干旱区生态环境知识资源中心(Arid): Effects of herbivore assemblage on the spatial heterogeneity of soil nitrogen in eastern Eurasian steppe

Arid

DOI	10.1111/1365-2664.13655
	Effects of herbivore assemblage on the spatial heterogeneity of soil nitrogen in eastern Eurasian steppe
	Zhang, Minna 1; Li, Guangyin 1; Liu, Bai 1; Liu, Jushan 1; Wang, Ling 1; Wang, Deli 1,2
通讯作者	Wang, Ling
来源期刊	JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY
ISSN	0021-8901
EISSN	1365-2664
出版年	2020
卷号	57 期号:8 页码:1551-1560
英文摘要	The spatial heterogeneity of soil limiting resources is one of the most important factors maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem functions. There is a general concern that herbivore grazing plays a central role in modifying soil resources heterogeneity. However, most studies have examined how large herbivores as a group affect soil heterogeneity. There is limited knowledge about how assemblages of different herbivore species may influence soil heterogeneity, and whether the herbivore assemblage effects might vary with grassland types. Here we conducted a 4-year grazing experiment to examine the effects of different herbivore assemblages (no grazing; cattle grazing; sheep grazing; and mixed grazing of cattle and sheep) on the spatial heterogeneity of soil N availability across three types of grasslands (meadow steppe, typical steppe and desert steppe) in eastern Eurasian steppe. The results showed that all the herbivore grazing increased the heterogeneity of soil N availability in the three grasslands with different precipitation (only cattle grazing and mixed grazing of cattle and sheep in meadow steppe did not reach a statistically significant level). The consistently increased heterogeneity of soil N availability was primarily due to the effect of animal excreta addition, which weakened in drier grasslands, likely because of the slower excreta decomposition. Moreover, sheep excreta contributed more to soil N heterogeneity than that of other herbivore assemblages, and the effect was statistically significant in meadow steppe and typical steppe with relative high precipitation. Synthesis and applications. Our study indicates that sheep could have larger potential to maintain and enhance grassland heterogeneity than cattle especially in grassland ecosystems with high precipitation. We therefore suggest that managing above-ground herbivore species is important for conserving and promoting grassland soil heterogeneity, and that the management should also take into account local environmental conditions such as precipitation.
英文关键词	cattle grazing excreta grassland type mixed grazing precipitation sheep grazing soil N availability spatial heterogeneity
类型	Article
语种	英语
国家	Peoples R China
收录类别	SCI-E
WOS记录号	WOS:000536111300001
WOS关键词	ENVIRONMENTAL HETEROGENEITY ; CATTLE DUNG ; SPECIES-DIVERSITY ; PLANT ; PATTERNS ; SHEEP ; MINERALIZATION ; DECOMPOSITION ; COEXISTENCE ; GRASSLANDS
WOS类目	Biodiversity Conservation ; Ecology
WOS研究方向	Biodiversity & Conservation ; Environmental Sciences & Ecology
资源类型	期刊论文
条目标识符	http://119.78.100.177/qdio/handle/2XILL650/319193
作者单位	1.Northeast Normal Univ, Key Lab Vegetat Ecol, Inst Grassland Sci, Minist Educ, Changchun, Peoples R China; 2.Northeast Normal Univ, Key Lab Ecol Restorat & Ecosyst Management, Sch Environm, Changchun, Peoples R China
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Zhang, Minna,Li, Guangyin,Liu, Bai,et al. Effects of herbivore assemblage on the spatial heterogeneity of soil nitrogen in eastern Eurasian steppe[J],2020,57(8):1551-1560.
APA	Zhang, Minna,Li, Guangyin,Liu, Bai,Liu, Jushan,Wang, Ling,&Wang, Deli.(2020).Effects of herbivore assemblage on the spatial heterogeneity of soil nitrogen in eastern Eurasian steppe.JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY,57(8),1551-1560.
MLA	Zhang, Minna,et al."Effects of herbivore assemblage on the spatial heterogeneity of soil nitrogen in eastern Eurasian steppe".JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY 57.8(2020):1551-1560.