Impact of precipitation and grazing on recovery of plant vegetation in temperate grasslands

作者：Xi Lin, Hongbin Zhao, Shengwei Zhang, Ruishen Li, Xiaoyuan Li, Shuai Wang · 发表于：Land Degradation and Development · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1002/ldr.4980 · 被引用次数：12 · 研究领域：Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies、Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology、Pasture and Agricultural Systems

Abstract Grasslands support a rich diversity that plays a pivotal role in ecological balance, carbon sequestration, and climate regulation. Grassland ecosystems are facing a loss of biodiversity and a decline in soil function due to precipitation variations caused by climate change. However, variations in grassland species diversity are not clearly known, especially under the combined effects of precipitation and grazing. Based on a 5‐year split‐plot experiment with two grazing regimes (i.e., moderate grazing and grazing prohibition) along with three precipitation controls (ambient precipitation and ±50% precipitation) in Inner Mongolian grasslands, we researched the response of precipitation variability and grazing prohibition to vegetation diversity indices and investigated the response of vegetation community composition and biomass to these factors. Five years results showed that increasing precipitation resulted in a significant increase in the coverage of perennial forbs, annual and biennial plants, and Gramineae. Grazing prohibition and increased precipitation significantly increased biomass and species richness compared to all other treatment combinations. Interestingly, grazing exclusion significantly reduced the percentage of Amaryllidaceae, especially in the presence of altered precipitation. The vegetation community composition of a typical grassland was correlated with soil volumetric water content (VWC), bulk density (SBD) and pH, soil organic carbon (SOC), and ...