Arid
DOI10.1890/06-0889.1
Interrelationships among shrub encroachment, land management, and litter decomposition in a semidesert grassland
Throop, Heather L.; Archer, Steven R.
通讯作者Throop, Heather L.
来源期刊ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
ISSN1051-0761
出版年2007
卷号17期号:6页码:1809-1823
英文摘要

Encroachment of woody plants into grasslands, and subsequent brush management, are among the most prominent changes to occur in and and semiarid systems over the past century. Despite the resulting widespread changes in landcover, substantial uncertainty about the biogeochemical impacts of woody proliferation and brush management exists. We explored the role of shrub encroachment and brush management on leaf litter decomposition in a semidesert grassland where velvet mesquite (Prosopis velutina) abundance has increased over the past 100 years. This change in physiognomy may affect decomposition directly, through altered litter quality or quantity, and indirectly through altered canopy structure. To assess the direct and indirect impacts of shrubs on decomposition, we quantified changes in mass, nitrogen, and carbon in litterbags deployed under mesquite canopies and in intercanopy zones. Litterbags contained foliage from mesquite and Lehmann lovegrass (Eragrostis lehmanniana), a widespread, normative grass in southern Arizona. To explore short- and long-term influences of brush management on the initial stages of decomposition, litterbags were deployed at sites where mesquite canopies were removed three weeks, 45 years, or 70 years prior to study initiation.


Mesquite litter decomposed more rapidly than lovegrass, but negative indirect influences of mesquite canopies counteracted positive direct effects. Decomposition was positively correlated with soil infiltration into litterbags, which varied with microsite placement, and was lowest under canopies. Low under-canopy decomposition was ostensibly due to decreased soil movement associated with high under-canopy herbaceous biomass. Decomposition rates where canopies were removed three weeks prior to study initiation were comparable to those beneath intact canopies, suggesting that decomposition was driven by mesquite legacy effects on herbaceous cover-soil movement linkages. Decomposition rates where shrubs were removed 45 and 70 years prior to study initiation were comparable to intercanopy rates, suggesting that legacy effects persist less than 45 years.


Accurate decomposition modeling has proved challenging in arid and semiarid systems but is critical to understanding biogeochemical responses to woody encroachment and brush rnanagement. Predicting brush-management effects on decomposition will require information on shrub-grass interactions and herbaceous biomass influences on soil movement Lit decadal timescales. Inclusion of microsite factors controlling soil accumulation on litter would improve the predictive capability of decomposition models.


英文关键词brush management decay constant decomposition desert grassland Eragrostis field experiment, southern Arizona, USA land-cover change leaf litter Prosopis shrubland soil movement woody-plant encroachment
类型Article
语种英语
国家USA
收录类别SCI-E
WOS记录号WOS:000249240200021
WOS关键词ULTRAVIOLET-B RADIATION ; LEAF-LITTER ; TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS ; SEMIARID GRASSLANDS ; DESERT ECOSYSTEMS ; CHIHUAHUAN DESERT ; LEHMANN LOVEGRASS ; MESQUITE REMOVAL ; N MINERALIZATION ; LIGNIN CONTROL
WOS类目Ecology ; Environmental Sciences
WOS研究方向Environmental Sciences & Ecology
来源机构University of Arizona ; New Mexico State University
资源类型期刊论文
条目标识符http://119.78.100.177/qdio/handle/2XILL650/153976
作者单位(1)Univ Arizona, Sch Nat Resources, Tucson, AZ 85721 USA
推荐引用方式
GB/T 7714
Throop, Heather L.,Archer, Steven R.. Interrelationships among shrub encroachment, land management, and litter decomposition in a semidesert grassland[J]. University of Arizona, New Mexico State University,2007,17(6):1809-1823.
APA Throop, Heather L.,&Archer, Steven R..(2007).Interrelationships among shrub encroachment, land management, and litter decomposition in a semidesert grassland.ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS,17(6),1809-1823.
MLA Throop, Heather L.,et al."Interrelationships among shrub encroachment, land management, and litter decomposition in a semidesert grassland".ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS 17.6(2007):1809-1823.
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