Aims Soil CO_(2) emission from steppes is affected by soil properties and vegetation in different successional stages.Primary and secondary succession of plants frequently occurred at the meadow steppe in Songnen Plai...Aims Soil CO_(2) emission from steppes is affected by soil properties and vegetation in different successional stages.Primary and secondary succession of plants frequently occurred at the meadow steppe in Songnen Plain,Northeast China,which indicates the large uncer-tainty associated with CO_(2) emission in this environment.This study aims to investigate the temporal variations of soil respiration(Rs)and the effect of plant succession on cumulative soil CO_(2) emission during the growing season.Methods Using a LI-6400 soil CO_(2) flux system,Rs of five vegetation types which represented different stages of plant succession in meadow steppes of Songnen Plain,China,was investigated during the grow-ing seasons of 2011 and 2012.Important Findings Soil temperature(Ts)was the dominant controlling factor of Rs,which could explain~64%of the change in CO_(2) fluxes.The Q10 values of Rs were ranged from 2.0 to 6.7,showing a decreasing trend with the plant successional stages.The cumulative CO_(2) emis-sion increased with the degree of vegetation succession and it aver-aged to 316±6 g C m^(−2)(ranges:74.8±6.7 to 516.5±11.4 g C m^(−2))during the growing season.The magnitude of soil CO_(2) emission during the growing season was positively correlated with above-ground plant biomass,soil organic carbon content and mean soil water content,while negatively linked to mean Ts,pH,electrical conductivity and exchangeable sodium percentages.The results implied that soil CO_(2) emission increased with the development of plant communities toward more advanced stages.Our findings pro-vided valuable information for understanding the variations of CO_(2) emission in the process of vegetation succession.展开更多
The impacts of desertification on the vegetation composition, structure, and species diversity of alpine Kobresia steppe meadow were evaluated in an area of severe desertification in Anduo County, Tibet Autonomous Reg...The impacts of desertification on the vegetation composition, structure, and species diversity of alpine Kobresia steppe meadow were evaluated in an area of severe desertification in Anduo County, Tibet Autonomous Region, northern China. We investigated and analyzed the floristic features of communities at four different stages of desertification (slight desertification [SLD], moderate desertification [MD], severe desertification [SD], and very severe desertification [VSD]). The composition and structure of the alpine Kobresia steppe meadow at the SLD site differed significantly from that at the MD, SD, and VSD sites. Species that were more drought resistant and inedible by livestock were the dominant species at the SD site. No plants were found in the shifting dunes of the VSD site. Species diversity also decreased with increasing desertification. The SLD site had the largest mean number of species and individuals and the largest richness index; the MD grassland had the largest Shannon-Wiener index and evenness index, but the smallest Simpson's index. The vegetation cover declined from 91.8% to 34.8% as desertification increased from SLD to SD, and reached 0% in VSD areas with shifting dunes.展开更多
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(31100403,41101207)Special Fund for Agro-scientific Research in the Public Interest,China(201303095-8).
文摘Aims Soil CO_(2) emission from steppes is affected by soil properties and vegetation in different successional stages.Primary and secondary succession of plants frequently occurred at the meadow steppe in Songnen Plain,Northeast China,which indicates the large uncer-tainty associated with CO_(2) emission in this environment.This study aims to investigate the temporal variations of soil respiration(Rs)and the effect of plant succession on cumulative soil CO_(2) emission during the growing season.Methods Using a LI-6400 soil CO_(2) flux system,Rs of five vegetation types which represented different stages of plant succession in meadow steppes of Songnen Plain,China,was investigated during the grow-ing seasons of 2011 and 2012.Important Findings Soil temperature(Ts)was the dominant controlling factor of Rs,which could explain~64%of the change in CO_(2) fluxes.The Q10 values of Rs were ranged from 2.0 to 6.7,showing a decreasing trend with the plant successional stages.The cumulative CO_(2) emis-sion increased with the degree of vegetation succession and it aver-aged to 316±6 g C m^(−2)(ranges:74.8±6.7 to 516.5±11.4 g C m^(−2))during the growing season.The magnitude of soil CO_(2) emission during the growing season was positively correlated with above-ground plant biomass,soil organic carbon content and mean soil water content,while negatively linked to mean Ts,pH,electrical conductivity and exchangeable sodium percentages.The results implied that soil CO_(2) emission increased with the development of plant communities toward more advanced stages.Our findings pro-vided valuable information for understanding the variations of CO_(2) emission in the process of vegetation succession.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 40271012)the Science & Technology Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Region (Grant No. 200101046)PHD foundation of Foshan university
文摘The impacts of desertification on the vegetation composition, structure, and species diversity of alpine Kobresia steppe meadow were evaluated in an area of severe desertification in Anduo County, Tibet Autonomous Region, northern China. We investigated and analyzed the floristic features of communities at four different stages of desertification (slight desertification [SLD], moderate desertification [MD], severe desertification [SD], and very severe desertification [VSD]). The composition and structure of the alpine Kobresia steppe meadow at the SLD site differed significantly from that at the MD, SD, and VSD sites. Species that were more drought resistant and inedible by livestock were the dominant species at the SD site. No plants were found in the shifting dunes of the VSD site. Species diversity also decreased with increasing desertification. The SLD site had the largest mean number of species and individuals and the largest richness index; the MD grassland had the largest Shannon-Wiener index and evenness index, but the smallest Simpson's index. The vegetation cover declined from 91.8% to 34.8% as desertification increased from SLD to SD, and reached 0% in VSD areas with shifting dunes.
