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Finger Higgens RA, Hoover DL, Knight AC, Schlaepfer DR, Duniway MC. Flexible Phenology of a C 4 Grass Linked to Resiliency to Seasonal and Multiyear Drought Events in the American Southwest. Ecol Evol 2025; 15:e71435. [PMID: 40370350 PMCID: PMC12077930 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.71435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2025] [Revised: 04/15/2025] [Accepted: 04/28/2025] [Indexed: 05/16/2025] Open
Abstract
Rising temperatures are predicted to further limit dryland water availability as droughts become more intense and frequent and seasonal precipitation patterns shift. Vegetation drought stress may increase mortality and cause declines and delays in phenological events, thereby impacting species' capacity to persist and recover from extreme drought conditions. We compare phenological responses of two common dryland perennial grass species, Achnatherum hymenoides (C3) and Pleuraphis jamesii (C4), to 4 years of experimentally imposed precipitation drought treatments (cool season, warm season, ambient), followed by 2 years of recovery on the Colorado Plateau, United States of America. Tagged individual grasses from both species were monitored biweekly and assessed for phenological metrics and mortality. The C3 grass exhibited less phenological flexibility to both seasonal and interannual drought conditions and experienced high rates of mortality, thus reducing resiliency. Conversely, the C4 grass showed more phenological plasticity during imposed drought treatments, with treatment effects diminishing in the two-year recovery period during a severe ambient drought. Synthesis: Results suggest that plant photosynthetic strategies may impact plant resistance and resiliency to drought. Here, C3 grass populations may decline, potentially shifting cool dryland ecosystems into a system comprised predominantly of warm-season adapted species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David L. Hoover
- USDA‐ARSRangeland Resources and Systems Research UnitFort CollinsColoradoUSA
| | - Anna C. Knight
- US Geological SurveySouthwest Biological Science CenterMoabUtahUSA
| | - Daniel R. Schlaepfer
- US Geological SurveySouthwest Biological Science CenterFlagstaffArizonaUSA
- Center for Adaptable Western Landscapes, Northern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffArizonaUSA
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Finger-Higgens R, Hoover DL, Knight AC, Wilson SL, Bishop TBB, Reibold R, Reed SC, Duniway MC. Seasonal drought treatments impact plant and microbial uptake of nitrogen in a mixed shrub grassland on the Colorado Plateau. Ecology 2024; 105:e4393. [PMID: 39104160 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 05/24/2024] [Indexed: 08/07/2024]
Abstract
For many drylands, both long- and short-term drought conditions can accentuate landscape heterogeneity at both temporal (e.g., role of seasonal patterns) and spatial (e.g., patchy plant cover) scales. Furthermore, short-term drought conditions occurring over one season can exacerbate long-term, multidecadal droughts or aridification, by limiting soil water recharge, decreasing plant growth, and altering biogeochemical cycles. Here, we examine how experimentally altered seasonal precipitation regimes in a mixed shrub grassland on the Colorado Plateau impact soil moisture, vegetation, and carbon and nitrogen cycling. The experiment was conducted from 2015 to 2019, during a regional multidecadal drought event, and consisted of three precipitation treatments, which were implemented with removable drought shelters intercepting ~66% of incoming precipitation including: control (ambient precipitation conditions, no shelter), warm season drought (sheltered April-October), and cool season drought (sheltered November-March). To track changes in vegetation, we measured biomass of the dominant shrub, Ephedra viridis, and estimated perennial plant and ground cover in the spring and the fall. Soil moisture dynamics suggested that warm season experimental drought had longer and more consistent drought legacy effects (occurring two out of the four drought cycles) than either cool season drought or ambient conditions, even during the driest years. We also found that E. viridis biomass remained consistent across treatments, while bunchgrass cover declined by 25% by 2019 across all treatments, with the earliest declines noticeable in the warm season drought plots. Extractable dissolved inorganic nitrogen and microbial biomass nitrogen concentrations appeared sensitive to seasonal drought conditions, with dissolved inorganic nitrogen increasing and microbial biomass nitrogen decreasing with reduced soil volumetric water content. Carbon stocks were not sensitive to drought but were greater under E. viridis patches. Additionally, we found that under E. viridis, there was a negative relationship between dissolved inorganic nitrogen and microbial biomass nitrogen, suggesting that drought-induced increases in dissolved inorganic nitrogen may be due to declines in nitrogen uptake from microbes and plants alike. This work suggests that perennial grass plant-soil feedbacks are more vulnerable to both short-term (seasonal) and long-term (multiyear) drought events than shrubs, which can impact the future trajectory of dryland mixed shrub grassland ecosystems as drought frequency and intensity will likely continue to increase with ongoing climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David L Hoover
- USDA-ARS Rangeland Resource and Systems Research Unit, Crops Research Laboratory, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Anna C Knight
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
| | - Savannah L Wilson
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
| | - Tara B B Bishop
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
- Department of Earth Science, Utah Valley University, Orem, Utah, USA
| | - Robin Reibold
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
| | - Sasha C Reed
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
| | - Michael C Duniway
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, Utah, USA
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Wang D, Liu C, Yang Y, Liu P, Hu W, Song H, Miao C, Chen J, Yang Z, Miao Y. Clipping decreases plant cover, litter mass, and water infiltration rate in soil across six plant community sites in a semiarid grassland. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 861:160692. [PMID: 36476773 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2022] [Revised: 11/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Water infiltration in the soil is a crucial hydrological function in the land water cycle, especially in the semiarid region where water is relatively scarce. The semiarid grassland in Northern China represents the regional vegetation in the vast area of Eurasian continent and is sensitive to land use change. However, no clear patterns exist regarding the comprehensive examination of water infiltration in relation to clipping across six plant community sites. This study aimed to test the effect of clipping and plant community sites, which were dominated by Agropyron cristatum, Stipa krylovii, Leymus chinensis, Potentilla tanacetifolia, Artemisia frigida, or Lespedeza davurica, on the water infiltration rate in the semiarid grassland. Clipping significantly decreased the water initial, steady, and average infiltration rates by 39.13, 4.36, and 12.46 mm h-1, respectively, across the six plant community sites. Clipping-induced changes in the average infiltration rate positively correlated with the changes in the plant cover (r = 0.60, P < 0.01), litter mass (r = 0.53, P < 0.01), forb functional group ratio (r = 0.46, P = 0.03), and total porosity (r = 0.49, P = 0.02), and negatively with water-holding capacity (r = -0.45, P = 0.03). Further, the water infiltration rate significantly differed among the six plant community sites. The L.davurica site had the highest water initial infiltration rate with a value of 137.63 ± 17.76 mm h-1, while the L. chinensis site had the lowest rate with a value of 74.08 ± 5.26 mm h-1. Principal component analysis showed that the total porosity, litter mass, plant cover, and forb functional group ratio were the main factors affecting water infiltration rates in the control grassland. Overall, our findings suggested that local governments and herders should implement unclipping as a potential sustainable management for improving hydrological function in the semiarid grassland.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Wang
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Global Change Ecology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China
| | - Chun Liu
- Department of Ecology, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, Guangdong, PR China
| | - Yongsheng Yang
- Key Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota and Key Laboratory of Restoration Ecology in Cold Region of Qinghai Province, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, Qinghai 810008, PR China
| | - Panpan Liu
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Global Change Ecology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China
| | - Wei Hu
- Key Laboratory of Mollisols Agroecology, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150081, PR China
| | - Hongquan Song
- Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China
| | - Chen Miao
- State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China
| | - Ji Chen
- Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, 8830 Tjele, Denmark; Aarhus University Centre for Circular Bioeconomy, Aarhus University, 8830 Tjele, Denmark; iCLIMATE Interdisciplinary Centre for Climate Change, Aarhus University, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Zhongling Yang
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Global Change Ecology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China.
| | - Yuan Miao
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Global Change Ecology, School of Life Sciences, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan 475004, PR China.
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Chambers JC, Brown JL, Bradford JB, Board DI, Campbell SB, Clause KJ, Hanberry B, Schlaepfer DR, Urza AK. New indicators of ecological resilience and invasion resistance to support prioritization and management in the sagebrush biome, United States. Front Ecol Evol 2023. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.1009268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Ecosystem transformations to altered or novel ecological states are accelerating across the globe. Indicators of ecological resilience to disturbance and resistance to invasion can aid in assessing risks and prioritizing areas for conservation and restoration. The sagebrush biome encompasses parts of 11 western states and is experiencing rapid transformations due to human population growth, invasive species, altered disturbance regimes, and climate change. We built on prior use of static soil moisture and temperature regimes to develop new, ecologically relevant and climate responsive indicators of both resilience and resistance. Our new indicators were based on climate and soil water availability variables derived from process-based ecohydrological models that allow predictions of future conditions. We asked: (1) Which variables best indicate resilience and resistance? (2) What are the relationships among the indicator variables and resilience and resistance categories? (3) How do patterns of resilience and resistance vary across the area? We assembled a large database (n = 24,045) of vegetation sample plots from regional monitoring programs and derived multiple climate and soil water availability variables for each plot from ecohydrological simulations. We used USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service National Soils Survey Information, Ecological Site Descriptions, and expert knowledge to develop and assign ecological types and resilience and resistance categories to each plot. We used random forest models to derive a set of 19 climate and water availability variables that best predicted resilience and resistance categories. Our models had relatively high multiclass accuracy (80% for resilience; 75% for resistance). Top indicator variables for both resilience and resistance included mean temperature, coldest month temperature, climatic water deficit, and summer and driest month precipitation. Variable relationships and patterns differed among ecoregions but reflected environmental gradients; low resilience and resistance were indicated by warm and dry conditions with high climatic water deficits, and moderately high to high resilience and resistance were characterized by cooler and moister conditions with low climatic water deficits. The new, ecologically-relevant indicators provide information on the vulnerability of resources and likely success of management actions, and can be used to develop new approaches and tools for prioritizing areas for conservation and restoration actions.
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Clifton IT, Refsnider JM. Temporal climatic variability predicts thermal tolerance in two sympatric lizard species. J Therm Biol 2022; 108:103291. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2022.103291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Revised: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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Hajek OL, Knapp AK. Shifting seasonal patterns of water availability: ecosystem responses to an unappreciated dimension of climate change. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 233:119-125. [PMID: 34506636 DOI: 10.1111/nph.17728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Seasonal patterns of water availability can differ dramatically among ecosystems, with well-known consequences for ecosystem structure and functioning. Less appreciated is that climate change can shift the seasonality of water availability (e.g. to wetter springs, drier summers), resulting in both subtle and profound ecological impacts. Here we (1) review evidence that the seasonal availability of water is being altered in ecosystems worldwide, (2) explore several mechanisms potentially driving these changes, and (3) highlight the breadth of ecological consequences resulting from shifts in the seasonality of water availability. We conclude that seasonal patterns of water availability are changing globally, but in regionally specific ways requiring more rigorous and nuanced assessments of ecosystem vulnerability as well as the ecological consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia L Hajek
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Alan K Knapp
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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Meunier J, Holoubek NS, Johnson Y, Kuhman T, Strobel B. Effects of fire seasonality and intensity on resprouting woody plants in prairie‐forest communities. Restor Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/rec.13451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jed Meunier
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry 2801 Progress Road Madison WI 53716 U.S.A
| | - Nathan S. Holoubek
- Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fish Wildlife and Parks 141 Northwest Barstow Street Waukesha WI 53188 U.S.A
| | - Yari Johnson
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 1325 J Street Sacramento CA 95814 U.S.A
| | - Tim Kuhman
- Edgewood College, Biological Sciences Madison WI 53711 U.S.A
| | - Brad Strobel
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Necedah National Wildlife Refuge Necedah WI 54646 U.S.A
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Rigge M, Shi H, Postma K. Projected change in rangeland fractional component cover across the sagebrush biome under climate change through 2085. Ecosphere 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Rigge
- U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science Center Sioux Falls South Dakota57198USA
| | - Hua Shi
- AFDS Sioux Falls South Dakota57198USA
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Estimating Ecological Responses to Climatic Variability on Reclaimed and Unmined Lands Using Enhanced Vegetation Index. REMOTE SENSING 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/rs13061100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Climatic impact on re-established ecosystems at reclaimed mined lands may have changed. However, little knowledge is available about the difference in vegetation–climate relationships between reclaimed and unmined lands. In this study, ecological responses to climatic variability on reclaimed and neighbouring unmined lands were estimated using remote-sensing data at the Pingshuo Mega coal mine, one of the largest coal mines with long-term reclamation history in China. Time-series MODIS enhanced vegetation index (EVI) data and meteorological data from 1997 to 2017 were collected. Results show significantly different vegetation–climate relationships between reclaimed and unmined lands. First, the accumulation periods of all climatic variables were much longer on reclaimed mining lands. Second, vegetation on reclaimed lands responded to variabilities in temperature, rainfall, air humidity, and wind speed, while undisturbed vegetation only responded to variabilities of temperature and air humidity. Third, climatic variability made a much higher contribution to EVI variation on reclaimed land (20.0–46.5%) than on unmined land (0.7–1.7%). These differences were primarily caused by limited ecosystem resilience, and changed site hydrology and microclimate on reclaimed land. Thus, this study demonstrates that the legacy effects of surface mining can critically change on-site vegetation–climate relationships, which impacts the structure, functions, and stability of reclaimed ecosystems. Vegetation–climate relationships of reclaimed ecosystems deserve further research, and remote-sensing vegetation data are an effective source for relevant studies.
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Wood LK, Hays S, Zinnert JC. Decreased temperature variance associated with biotic composition enhances coastal shrub encroachment. Sci Rep 2020; 10:8210. [PMID: 32427910 PMCID: PMC7237465 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65161-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Regime shift from grasslands to shrub-dominated landscapes occur worldwide driven by altered land-use and climate change, affecting landscape function, biodiversity, and productivity. Warming winter temperatures are a main driver of expansion of the native, evergreen shrub, Morella cerifera, in coastal landscapes. Shrub establishment in these habitats alters microclimate, but little is known about seasonal differences and microclimate variance. We assessed influence of shrubs on microclimate variance, community composition, and community physiological functioning across three vegetation zones: grass, transitional, and shrub in a coastal grassland. Using a novel application of a time-series analysis, we interpret microclimatic variance modification and elucidate mechanisms of shrub encroachment at the Virginia Coast Reserve, Long-Term Ecological Research site. As shrub thickets form, diversity is reduced with little grass/forb cover, while transpiration and annual productivity increase. Shrub thickets significantly reduced temperature variance with a positive influence of one day on the next in maximum air, minimum air, and maximum ground temperature. We also show that microclimatic temperature moderation reduces summer extreme temperatures in transition areas, even before coalescence into full thickets. Encroachment of Morella cerifera on the Virginia barrier islands is driven by reduced local exposure to cold temperatures and enhanced by abiotic microclimatic modification and biotic physiological functioning. This shift in plant community composition from grassland to shrub thicket alters the role of barrier islands in productivity and can have impacts on the natural resilience of the islands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren K Wood
- Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 West Cary St, Richmond, VA, 23225, USA.,Integrative Life Sciences Doctoral Program, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 West Cary St, Richmond, VA, 23225, USA
| | - Spencer Hays
- Department of Statistics, Indiana University, 919 E. 10th St, Bloomington, IN, 47408, USA
| | - Julie C Zinnert
- Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1000 West Cary St, Richmond, VA, 23225, USA.
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