|
|
|
|
|
| Linking nutrient strategies with plant size along a grazing gradient: Evidence from Leymus chinensis in a natural pasture |
| LI Xi-liang, LIU Zhi-ying, REN Wei-bo, DING Yong, JI Lei, GUO Feng-hui, HOU Xiang-yang |
| National Forage Improvement Center/Key Laboratory of Grassland Resources and Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture/Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hohhot 010010, P.R.China |
|
|
|
|
Abstract Studying the changes in nutrient use strategies induced by grazing can provide insight into the process of grassland degradation and is important for improving grassland quality and enhancing ecosystem function. Dominant species in meadow steppe can optimize their use of limiting resources; however, the regulation of nutrient use strategies across grazing gradients is not fully understood. Therefore, in this study, we report an in situ study in which the impact of grazing rates on nutrient use strategies of Leymus chinensis, the dominant plant species in eastern Eurasian temperate steppes, was investigated. We conducted a large randomized controlled experiment (conducted continuously for five years in grassland plots in a natural pasture in Hailar, eastern Mongolia Plateau, China) to assess the effects of grazing rate treatments (0.00, 0.23, 0.34, 0.46, 0.69, and 0.92 adult cattle unit (AU) ha–1) on L. chinensis along a grazing gradient and employed a random sampling approach to compare the accumulation, allocation, and stoichiometry of C, N, and P in leaves and stems. Our findings demonstrated the follows: (i) The height of L. chinensis decreased with an increase in the grazing gradient, and the concentrations of C, N, and P significantly increased; (ii) the accumulation of C, N, and P per individual was negatively correlated with the concentration of aboveground tissues, suggesting that there was a tradeoff in L. chinensis between nutrient accumulation and concentration at the individual scale; (iii) the leaf-to-stem ratio of C, N, and P accumulation increased with grazing intensity, indicating a tradeoff in nutrient allocation and plant size at the individual plant level; and (iv) grazing rates were negatively correlated with the ratios of C:N and C:P in the stem; however, these ratios in leaves significantly increased with grazing intensity. Our findings suggest that L. chinensis in meadow steppe adapts to grazing disturbance through tradeoffs between plant size and nutrient use strategies. Moreover, our results imply that grazing produces a compensatory effect on nutrient use efficiency between the stems and leaves of L. chinensis.
|
|
Received: 10 April 2015
Accepted:
|
| Fund: This study was ?nancially supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2014CB138806), the International Science and Technology Cooperation Project of China (2013DFR30760), the Natural Science Foundation Committee of Inner Mongolia, China (ZD201502) and the Basic Research Funding Project of Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (1610332015005). |
|
Corresponding Authors:
HOU Xiang-yang, Tel: +86-471-4962330, E-mail: houxy16@126.com
|
| About author: LI Xi-liang, E-mail: lixiliang0824@126.com; LIU Zhi-ying, E-mail: liuzhiying567@126.com |
Cite this article:
LI Xi-liang, LIU Zhi-ying, REN Wei-bo, DING Yong, JI Lei, GUO Feng-hui, HOU Xiang-yang.
2016.
Linking nutrient strategies with plant size along a grazing gradient: Evidence from Leymus chinensis in a natural pasture. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 15(05): 1132-1144.
|
| Bai Y, Han X, Wu J, Chen Z, Li L. 2004. Ecosystem stability and compensatory effects in the Inner Mongolia grassland. Nature, 431, 181–184.Bai Y, Wu J, Clark C M, Pan Q, Zhang L, Chen S, Wang Q, Han X. 2012. Grazing alters ecosystem functioning and C:N:P stoichiometry of grasslands along a regional precipitation gradient. Journal of Applied Ecology, 49, 1204–1215.Bardgett R D, Streeter T C, Cole L, Hartley I R. 2002. Linkages between soil biota, nitrogen availability, and plant nitrogen uptake in a mountain ecosystem in the Scottish Highlands. Applied Soil Ecology, 19, 121–134.Bennett L, Judd T, Adams M. 2003. Growth and nutrient content of perennial grasslands following burning in semi-arid, sub-tropical Australia. Plant Ecology, 164, 185–199.Cease A J, Elser J J, Ford C F, Hao S, Kang L, Harrison J F. 2012. Heavy livestock grazing promotes locust outbreaks by lowering plant nitrogen content. Science, 335, 467–469.Cingolani A M, Posse G, Collantes M B. 2005. Plant functional traits, herbivore selectivity and response to sheep grazing in Patagonian steppe grasslands. Journal of Applied Ecology, 42, 50–59.Cordell S, Goldstein G, Meinzer F, Vitousek P. 2001. Regulation of leaf life-span and nutrient-use efficiency of Metrosideros polymorpha trees at two extremes of a long chronosequence in Hawaii. Oecologia, 127, 198–206.Cruz P, De Quadros F L F, Theau J P, Frizzo A, Jouany C, Duru M, Carvalho P C F. 2010. Leaf traits as functional descriptors of the intensity of continuous grazing in native grasslands in the south of Brazil. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 63, 350–358.Cui X, Wang Y, Niu H, Wu J, Wang S, Schnug E, Rogasik J, Fleckenstein J, Tang Y. 2005. Effect of long-term grazing on soil organic carbon content in semiarid steppes in Inner Mongolia. Ecological Research, 20, 519–527.Díaz S, Noy-Meir I, Cabido M. 2001. Can grazing response of herbaceous plants be predicted from simple vegetative traits? Journal of Applied Ecology, 38, 497–508.Damhoureyeh S A, Hartnett D C. 2002. Variation in grazing tolerance among three tallgrass prairie plant species. American Journal of Botany, 89, 1634–1643.Desurmont G A, Agrawal A A. 2014. Do plant defenses predict damage by an invasive herbivore? A comparative study of the viburnum leaf beetle. Ecological Applications, 24, 759–769.Fu Y B, Thompson D, Willms W, Mackay M. 2005. Long-term grazing effects on genetic variability in mountain rough fescue. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 58, 637–642.Güsewell S. 2004. N:P ratios in terrestrial plants: Variation and functional significance. New Phytologist, 164, 243–266.Gan L, Peng X H, Peth S, Horn R. 2012. Effects of grazing intensity on soil water regime and flux in Inner Mongolia grassland, China. Pedosphere, 22, 165–177.Gong X Y, Chen Q, Lin S, Brueck H, Dittert K, Taube F, Schnyder H. 2011. Tradeoffs between nitrogen- and water-use efficiency in dominant species of the semiarid steppe of Inner Mongolia. Plant and Soil, 340, 227–238.Guo Y J, Han L, L, G D, Han J, Wang G L, Li Z Y, Wilson B. 2012. The effects of defoliation on plant community, root biomass and nutrient allocation and soil chemical properties on semi-arid steppes in northern China. Journal of Arid Environments, 78, 128–134.He J S, Fang J, Wang Z, Guo D, Flynn D F, Geng Z. 2006. Stoichiometry and large-scale patterns of leaf carbon and nitrogen in the grassland biomes of China. Oecologia, 149, 115–122.Hillebrand H, Kahlert M. 2001. Effect of grazing and nutrient supply on periphyton biomass and nutrient stoichiometry in habitats of different productivity. Limnology and Oceanography, 46, 1881–1898.Jia B, Zhou G, Wang F, Wang Y, Weng E. 2007. Effects of grazing on soil respiration of Leymus chinensis steppe. Climatic Change, 82, 211–223.Kemp D R, Guodong H, Xiangyang H, Michalk D L, Fujiang H, Jianping W, Yingjun Z. 2013. Innovative grassland management systems for environmental and livelihood benefits. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 110, 8369–8374.Koerselman W, Meuleman A F. 1996. The vegetation N:P ratio: A new tool to detect the nature of nutrient limitation. Journal of Applied Ecology, 33, 1441–1450.Lü X T, Freschet G T, Kazakou E, Wang Z W, Zhou L S, Han X G. 2014. Contrasting responses in leaf nutrient-use strategies of two dominant grass species along a 30-yr temperate steppe grazing exclusion chronosequence. Plant and Soil, 387, 69–79.Lü X T, Lü F M, Zhou L S, Han X, Han X G. 2012. Stoichiometric response of dominant grasses to fire and mowing in a semi-arid grassland. Journal of Arid Environments, 78, 154–160.Li X L, Liu Z Y, Wang Z, Wu X H, Li X E, Hu J, Shi H X, Guo F H, Zhang Y, Hou X Y. 2015. Pathways of Leymus chinensis individual aboveground biomass decline in natural semiarid grassland induced by overgrazing: A study at the plant functional trait scale. PloS ONE, 10, e0124443.Li Y J, Yan Z, Zhao J N, Gang L, Hui W, Xin L, Yang D L. 2014. Effects of rest grazing on organic carbon storage in stipa grandis steppe in Inner Mongolia, China. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 13, 624–634.Ma L, Huang W, Guo C, Wang R, Xiao C. 2012. Soil microbial properties and plant growth responses to carbon and water addition in a temperate steppe: The importance of nutrient availability. PloS One, 7, e35165.Mamolos A, Vasilikos C, Veresoglou D. 2005. Vegetation in contrasting soil water sites of upland herbaceous grasslands and N:P ratios as indicators of nutrient limitation. Plant and Soil, 270, 355–369.McGroddy M E, Daufresne T, Hedin L O. 2004. Scaling of C:N:P stoichiometry in forests worldwide: Implications of terrestrial redfield-type ratios. Ecology, 85, 2390–2401.McIntire E J, Hik D S. 2002. Grazing history versus current grazing: Leaf demography and compensatory growth of three alpine plants in response to a native herbivore (Ochotona collaris). Journal of Ecology, 90, 348–359.McKinney K K, Fowler N L. 1991. Genetic adaptations to grazing and mowing in the unpalatable grass Cenchrus incertus. Oecologia, 88, 238–242.McSherry M E, Ritchie M E. 2013. Effects of grazing on grassland soil carbon: A global review. Global Change Biology, 19, 1347–1357.Milchunas D, Vandever M. 2013. Grazing effects on aboveground primary production and root biomass of early-seral, mid-seral, and undisturbed semiarid grassland. Journal of Arid Environments, 92, 81–88.Poorter H, Niklas K J, Reich, P B, Oleksyn J, Poot P, Mommer L. 2012. Biomass allocation to leaves, stems and roots: meta-analyses of interspecific variation and environmental control. New Phytologist, 193, 30–50.Scogings P F, Hjältén J, Skarpe C. 2013. Does large herbivore removal affect secondary metabolites, nutrients and shoot length in woody species in semi-arid savannas? Journal of Arid Environments, 88, 4–8.Scogings P F, Hjältén J, Skarpe C, Hattas D, Zobolo A, Dziba L, Rooke T. 2014. Nutrient and secondary metabolite concentrations in a savanna are independently affected by large herbivores and shoot growth rate. Plant Ecology, 215, 73–82.Shi Y, Ma Y, Ma W, Liang C, Zhao X, Fang J, He J. 2013. Large scale patterns of forage yield and quality across Chinese grasslands. Chinese Science Bulletin, 58, 1187–1199.da Silveira Pontes L, Louault F, Carrère P, Maire V, Andueza D, Soussana J F. 2010. The role of plant traits and their plasticity in the response of pasture grasses to nutrients and cutting frequency. Annals of Botany, 105, 957–965.Stark S, Männistö M K, Eskelinen A. 2015. When do grazers accelerate or decelerate soil carbon and nitrogen cycling in tundra? A test of theory on grazing effects in fertile and infertile habitats. Oikos, 124, 593–602.Sun J, Wang X, Cheng G, Wu J, Hong J, Niu S. 2014. Effects of grazing regimes on plant traits and soil nutrients in an Alpine steppe, northern Tibetan Plateau. PloS ONE, 9, e108821.Veen G, de Vries S, Bakker E S, van der Putten W H, Olff H. 2014. Grazing-induced changes in plant-soil feedback alter plant biomass allocation. Oikos, 123, 800–806.Verón S R, Paruelo J M, Oesterheld M. 2011. Grazing-induced losses of biodiversity affect the transpiration of an arid ecosystem. Oecologia, 165, 501–510.Wang S, Wilkes A, Zhang Z, Chang X, Lang R, Wang Y, Niu H. 2011. Management and land use change effects on soil carbon in northern China’s grasslands: A synthesis. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 142, 329–340.White L M, Wight J R. 1984. Forage yield and quality of dryland grasses and legumes. Journal of Range Management, 37, 233–236.Yan R, Xin X, Wang X, Yan Y, Deng Y, Yang G. 2014. The change of soil carbon and nitrogen under different grazing gradients in Hulunber meadow steppe. Acta Ecologica Sinica, 34, 1587–1595. (in Chinese)Yan R, Xin X, Yan Y, Wang X, Zhang B, Yang G, Liu S, Deng Y, Li L. 2015. Impacts of differing grazing rates on canopy structure and species composition in Hulunber meadow steppe. Rangeland Ecology & Management, 68, 54–64.Yu Q, Chen Q, Elser J J, He N, Wu H, Zhang G, Wu J, Bai Y, Han X. 2010. Linking stoichiometric homoeostasis with ecosystem structure, functioning and stability. Ecology Letters, 13, 1390–1399.Zhang C, Li S, Zhang L, Xin X, Liu X. 2013. Litter mixing significantly affects decomposition in the Hulun Buir meadow steppe of Inner Mongolia, China. Journal of Plant Ecology, 8, 1–9.Zhang Q, Ding Y, Ma W, Kang S, Li X, Niu J, Hou X, Li X, Sarula. 2014. Grazing primarily drives the relative abundance change of C4 plants in the typical steppe grasslands across households at a regional scale. The Rangeland Journal, 36, 565–572.Zheng S, Ren H, Lan Z, Li W, Bai Y. 2009. Effects of grazing on leaf traits and ecosystem functioning in Inner Mongolia grasslands: scaling from species to community. Biogeosciences, 7, 1117–1132Zheng S, Ren H, Li W, Lan Z. 2012. Scale-dependent effects of grazing on plant C:N:P stoichiometry and linkages to ecosystem functioning in the Inner Mongolia grassland. PLoS One, 7, e51750. |
| No Suggested Reading articles found! |
|
|
Viewed |
|
|
|
Full text
|
|
|
|
|
Abstract
|
|
|
|
|
Cited |
|
|
|
|
| |
Shared |
|
|
|
|
| |
Discussed |
|
|
|
|
