturbance. The current study clarified the optimal disturbance model for mutually beneficial H. ammodendron-great gerbil relationship, on the basis of which the ecological response mechanism of H. ammodendron population to rodent disturbance in deserts was illustrated. The current study provides a scientific basis for the protection mechanisms of desert plants to rodent disturbance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenqin Zhao
- College of Life SciencesShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
- Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Key Laboratory of Oasis Town and Mountain‐basin System EcologyShihezi CityChina
| | - Hanli Dang
- College of Life SciencesShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
| | - Tao Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Oasis Eco‐agricultureCollege of AgricultureShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
| | - Jianrui Dong
- College of Life SciencesShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
| | - Hongwei Chen
- College of Life SciencesShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
| | - Wenjie Xiang
- College of Life SciencesShihezi UniversityShihezi CityChina
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Yang W, Jin F, Si Y, Li Z. Runoff change controlled by combined effects of multiple environmental factors in a headwater catchment with cold and arid climate in northwest China. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 756:143995. [PMID: 33302080 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.143995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Revised: 11/07/2020] [Accepted: 11/15/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The limited runoff in cold and arid regions is sensitive to environmental changes, and it is thus urgent to explore the change and controlling factors of runoff under the background of global warming and intensified human activities. However, previous studies have rarely considered the combined effects of multiple controlling factors at varying scales over time. With the headwater region of the Manas River in northwest China as the study area, we investigated the change in runoff for the period of 1954-2016 and its relationship with regional environmental factors (e.g. precipitation PCP, temperature TMP, potential evapotranspiration ET0, snow cover extent SCE, land use, and normalized difference vegetation index NDVI) and/or global atmospheric circulation (e.g. North Atlantic Oscillation NAO, Arctic Oscillation AO, Pacific Interdecadal Oscillation PDO, and El Nino Southern Oscillation ENSO). In particular, the combined effects of multiple environmental factors were determined at different scales by the multiple wavelet coherence. The annual runoff significantly increased at a rate of 0.508 × 108 m3/decade, and the climate tended to be warmer and wetter. Among the regional and global environmental factors, NDVI and ENSO were the single factor mostly correlated with runoff, while NDVI-TMP and ENSO-PDO were the combined factors with the stronger relations on runoff, respectively. The regional environmental factors had larger impacts on runoff than the global environmental factors, and the natural factors outperformed human activities in controlling runoff. The accelerated melting of snow/glacier induced by the increasing temperature dominated runoff change, and the increasing water inputs from wetter climate may play a second role in runoff. The runoff characteristics in cold and arid regions seem to be different from those regions with little snow/glacier, which should be paid more attention. The employed multiple wavelet coherence is helpful in determining the processes dominating runoff change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wuchao Yang
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Fengmei Jin
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Yajun Si
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China
| | - Zhi Li
- College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China.
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Jia Y, Sun Y, Zhang T, Shi Z, Maimaitiaili B, Tian C, Feng G. Elevated precipitation alters the community structure of spring ephemerals by changing dominant species density in Central Asia. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:2196-2212. [PMID: 32128149 PMCID: PMC7042772 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 07/16/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Global climate change is one of the most pressing conservation challenges; in particular, changes in precipitation regimes have already substantially influenced terrestrial ecosystems. However, the mechanisms influencing precipitation changes on individual plants and the plant communities in desert grasslands have yet to be fully elucidated. We therefore examine the influence of increased precipitation on plant community compositions in the Gurbantunggut Desert, Xinjiang, northwestern China, from 2005 to 2009. We found that growth of all plant species and the community productivities increased markedly with enhanced water input. Cover of ephemeral synusia also significantly increased due to increased precipitation, implying that the role of the ephemeral community for stabilization of sand dunes was strengthened by increased precipitation. The response of plant community compositions to increased precipitation was primarily reflected as changes in plant density, while increased precipitation did not affect plant species richness and the diversity index. Dominant species drove the response of plant density to increasing precipitation during the five-year study period. However, the relative responses of rare species were stronger than those of the dominant species, thereby potentially driving species turnover with long-term increased precipitation. This finding improved our understanding of how increased precipitation drives the changes in plant community composition in desert grasslands and will help to better predict changes in the community composition of ephemerals under future global climate change scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yangyang Jia
- College of Resources and Environmental SciencesChina Agricultural UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Yu Sun
- Cultivation and Farming Research InstituteHeilongjiang Academy of Agriculture ScienceHarbinChina
| | - Tao Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Vegetation EcologyMinistry of EducationInstitute of Grassland SciencesNortheast Normal UniversityChangchunChina
| | - Zhaoyong Shi
- College of AgricultureHenan University of Science and TechnologyLuoyangChina
| | - Baidengsha Maimaitiaili
- Institute of Nuclear Technology and BiotechnologyXinjiang Academy of Agricultural ScienceUrumqiChina
| | - Changyan Tian
- Xinjiang Institute Ecology and GeographyChinese Academy of SciencesUrumqiChina
| | - Gu Feng
- College of Resources and Environmental SciencesChina Agricultural UniversityBeijingChina
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