Meta-analysis of effects of grazing on plant community properties in Nei Mongol grassland

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2022.0341

Abstract

Abstract:

Aims Grazing, one of the primary ways of grassland utilization in Nei Mongol, has essential influences on plant community properties of grasslands. However, the comprehensive response patterns of Nei Mongol grassland plant community properties to grazing remain unclear.
Methods Based on a dataset derived from 76 studies, the plant community characteristics and soil physicochemical properties of Nei Mongol grasslands under different grazing intensities, different grassland types and different grazing years were integrated and analyzed in order to comprehensively evaluate the response patterns of Nei Mongol grasslands to grazing.
Important findings Our results showed that grazing significantly reduced plant above/below ground biomass, cover, height, density, species richness, Shannon-Wiener diversity index, Pielou evenness index, Simpson diversity index, and soil water content. The negative effects of grazing were strengthened with increasing of grazing intensity and duration. Moreover, grazing had a greater negative effect on the grasslands with sparse vegetation and low environmental carrying capacity (e.g., desert grasslands, sandy areas, etc.). This study shows that the responses of plant community characteristics to grazing in Nei Mongol grasslands are regulated by multiple factors, and appropriate grazing intensity and grazing time should be set according to different types of grasslands to achieve sustainable utilization of grasslands. The standards of grazing intensity in current grazing studies are not uniform, making it difficult to compare different studies, and the results from some studies do not have statistical significance due to a lack of replications in the experiment. The exploration of uniform quantitative standards for grazing intensity will be an important and challenging issue in future grazing studies, and the rationality of experimental design should also be emphasized.

Key words: grazing, Nei Mongol grassland, biomass, species diversity, soil property, meta-analysis

LI Na, TANG Shi-Ming, GUO Jian-Ying, TIAN Ru, WANG Shan, HU Bing, LUO Yong-Hong, XU Zhu-Wen. Meta-analysis of effects of grazing on plant community properties in Nei Mongol grassland[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2023, 47(9): 1256-1269.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.17521/cjpe.2022.0341

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2023/V47/I9/1256

Figures/Tables 6

Fig. 1 Weighted response ratio of plant biomass, cover, height, density, species diversity, and soil physical and chemical properties to grazing in Nei Mongol grassland (mean ± 95% CI). The number on the right indicates the sample size of each variable. CI, confidence interval. AGB, above-ground biomass; BGB, below-ground biomass; D, Pielou evenness index; E, Simpson diversity index; H′, Shannon-Wiener diversity index; SD, soil density; SpH, soil pH; SOC, soil organic carbon content; STN, soil total nitrogen content; STP, soil total phosphorus content; SWC, soil water content.

Fig. 2 Response ratio of plant biomass, cover, height, density, species diversity, and soil physical and chemical properties to different grazing intensities in Nei Mongol grassland (mean ± 95% CI). The number on the right indicates the sample size of each variable. CI, confidence interval. HG, heavy grazing; LG, light grazing; MG, mediate grazing. AGB, above-ground biomass; BGB, below-ground biomass; D, Pielou evenness index; E, Simpson diversity index; H′, Shannon-Wiener diversity index; SD, soil density; SpH, soil pH; SOC, soil organic carbon content; STN, soil total nitrogen content; STP, soli total phosphorus content; SWC, soil water content.

Fig. 3 In different grassland types of Nei Mongol, the response ratio of biomass, cover, height, density, species diversity, and soil physical and chemical properties to different grazing intensities (mean ± 95% CI). The number on the right indicates the sample size of each variable. CI, confidence interval. HG, heavy grazing; LG, light grazing; MG, mediate grazing. DG, desert grassland; M, meadow grassland; S, sandy land; TG, typical grassland. AGB, above-ground biomass; BGB, below-ground biomass; D, Pielou evenness index; E, Simpson diversity index; H′, Shannon-Wiener diversity index; SD, soil density; SpH, soil pH; SOC, soil organic carbon content; STN, soil total nitrogen content; STP, soil total phosphorus content; SWC, soil water content.

Fig. 4 Under different grazing years, the response ratio of plant biomass, cover, height, density, species diversity, and soil physical and chemical properties to grazing in Nei Mongol grassland (mean ± 95% CI). The number on the right indicates the sample size of each variable. CI, confidence interval. AGB, above-ground biomass; BGB, below-ground biomass; D, Pielou evenness index; E, Simpson diversity index; H′, Shannon-Wiener diversity index; SD, soil density; SpH, soil pH; SOC, soil organic carbon content; STN, soil total nitrogen content; STP, soil total phosphorus content; SWC, soil water content.

Table 1 Pearson correlation of aboveground biomass response ratio with plant community and soil characteristic response ratios in Nei Mongol grassland (correlation cofficient r)

Table 2 Results of linear mixed-effects model analysis of plant community characteristics and environmental factors in Nei Mongol grassland (F value)

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