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Ronk A, Boldgiv B, Casper BB, Liancourt P. Leaf trait plasticity reveals interactive effects of temporally disjunct grazing and warming on plant communities. Oecologia 2024; 204:833-843. [PMID: 38573499 PMCID: PMC11062997 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-024-05540-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Changes in climate and grazing intensity influence plant-community compositions and their functional structure. Yet, little is known about their possible interactive effects when climate change mainly has consequences during the growing season and grazing occurs off growing season (dormant season grazing). We examined the contribution of trait plasticity to the immediate responses in the functional structure of plant community due to the interplay between these two temporally disjunct drivers. We conducted a field experiment in the northern Mongolian steppe, where climate was manipulated by open-top chambers (OTCs) for two growing seasons, increasing temperature and decreasing soil moisture (i.e., increased aridity), and grazing was excluded for one dormant season between these two growing seasons. We calculated the community-weighted mean (CWM) and the functional diversity (FD) of six leaf traits. Based on a variance partitioning approach, we evaluated how much of the responses in CWM and FD to OTCs and dormant season grazing occur through plasticity. The interactive effect of OTCs and the dormant season grazing were detected only after considering the role of trait plasticity. Overall, OTCs influenced the responses in CWM more than in FD, but the effects of OTCs were much less pronounced where dormant season grazing occurred. Thus, warming (together with decreased soil moisture) and the elimination of dormant season grazing could interact to impact the functional trait structure of plant communities through trait plasticity. Climate change effects should be considered in the context of altered land use, even if temporally disjunct.
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Affiliation(s)
- Argo Ronk
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
| | - Bazartseren Boldgiv
- Department of Biology, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar, 14201, Mongolia
| | - Brenda B Casper
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
| | - Pierre Liancourt
- Department of Botany, State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany.
- Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
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Chang C, Wang J, Zhao Y, Cai T, Yang J, Zhang G, Wu X, Otgonbayar M, Xiao X, Xin X, Zhang Y. A 10-m annual grazing intensity dataset in 2015-2021 for the largest temperate meadow steppe in China. Sci Data 2024; 11:181. [PMID: 38341473 PMCID: PMC10858900 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-024-03017-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Mapping grazing intensity (GI) using satellites is crucial for developing adaptive utilization strategies according to grassland conditions. Here we developed a monitoring framework based on a paired sampling strategy and the classification probability of random forest algorithm to produce annual grazing probability (GP) and GI maps at 10-m spatial resolution from 2015 to 2021 for the largest temperate meadow in China (Hulun Buir grasslands), by harmonized Landsat 7/8 and Sentinel-2 images. The GP maps used values of 0-1 to present detailed grazing gradient information. To match widely used grazing gradients, annual GI maps with ungrazed, moderately grazed, and heavily grazed levels were generated from the GP dataset with a decision tree. The GI maps for 2015-2021 had an overall accuracy of more than 0.97 having significant correlations with the statistical data at city (r = 0.51) and county (r = 0.75) scales. They also effectively captured the GI gradients at site scale (r = 0.94). Our study proposed a monitoring approach and presented annual 10-m grazing information maps for sustainable grassland management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuchen Chang
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Jie Wang
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China.
| | - Yanbo Zhao
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Tianyu Cai
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Jilin Yang
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Regional Ecology and Environmental Change, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Geli Zhang
- College of Land Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
| | - Xiaocui Wu
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
| | - Munkhdulam Otgonbayar
- Division of Physical Geography and Environmental Research, Institute of Geography and Geoecology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulaanbaatar, 15170, Mongolia
| | - Xiangming Xiao
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, Center for Earth Observation and Modeling, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
| | - Xiaoping Xin
- National Field Scientific Observation and Research Station of Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem in Inner Mongolia, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China
| | - Yingjun Zhang
- College of Grassland Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China
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Li X, Zhang Z, Lü X, Li Y, Jin K, van der Putten WH. Soil aggregate microbiomes steer plant community overyielding in ungrazed and intensively grazed grassland soils. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2022; 321:115919. [PMID: 36001914 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115919] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Revised: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Plant and soil microbial community composition play a central role in maintaining ecosystem functioning. Most studies have focused on soil microbes in the bulk soil, the rhizosphere and inside plant roots, however, less is known about the soil community that exists within soil aggregates, and how these soil communities influence plant biomass production. Here, using field-conditioned soil collected from experimental ungrazed and grazed grasslands in Inner Mongolia, China, we examined the composition of microbiomes inside soil aggregates of various size classes, and determined their roles in plant-soil feedbacks (PSFs), diversity-productivity relationships, and diversity-dependent overyielding. We found that grazing induced significantly positive PSF effects, which appeared to be mediated by mycorrhizal fungi, particularly under plant monocultures. Despite this, non-additive effects of microbiomes within different soil aggregates enhanced the strength of PSF under ungrazed grassland, but decreased PSF strength under intensively grazed grassland. Plant mixture-related increases in PSF effects markedly enhanced diversity-dependent overyielding, primarily due to complementary effects. Selection effects played far less of a role. Our work suggests that PSF contributes to diversity-dependent overyielding in grasslands via non-additive effects of microbiomes within different soil aggregates. The implication of our work is that assessing the effectiveness of sustainable grassland restoration and management on soil properties requires inspection of soil aggregate size-specific microbiomes, as these are relevant determinants of the feedback interactions between soil and plant performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiliang Li
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and Restoration, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, China; Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, 6700AB, the Netherlands
| | - Zhen Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and Restoration, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, China
| | - Xiaotao Lü
- Erguna Forest-Steppe Ecotone Research Station, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110016, China
| | - Yuanheng Li
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and Restoration, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, China.
| | - Ke Jin
- Key Laboratory of Grassland Ecology and Restoration, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, China
| | - Wim H van der Putten
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, 6700AB, the Netherlands; Department of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen 6700 ES, the Netherlands
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Hameed A, Tariq M, Buerkert A, Schlecht E. Constraints and prospects of utilising mountain pastures in Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan. PASTORALISM 2022. [DOI: 10.1186/s13570-022-00253-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractIn the mountain regions of northern Pakistan, pasture-based animal husbandry is a substantial element of people’s livelihood. To study the implications of herding strategies on rangeland utilization patterns, individual interviews with 90 herders and 10 group interviews with five to eight herders per group, respectively, were conducted in three valleys each of Pakistan’s Gilgit-Baltistan region. Data collection targeted number and species of animals kept, livestock management practices and seasonal pasture use and included GIS-based participatory mapping of spring, summer, autumn and winter pastures of yak, small ruminants and cattle. Households kept 10 yaks on average, along with 4 cattle and 15 small ruminants. Herding practices varied between valleys and seasons and were influenced by topographic as well as social factors. Full-time herding led to a more uniform distribution of yaks on pastures than part-time herding and unattended grazing, but in small ruminants promoted higher animal numbers near campsites. Many livestock keepers perceived rangeland degradation as a veritable challenge and identified lack of herding labour as one important problem. Training programmes for young herders, strengthening of group herding schemes and prevention of lowland pasture conversion into farmland were suggested as effective countermeasures.
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Climate Change Impacts on Himalayan Biodiversity: Evidence-Based Perception and Current Approaches to Evaluate Threats Under Climate Change. J Indian Inst Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s41745-021-00237-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Kohli M, Mijiddorj TN, Suryawanshi KR, Mishra C, Boldgiv B, Sankaran M. Grazing and climate change have site‐dependent interactive effects on vegetation in Asian montane rangelands. J Appl Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mayank Kohli
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior University of Minnesota St Paul MN USA
| | - Tserennadmid Nadia Mijiddorj
- Ecology Group Department of Biology School of Arts and Sciences National University of Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Mongolia
- Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation Ulaanbaatar Mongolia
| | | | - Charudutt Mishra
- Nature Conservation Foundation Mysore India
- Snow Leopard Trust Seattle WA USA
| | - Bazartseren Boldgiv
- Ecology Group Department of Biology School of Arts and Sciences National University of Mongolia Ulaanbaatar Mongolia
| | - Mahesh Sankaran
- National Center for Biological Sciences Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Bangalore India
- School of Biology University of Leeds Leeds UK
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