Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits

doi:10.1007/s11099-016-0661-4

	Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits
	Li, Wenhuai ; Xu, Fengwei 1; Zheng, Shuxia ; Taube, Friedhelm 2; Bai, Yongfei
	2017
发表期刊	JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
ISSN	0021-8901
卷号	54 期号:3 页码:963-975
摘要	1. Overgrazing has resulted in widespread decline in biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in grasslands world-wide in recent decades. However, few studies have examined the patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning along a grazing gradient and based on species-level responses and plant functional traits. 2. To identify the thresholds of grazing intensity (GI) at both species and community levels, we conducted a grazing manipulation experiment with seven levels of GI (0-9 sheep ha(-1)) and two topographies (flat vs. slope) in a typical steppe. Four plant functional traits were measured, including specific leaf area (SLA), plant height, leaf nitrogen content (LNC) and stem: leaf ratio. 3. The threshold of GI that significantly altered community composition was at 3.75 sheep ha(-1) for the flat system and 3.0 sheep ha(-1) for the slope system. For both flat and slope systems, the threshold GI for changes in primary productivity was at 3.0 sheep ha(-1), beyond which the productivity decreased substantially. 4. At the species level, the abundances of common species, most of which are perennial grasses, declined at moderate grazing intensities (3.0-4.5 sheep ha(-1)). The abundances of most rare species, which are perennial forbs, declined at low grazing intensities (1.5-3 .0 sheep ha(-1)). SLA and LNC are good predictors of species-level responses to grazing. Low SLA and high LNC species are negatively affected by high GI, while high SLA and low LNC species are little affected by grazing. The negative effect of GI on species' abundance was greater in the slope system than in the flat system. 5. Synthesis and applications. Our results indicate that the structural and functioning thresholds of grazing intensity depend on plant traits and species composition, which is mediated by topographic location. These findings, integrating plant functional traits and threshold approaches, have important implications for determining sustainable grazing intensity in grassland management and biodiversity conservation in semi-arid regions.
关键词	ecological threshold ecosystem function grassland management grazing intensity leaf nitrogen content plant functional traits plant strategy semi-arid regions specific leaf area topographic location
学科领域	Plant Sciences
DOI	10.1007/s11099-016-0661-4
收录类别	SCI
语种	英语
WOS关键词	INNER-MONGOLIA ; PLANT TRAITS ; ECOLOGICAL THRESHOLDS ; GRASSLAND ECOSYSTEM ; SEMIARID GRASSLAND ; STEPPE ; MANAGEMENT ; DIVERSITY ; VEGETATION ; BIODIVERSITY
WOS记录号	WOS:000399249800008
出版者	WILEY
文献子类	Article
出版地	HOBOKEN
EISSN	1365-2664
资助机构	State Key Research and Development Program of China [2016YFC0500804] ; Natural Science Foundation of ChinaNational Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) [31320103916] ; Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of SciencesChinese Academy of Sciences [XDA05050400]
作者邮箱	yfbai@ibcas.ac.cn
引用统计	被引频次：17[WOS] [WOS记录] [WOS相关记录]
文献类型	期刊论文
条目标识符	http://ir.ibcas.ac.cn/handle/2S10CLM1/22263
专题	植被与环境变化国家重点实验室
作者单位	1.Chinese Acad Sci, Inst Bot, State Key Lab Vegetat & Environm Change, Beijing 100093, Peoples R China 2.Univ Chinese Acad Sci, Beijing 100049, Peoples R China 3.Univ Kiel, Inst Crop Sci & Plant Breeding, Grass & Forage Sci Organ Agr, Hermann Rodewald Str 9, D-24118 Kiel, Germany
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Li, Wenhuai,Xu, Fengwei,Zheng, Shuxia,et al. Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits[J]. JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY,2017,54(3):963-975.
APA	Li, Wenhuai,Xu, Fengwei,Zheng, Shuxia,Taube, Friedhelm,&Bai, Yongfei.(2017).Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits.JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY,54(3),963-975.
MLA	Li, Wenhuai,et al."Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits".JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY 54.3(2017):963-975.

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