scholarly journals Different responses of plant species to deferment of sheep grazing in a desert steppe of Inner Mongolia, China

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Wang ◽  
Xiangyang Hou ◽  
Michael P. Schellenberg ◽  
Yan Qin ◽  
Xiangjun Yun ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
C4 Plants ◽  
Annual Precipitation ◽  
C3 Plants ◽  
Desert Steppe ◽  
Sheep Grazing ◽  
Steppe Vegetation

This paper reports the effects of different deferments of sheep grazing on plant variables of desert steppe vegetation in Inner Mongolia during 2010–2012. The study was initiated in May 2010 and comprised five treatments: no grazing (UG), grazing throughout the growing season (G) and grazing deferment for 40, 50 and 60 days (40UG, 50UG and 60UG) from the start of the growing season in a completely randomised block design replicated three times. The plant species were classified into two functional groups (C3 and C4 species) and the relationships among species composition, biomass and annual precipitation were examined in different deferments of sheep grazing. Treatment G significantly decreased the biomass of several species compared with some of the deferred treatments and treatment UG, because of differences in grazing preferences, and, consequently, decreased the aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP). Grazing deferment for 40, 50 and 60 days significantly increased C3-species richness and biomass compared with treatment UG, whereas grazing sheep’s preferences for C4 plants at some growth stages compared with C3 plants, resulted in lower species richness and biomass of C4 plants in treatments G, 40UG and 50UG in a dry year. Similarly, different species responses to treatment 60UG resulted in an increase in ANPP in a year with more precipitation during the growing season. The annual precipitation patterns strongly affected the temporal changes in biomass as well as the responses to grazing, indicating that the plant responses in the desert steppe were co-limited by grazing and precipitation. These findings provide important insights into the management and conservation of desert steppe vegetation in Inner Mongolia.

scholarly journals Spatial variation of plant species richness in a sand dune field of northeastern Inner Mongolia, China

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 434-442
Author(s):  
Jing Wu ◽  
Jianqiang Qian ◽  
Xianzhang Hou ◽  
Carlos A. Busso ◽  
Zhimin Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Spatial Variation ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Sand Dune ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Dune Field

scholarly journals NDVI-Based Vegetation Change in Inner Mongolia from 1982 to 2006 and Its Relationship to Climate at the Biome Scale

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linghui Guo ◽  
Shaohong Wu ◽  
Dongsheng Zhao ◽  
Yunhe Yin ◽  
Guoyong Leng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Vegetation Change ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Potential Evapotranspiration ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Desert Steppe

Based on the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), we analyzed vegetation change of the six major biomes across Inner Mongolia at the growing season and the monthly timescales and estimated their responses to climate change between 1982 and 2006. To reduce disturbance associated with land use change, those pixels affected by land use change from the 1980s to 2000s were excluded. At the growing season scale, the NDVI increased weakly in the natural ecosystems, but strongly in cropland. Interannual variations in the growing season NDVI for forest was positively linked with potential evapotranspiration and temperature, but negatively correlated with precipitation. In contrast, it was positively correlated with precipitation, but negatively related to potential evapotranspiration for other natural biomes, particularly for desert steppe. Although monthly NDVI trends were characterized as heterogeneous, corresponding to monthly variations in climate change among biome types, warming-related NDVI at the beginning of the growing season was the main contributor to the NDVI increase during the growing season for forest, meadow steppe, and typical steppe, but it constrained the NDVI increase for desert steppe, desert, and crop. Significant one-month lagged correlations between monthly NDVI and climate variables were found, but the correlation characteristics varied greatly depending on vegetation type.

scholarly journals Grazing primarily drives the relative abundance change of C4 plants in the typical steppe grasslands across households at a regional scale

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (6) ◽  
pp. 565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Zhang ◽  
Yong Ding ◽  
Wenjing Ma ◽  
Sarula Kang ◽  
Xin Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Grazing Intensity ◽  
C4 Plants ◽  
C3 Plants ◽  
Mean Annual Temperature ◽  
Typical Steppe ◽  
Primary Driver ◽  
Grassland Communities

Increases in temperature and grazing intensity are believed to promote the relative abundance of C4 plants in grassland communities in Inner Mongolia. However, there is a lack of understanding as to which factor is the primary driver at the household scale. The relative abundance of C4 plants in grassland communities within 32 households was monitored over a 5-year period (2008–12) in the typical steppe region of Inner Mongolia. The relationships between the mean annual temperature, grazing intensity and their combinations on the patterns of the relative abundance of C4 plants across the land managed by these households were analysed. The results showed that (1) the herbage mass of the typical steppe grassland was mainly composed of C3 plants (87%); (2) the C4 plants were more sensitive to, and can be used as indicators of, environmental changes. These C4 species included Cleistogenes squarrosa (Trin.) Keng, Chenopodium glaucum Linn. and Salsola collina Pall.; (3) both increasing temperature and grazing intensity promoted the relative abundance of C4 plants. Grazing intensity was the primary driver of the change in relative abundance of C4 plants in this region. Not only did grazing change the micro-environment of the grasslands, but also the C3 species were preferentially grazed by the livestock. Comparison of the results with previous studies on the temporal variation in the abundance of C4 plants suggests that the relative importance of grazing and climatic factors depends on the spatial scales of the studies, with climate being of greater importance at the regional rather than the household scale.

Ecological responses of Stipa steppe in Inner Mongolia to experimentally increased temperature and precipitation. 2. Plant species diversity and sward characteristics

2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiqiang Wan ◽  
Yulong Yan ◽  
Yali Chen ◽  
Rui Gu ◽  
Qingzhu Gao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
Substantial Effect ◽  
Community Diversity ◽  
Alternative Measure ◽  
Simpson Index ◽  
Temperature And Precipitation ◽  
Steppe Community

The responses of plant community diversity and sward characteristics to temperature and moisture changes on the Stipa steppe in Inner Mongolia were investigated in the growing season from 2013 to 2015. Warming significantly (P < 0.05) increased biomass and density. Highest biomass and density were achieved with warming and precipitation combined, whereas increased precipitation alone had no significant effect. Warming increased the Shannon–Weiner diversity index, which was significantly correlated with both air temperature (R2 = 0.45, P < 0.05) and soil temperature (R2 = 0.255 P < 0.05), and it was further increased by the combination of warming and increased precipitation. The Simpson index, an alternative measure of diversity that is not as sensitive to species richness, was less responsive to either warming or increased precipitation. Overall, warming had a more substantial effect than increased precipitation on the characteristics of the Stipa steppe community. However, its impact was complex, with significant variance among the 3 years of the study. The impacts of future changes in precipitation are also likely to be complex and warrant further research.

scholarly journals A six-year grazing exclusion changed plant species diversity of a Stipa breviflora desert steppe community, northern China

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xing Wang ◽  
Xinguo Yang ◽  
Lei Wang ◽  
Lin Chen ◽  
Naiping Song ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Northern China ◽  
Plant Species Diversity ◽  
Desert Steppe ◽  
Diversity Patterns ◽  
Shannon Diversity ◽  
Steppe Community

Excluding grazers is one of most efficient ways to restore degraded grasslands in desert-steppe communities, but may negatively affect the recovery of plant species diversity. However, diversity differences between grazed and fenced grasslands in desert-steppe are poorly known. In a Stipa breviflora desert steppe community in Northern China, we established six plots to examine spatial patterns of plant species diversity under grazed and fenced conditions, respectively. We addressed three aspects of species diversity: (1) The logistic, exponential and power models were used to describe the species-area curve (SAR). Species richness, abundance and Shannon diversity values change differently with increasing sampling areas inside and outside of the fence. The best fitted model for SAR was the logistic model. Excluding grazers had a significant impact on the shape of SAR. (2) Variograms was applied to examine the spatial characteristics of plant species diversity. We found strong spatial autocorrelations in the diversity variables both inside and outside the fence. After grazing exclusion, the spatial heterogeneity decreased in species richness, increased in abundance and did not change in Shannon diversity. (3) We used variance partitioning to determine the relative contributions of spatial and environmental factors to plant species diversity patterns. Environmental factors explained the largest proportion of variation in species diversity, while spatial factors contributed little. Our results suggest that grazing enclosures decreased species diversity patterns and the spatial pattern of the S. breviflora desert steppe community was predictable.

Influence of historic sheep grazing on vegetation and soil properties of a Desert Steppe in Inner Mongolia

2008 ◽  
Vol 128 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 109-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunli Li ◽  
Xiying Hao ◽  
Mengli Zhao ◽  
Guodong Han ◽  
Walter D. Willms
Keyword(s):  
Soil Properties ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Desert Steppe ◽  
Sheep Grazing

scholarly journals Spatial and Seasonal Variation in Rain Use Efficiency in Semiarid Grasslands of Inner Mongolia

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyoti Bhandari ◽  
Xuebiao Pan ◽  
G. C. Dhruba Bijaya
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Inner Mongolia ◽  
Plant Production ◽  
Desert Steppe ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Precipitation Patterns ◽  
Spatial And Seasonal Variation ◽  
Semiarid Ecosystem ◽  
Use Efficiency ◽  
Rain Use Efficiency

Rain use efficiency (RUE) is an important indicator for identifying the response of plant production to variation in precipitation patterns, especially in semiarid ecosystem grasslands of Inner Mongolia. We have investigated the response and spatial patterns of RUE to precipitation patterns based on five years (2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, and 2013) of records from semiarid ecosystem sites across Inner Mongolia. Our results showed thatRUEADMwas lowest in the wettest year (2012) and highest in the year following the driest year (2008). There was no significant correlation betweenRUEADMandRUETDMin typical and desert steppe.RUETDMwas strongly correlated with both annual precipitation (AP) and growing season precipitation (GSP) compared toRUEADM.RUEADM, therefore, cannot be used in place ofRUETDM.RUEADMincreased with species richness. The relationship betweenRUEADMand species richness was significantly correlated in meadow steppe, typical steppe, and desert steppe. Our findings can shed light on the spatial utilization pattern of seasonal rainfall in semiarid grassland ecosystems.

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