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Smith MD, Wilkins KD, Holdrege MC, Wilfahrt P, Collins SL, Knapp AK, Sala OE, Dukes JS, Phillips RP, Yahdjian L, Gherardi LA, Ohlert T, Beier C, Fraser LH, Jentsch A, Loik ME, Maestre FT, Power SA, Yu Q, Felton AJ, Munson SM, Luo Y, Abdoli H, Abedi M, Alados CL, Alberti J, Alon M, An H, Anacker B, Anderson M, Auge H, Bachle S, Bahalkeh K, Bahn M, Batbaatar A, Bauerle T, Beard KH, Behn K, Beil I, Biancari L, Blindow I, Bondaruk VF, Borer ET, Bork EW, Bruschetti CM, Byrne KM, Cahill Jr. JF, Calvo DA, Carbognani M, Cardoni A, Carlyle CN, Castillo-Garcia M, Chang SX, Chieppa J, Cianciaruso MV, Cohen O, Cordeiro AL, Cusack DF, Dahlke S, Daleo P, D'Antonio CM, Dietterich LH, S. Doherty T, Dubbert M, Ebeling A, Eisenhauer N, Fischer FM, Forte TGW, Gebauer T, Gozalo B, Greenville AC, Guidoni-Martins KG, Hannusch HJ, Vatsø Haugum S, Hautier Y, Hefting M, Henry HAL, Hoss D, Ingrisch J, Iribarne O, Isbell F, Johnson Y, Jordan S, Kelly EF, Kimmel K, Kreyling J, Kröel-Dulay G, Kröpfl A, Kübert A, Kulmatiski A, Lamb EG, Larsen KS, Larson J, Lawson J, Leder CV, Linstädter A, Liu J, Liu S, Lodge AG, Longo G, Loydi A, Luan J, Curtis Lubbe F, Macfarlane C, Mackie-Haas K, Malyshev AV, Maturano-Ruiz A, Merchant T, Metcalfe DB, Mori AS, Mudongo E, Newman GS, Nielsen UN, Nimmo D, Niu Y, Nobre P, O'Connor RC, Ogaya R, Oñatibia GR, Orbán I, Osborne B, Otfinowski R, Pärtel M, Penuelas J, Peri PL, Peter G, Petraglia A, Picon-Cochard C, Pillar VD, Piñeiro-Guerra JM, Ploughe LW, Plowes RM, Portales-Reyes C, Prober SM, Pueyo Y, Reed SC, Ritchie EG, Rodríguez DA, Rogers WE, Roscher C, Sánchez AM, Santos BA, Cecilia Scarfó M, Seabloom EW, Shi B, Souza L, Stampfli A, Standish RJ, Sternberg M, Sun W, Sünnemann M, Tedder M, Thorvaldsen P, Tian D, Tielbörger K, Valdecantos A, van den Brink L, Vandvik V, Vankoughnett MR, Guri Velle L, Wang C, Wang Y, Wardle GM, Werner C, Wei C, Wiehl G, Williams JL, Wolf AA, Zeiter M, Zhang F, Zhu J, Zong N, Zuo X. Extreme drought impacts have been underestimated in grasslands and shrublands globally. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2309881120. [PMID: 38190514 PMCID: PMC10823251 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2309881120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of short-term (~1 y) drought events-the most common duration of drought-globally. Yet the impact of this intensification of drought on ecosystem functioning remains poorly resolved. This is due in part to the widely disparate approaches ecologists have employed to study drought, variation in the severity and duration of drought studied, and differences among ecosystems in vegetation, edaphic and climatic attributes that can mediate drought impacts. To overcome these problems and better identify the factors that modulate drought responses, we used a coordinated distributed experiment to quantify the impact of short-term drought on grassland and shrubland ecosystems. With a standardized approach, we imposed ~a single year of drought at 100 sites on six continents. Here we show that loss of a foundational ecosystem function-aboveground net primary production (ANPP)-was 60% greater at sites that experienced statistically extreme drought (1-in-100-y event) vs. those sites where drought was nominal (historically more common) in magnitude (35% vs. 21%, respectively). This reduction in a key carbon cycle process with a single year of extreme drought greatly exceeds previously reported losses for grasslands and shrublands. Our global experiment also revealed high variability in drought response but that relative reductions in ANPP were greater in drier ecosystems and those with fewer plant species. Overall, our results demonstrate with unprecedented rigor that the global impacts of projected increases in drought severity have been significantly underestimated and that drier and less diverse sites are likely to be most vulnerable to extreme drought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda D. Smith
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
- Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | | | - Martin C. Holdrege
- Department of Wildland Resource and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT84322
| | - Peter Wilfahrt
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN55108
| | - Scott L. Collins
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM87131
| | - Alan K. Knapp
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
- Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ85281
| | - Jeffrey S. Dukes
- Department of Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA94305
| | | | - Laura Yahdjian
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos AiresC1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Laureano A. Gherardi
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA94720
| | - Timothy Ohlert
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | - Claus Beier
- Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C1958, Denmark
| | - Lauchlan H. Fraser
- Department of Natural Resource Science, Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, BCV2C 0C8, Canada
| | - Anke Jentsch
- Department of Disturbance Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics, Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth95447, Germany
| | - Michael E. Loik
- Department of Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA95064
| | - Fernando T. Maestre
- Departamento de Ecologia, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
- Instituto Multidisciplinar para el Estudio del Medio “Ramón Margalef”, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
| | - Sally A. Power
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW2751, Australia
| | - Qiang Yu
- School of Grassland Science, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing100083, China
| | - Andrew J. Felton
- Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT59717
| | - Seth M. Munson
- U.S. Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Flagstaff, AZ86001
| | - Yiqi Luo
- Soil and Crop Sciences Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY14853
| | - Hamed Abdoli
- Department of Range Management, Faculty of Natural Resources and Marine Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor46417-76489, Iran
| | - Mehdi Abedi
- Department of Range Management, Faculty of Natural Resources and Marine Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor46417-76489, Iran
| | - Concepción L. Alados
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Restauración, Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Zaragoza50059, Spain
| | - Juan Alberti
- Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Técnica (CONICET), CC 1260 Correo Central, Mar del PlataB7600WAG, Argentina
| | - Moshe Alon
- School of Plant Sciences and Food Security, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv69978, Israel
| | - Hui An
- School of Ecology and Environment, Ningxia University, Yinchuan750021, China
| | - Brian Anacker
- City of Boulder Open Space and Mountain Parks, Boulder, CO80301
| | - Maggie Anderson
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN55108
| | - Harald Auge
- Department of Community Ecology, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research–UFZ, Halle06120, Germany
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig04103, Germany
| | - Seton Bachle
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS66506
- LI-COR Biosciences, 4647 Superior Street, Lincoln, NE68505
| | - Khadijeh Bahalkeh
- Department of Range Management, Faculty of Natural Resources and Marine Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Noor46417-76489, Iran
| | - Michael Bahn
- Department of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck6020, Austria
| | - Amgaa Batbaatar
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2E9, Canada
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2P5, Canada
| | - Taryn Bauerle
- Soil and Crop Sciences Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY14853
| | - Karen H. Beard
- Department of Wildland Resource and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT84322
| | - Kai Behn
- Institute of Crop Science and Resource Conservation, Department of Plant Nutrition, University of Bonn, Bonn53115, Germany
| | - Ilka Beil
- Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, Department of Experimental Plant Ecology, University of Greifswald, GreifswaldD-17498, Germany
| | - Lucio Biancari
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos AiresC1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Irmgard Blindow
- Biological Station of Hiddensee, Department of Biology, University of Greifswald, KlosterD-18565, Germany
| | - Viviana Florencia Bondaruk
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos AiresC1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Elizabeth T. Borer
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN55108
| | - Edward W. Bork
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2P5, Canada
| | - Carlos Martin Bruschetti
- Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Técnica (CONICET), CC 1260 Correo Central, Mar del PlataB7600WAG, Argentina
| | - Kerry M. Byrne
- Department of Environmental Science and Management, California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, Arcata, CA95521
| | - James F. Cahill Jr.
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2E9, Canada
| | - Dianela A. Calvo
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Centro de Estudios Ambientales desde la NorPatagonia (CEANPa), Sede Atlántica–CONICET, Viedma8500, Argentina
| | - Michele Carbognani
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, ParmaI-43124, Italy
| | - Augusto Cardoni
- Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Técnica (CONICET), CC 1260 Correo Central, Mar del PlataB7600WAG, Argentina
| | - Cameron N. Carlyle
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2P5, Canada
| | - Miguel Castillo-Garcia
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Restauración, Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Zaragoza50059, Spain
| | - Scott X. Chang
- Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, ABT6G 2E3, Canada
| | - Jeff Chieppa
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW2751, Australia
| | | | - Ofer Cohen
- School of Plant Sciences and Food Security, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv69978, Israel
| | - Amanda L. Cordeiro
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | - Daniela F. Cusack
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | - Sven Dahlke
- Biological Station of Hiddensee, Department of Biology, University of Greifswald, KlosterD-18565, Germany
| | - Pedro Daleo
- Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Técnica (CONICET), CC 1260 Correo Central, Mar del PlataB7600WAG, Argentina
| | - Carla M. D'Antonio
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA93106
| | - Lee H. Dietterich
- Department of Ecosystem Science and Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
- US Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Environmental Laboratory, Vicksburg, MS39180
| | - Tim S. Doherty
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW2006, Australia
| | - Maren Dubbert
- Isotope Biogeochemistry and GasFluxes, Leibniz-Zentrum fürAgrarlandschaftsforschung (ZALF), Müncheberg15374, Germany
| | - Anne Ebeling
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena07743, Germany
| | - Nico Eisenhauer
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Institute of Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig04103, Germany
| | - Felícia M. Fischer
- Institute of Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Centro de Investigaciones sobre Desertificación, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)-Universitat Valencia (UV) - Generalitat Valenciana (GV),Valencia46113, Spain
| | - T'ai G. W. Forte
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, ParmaI-43124, Italy
| | - Tobias Gebauer
- Geobotany, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, FreiburgD-79104, Germany
| | - Beatriz Gozalo
- Instituto Multidisciplinar para el Estudio del Medio “Ramón Margalef”, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
| | - Aaron C. Greenville
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW2006, Australia
| | | | - Heather J. Hannusch
- Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX77843
| | - Siri Vatsø Haugum
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen5007, Norway
| | - Yann Hautier
- Ecology and Biodiversity Group, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584 CH, Netherlands
| | - Mariet Hefting
- Ecology and Biodiversity Group, Department of Biology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584 CH, Netherlands
| | - Hugh A. L. Henry
- Department of Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, ONN6A 5B7, Canada
| | - Daniela Hoss
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Institute of Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre91501-970, Brazil
| | - Johannes Ingrisch
- Department of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck6020, Austria
| | - Oscar Iribarne
- Laboratorio de Ecología, Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras (IIMyC), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP)-Consejo Nacional de Investigación Ciencia y Técnica (CONICET), CC 1260 Correo Central, Mar del PlataB7600WAG, Argentina
| | - Forest Isbell
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN55108
| | - Yari Johnson
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento, CA95814
| | - Samuel Jordan
- School of Life Sciences, Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ85281
| | - Eugene F. Kelly
- Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO80523
| | - Kaitlin Kimmel
- Global Water Security Center, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL35487
| | - Juergen Kreyling
- Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, Department of Experimental Plant Ecology, University of Greifswald, GreifswaldD-17498, Germany
| | - György Kröel-Dulay
- Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Ecology and Botany, Vácrátót2163, Hungary
| | - Alicia Kröpfl
- Departamento de Gestión Agropecuaria, Universidad Nacional del Comahue, Centro Universitario Regional Zona Atlántica, Viedma85009, Argentina
| | - Angelika Kübert
- Ecosystem Physiology, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Albert-Ludwig-University of Freiburg, Freiburg79110, Germany
| | - Andrew Kulmatiski
- Department of Wildland Resource and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT84322
| | - Eric G. Lamb
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SKS7N5A8, Canada
| | - Klaus Steenberg Larsen
- Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg C1958, Denmark
| | - Julie Larson
- Range and Meadow Forage Management Research, Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center, US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-Agricultural Research Service, Burns, OR97720
| | - Jason Lawson
- Brackenridge Field Laboratory, University of Texas, Austin, TX78747
| | - Cintia V. Leder
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Centro de Estudios Ambientales desde la NorPatagonia (CEANPa), Sede Atlántica–CONICET, Viedma8500, Argentina
| | - Anja Linstädter
- Department of Biodiversity Research and Systematic Botany, University of Potsdam, Potsdam14469, Germany
| | - Jielin Liu
- Prataculture Research Institute, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Haerbin150086, China
| | - Shirong Liu
- Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Environment of National Forestry and Grassland Administration, Ecology and Nature Conservation Institute, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing100091, China
| | - Alexandra G. Lodge
- Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX77843
| | - Grisel Longo
- Programa de Posgrado en Desarrollo y Medio Ambiente–Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Cidade Universitária, Castelo Branco, João Pessoa, PB58051-900, Brazil
| | - Alejandro Loydi
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida–CONICET, Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur,Bahía Blanca8000FTN, Argentina
| | - Junwei Luan
- Institute of Resources and Environment, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration and Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Beijing100102, China
| | | | - Craig Macfarlane
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) Environment, Wembley, WA6913, Australia
| | - Kathleen Mackie-Haas
- School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Bern University of Applied Sciences,Zollikofen3052, Switzerland
| | - Andrey V. Malyshev
- Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, Department of Experimental Plant Ecology, University of Greifswald, GreifswaldD-17498, Germany
| | - Adrián Maturano-Ruiz
- Instituto Multidisciplinar para el Estudio del Medio “Ramón Margalef”, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
| | - Thomas Merchant
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Institute for Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado,Boulder, CO80309
| | - Daniel B. Metcalfe
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, UmeåS-901 87, Sweden
| | - Akira S. Mori
- Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Tokyo,Meguro, Tokyo153-8904, Japan
- Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences, Yokohama National University, Yokohama240-8501, Japan
| | - Edwin Mudongo
- Conservancy-Communities Living Among Wildlife Sustainably (CLAWS) Botswana, Seronga00000, Botswana
| | - Gregory S. Newman
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK73019
| | - Uffe N. Nielsen
- Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University, Penrith, NSW2751, Australia
| | - Dale Nimmo
- Gulbali Institute, Charles Sturt University, Albury, NSW2640, Australia
| | - Yujie Niu
- Department of Disturbance Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics, Bayreuth Center of Ecology and Environmental Research, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth95447, Germany
| | - Paola Nobre
- Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO74690-900, Brazil
| | - Rory C. O'Connor
- Range and Meadow Forage Management Research, Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center, US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-Agricultural Research Service, Burns, OR97720
| | - Romà Ogaya
- Global Ecology Unit Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF)-National Research Council (CSIC)-Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), National Research Council (CSIC), Bellaterra, Catalonia08194, Spain
- Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF), Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia08193, Spain
| | - Gastón R. Oñatibia
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos AiresC1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Ildikó Orbán
- Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Ecology and Botany, Vácrátót2163, Hungary
- Department of Biodiversity Research and Systematic Botany, University of Potsdam, Potsdam14469, Germany
| | - Brooke Osborne
- Department of Environment and Society, Utah State University, Moab, UT84532
| | - Rafael Otfinowski
- Department of Biology, The University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MBR3B 2E9, Canada
| | - Meelis Pärtel
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, TartuEE50409, Estonia
| | - Josep Penuelas
- Global Ecology Unit Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF)-National Research Council (CSIC)-Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB), National Research Council (CSIC), Bellaterra, Catalonia08194, Spain
- Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF), Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia08193, Spain
| | - Pablo L. Peri
- Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria–Universidad Nacional d ela Patagonia Austral–CONICET, Río Gallegos, Caleta OliviaZ9011, Argentina
| | - Guadalupe Peter
- Universidad Nacional de Río Negro, Centro de Estudios Ambientales desde la NorPatagonia (CEANPa), Sede Atlántica–CONICET, Viedma8500, Argentina
| | - Alessandro Petraglia
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences and Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, ParmaI-43124, Italy
| | - Catherine Picon-Cochard
- Université Clermont Auvergne, National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment, VetAgro Sup, Research Unit for Grassland Ecosystems, Clermont-Ferrand63000, France
| | - Valério D. Pillar
- Department of Ecology, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre91501-970, Brazil
| | - Juan Manuel Piñeiro-Guerra
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Buenos AiresC1417DSE, Argentina
- Laboratório de Ecologia Aplicada e Conservação, Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Cidade Universitária, Castelo Branco, João Pessoa, PB58051-900, Brazil
| | - Laura W. Ploughe
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN47907
| | - Robert M. Plowes
- Brackenridge Field Laboratory, University of Texas, Austin, TX78747
| | | | - Suzanne M. Prober
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) Environment, Wembley, WA6913, Australia
| | - Yolanda Pueyo
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Restauración, Instituto Pirenaico de Ecología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Zaragoza50059, Spain
| | - Sasha C. Reed
- U.S. Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, UT84532
| | - Euan G. Ritchie
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, VIC3125, Australia
| | - Dana Aylén Rodríguez
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida–CONICET, Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur,Bahía Blanca8000FTN, Argentina
| | - William E. Rogers
- Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX77843
| | - Christiane Roscher
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Department of Physiological Diversity, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research–UFZ, Leipzig04318, Germany
| | - Ana M. Sánchez
- Department of Biology and Geology, Rey Juan Carlos University, Madrid28032, Spain
| | - Bráulio A. Santos
- Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Cidade Universitária, Castelo Branco, João Pessoa, PB58051-900, Brazil
| | - María Cecilia Scarfó
- Centro de Recursos Naturales Renovables de la Zona Semiárida–CONICET, Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur,Bahía Blanca8000FTN, Argentina
| | - Eric W. Seabloom
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN55108
| | - Baoku Shi
- Institute of Grassland Science, Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology of the Ministry of Education, Jilin Songnen Grassland Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, Northeast Normal University, Changchun130024, China
| | - Lara Souza
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK73019
- Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK73019
| | - Andreas Stampfli
- School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Bern University of Applied Sciences,Zollikofen3052, Switzerland
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Bern3013, Switzerland
- Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern3012, Switzerland
| | - Rachel J. Standish
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Bern3013, Switzerland
- Environmental and Conservation Sciences, Murdoch University,Murdoch, WA6150, Australia
| | - Marcelo Sternberg
- School of Plant Sciences and Food Security, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv69978, Israel
| | - Wei Sun
- Institute of Grassland Science, Key Laboratory of Vegetation Ecology of the Ministry of Education, Jilin Songnen Grassland Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, Northeast Normal University, Changchun130024, China
| | - Marie Sünnemann
- German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig04103, Germany
- Institute of Biology, Leipzig University, Leipzig04103, Germany
| | - Michelle Tedder
- School of Life Sciences, University of Kwazulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg3201, South Africa
| | - Pål Thorvaldsen
- Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, Department of Landscape and Biodiversity, Tjøtta8860, Norway
| | - Dashuan Tian
- Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100101, China
| | - Katja Tielbörger
- Plant Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen72076, Germany
| | - Alejandro Valdecantos
- Departamento de Ecologia, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
- Instituto Multidisciplinar para el Estudio del Medio “Ramón Margalef”, Universidad de Alicante, 03690 Alicante, Spain
| | - Liesbeth van den Brink
- Plant Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen72076, Germany
| | - Vigdis Vandvik
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen5007, Norway
| | - Mathew R. Vankoughnett
- Nova Scotia Community College, Annapolis Valley Campus, Applied Research, Middleton,NSB0S 1P0, Canada
| | | | - Changhui Wang
- College of Grassland Science, Shanxi Agricultural University, Jinzhong030801, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Institute of Resources and Environment, International Centre for Bamboo and Rattan, Key Laboratory of National Forestry and Grassland Administration and Beijing for Bamboo and Rattan Science and Technology, Beijing100102, China
| | - Glenda M. Wardle
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW2006, Australia
| | - Christiane Werner
- Ecosystem Physiology, Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Albert-Ludwig-University of Freiburg, Freiburg79110, Germany
| | - Cunzheng Wei
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100093, China
| | - Georg Wiehl
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) Environment, Wembley, WA6913, Australia
| | - Jennifer L. Williams
- Department of Geography and Biodiversity Research Centre, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BCV6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Amelia A. Wolf
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX78712
| | - Michaela Zeiter
- School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Bern University of Applied Sciences,Zollikofen3052, Switzerland
- Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Bern3013, Switzerland
- Oeschger Center for Climate Change Research, University of Bern, Bern3012, Switzerland
| | - Fawei Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, Qinghai810008, China
| | - Juntao Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100101, China
| | - Ning Zong
- Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100101, China
| | - Xiaoan Zuo
- Urat Desert-grassland Research Station, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Science, Lanzhou730000, China
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2
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Pérez‐Ruiz ER, Vivoni ER, Sala OE. Seasonal carryover of water and effects on carbon dynamics in a dryland ecosystem. Ecosphere 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Eli R. Pérez‐Ruiz
- School of Earth and Space Exploration Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
- Departamento de Ingeniería Civil y Ambiental Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez Ciudad Juárez Mexico
| | - Enrique R. Vivoni
- School of Earth and Space Exploration Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
- School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- School of Life Sciences Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
- School of Sustainability Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
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3
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Abstract
Cycles of plant growth, termed phenology, are tightly linked to environmental controls. The length of time spent growing, bounded by the start and end of season, is an important determinant of the global carbon, water, and energy balance. Much focus has been given to global warming and consequences for shifts in growing season length in temperate regions. In conjunction with warming temperatures, altered precipitation regimes are another facet of climate change that have potentially larger consequences than temperature in dryland phenology globally. We experimentally manipulated incoming precipitation in a semiarid grassland for over a decade and recorded plant phenology at the daily scale for seven years. We found precipitation to have a strong relationship with the timing of grass greenup and senescence but temperature had only a modest effect size on grass greenup. Pre-season drought strongly resulted in delayed grass greenup dates and shorter growing season lengths. Spring and summer drought corresponded with earlier grass senescence whereas higher precipitation accumulation over these seasons corresponded with delayed grass senescence. However, extremely wet conditions diluted this effect and caused a plateaued response. Deep-rooted woody shrubs showed few effects of variable precipitation or temperature on phenology and displayed consistent annual phenological timing compared to grasses. While rising temperatures have already elicited phenological consequences and extended growing season length for mid and high-latitude ecosystems, precipitation change will be the major driver of phenological change in drylands that cover 40% of land surface with consequences for the global carbon, water, and energy balance.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ.,School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ.,Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
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4
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Weber-Grullon L, Gherardi L, Rutherford WA, Archer SR, Sala OE. Woody-plant encroachment: Precipitation, herbivory, and grass-competition interact to affect shrub recruitment. Ecol Appl 2022; 32:e2536. [PMID: 35038207 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2536] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/08/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Woody-plant encroachment is a global phenomenon that has been affecting the southwestern United States since the late 1800s. Drought, overgrazing, herbivory, and competition between grasses and shrub seedlings have been hypothesized as the main drivers of shrub establishment. However, there is limited knowledge about the interactions among these drivers. Using a rainfall manipulation system and various herbivore exclosures, we tested hypotheses about how precipitation (PPT), competition between grasses and shrub seedlings, and predation affect the germination and first-year survival of mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), a shrub that has encroached in Southern Great Plains and Chihuahuan Desert grasslands. We found that mesquite germination and survival (1) increased with increasing PPT, then saturated at about the mean growing season PPT level, (2) that competition between grasses and shrub seedlings had no effect on either germination or survival, and (3) that herbivory by small mammals decreased seedling establishment and survival, while ant granivory showed no effect. In addition to its direct positive effect on survival, PPT had an indirect negative effect via increasing small mammal activity. Current models predict a decrease in PPT in the southwestern United States with increased frequency of extreme events. The non-linear nature of PPT effects on Mesquite recruitment suggests asymmetric responses, wherein drought has a relatively greater negative effect than the positive effect of wet years. Indirect effects of PPT, through its effects on small mammal abundance, highlight the importance of accounting for interactions between biotic and abiotic drivers of shrub encroachment. This study provides quantitative basis for developing tools that can inform effective shrub management strategies in grasslands and savannas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Weber-Grullon
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Laureano Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - William A Rutherford
- School of Natural Resources and the Environment, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Steven R Archer
- School of Natural Resources and the Environment, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
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5
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Franco ALC, Guan P, Cui S, de Tomasel CM, Gherardi LA, Sala OE, Wall DH. Precipitation effects on nematode diversity and carbon footprint across grasslands. Glob Chang Biol 2022; 28:2124-2132. [PMID: 34936166 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Revised: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Free-living nematodes are one of the most diverse metazoan taxa in terrestrial ecosystems and are critical to the global soil carbon (C) cycling through their role in organic matter decomposition. They are highly dependent on water availability for movement, feeding, and reproduction. Projected changes in precipitation across temporal and spatial scales will affect free-living nematodes and their contribution to C cycling with unforeseen consequences. We experimentally reduced and increased growing season precipitation for 2 years in 120 field plots at arid, semiarid, and mesic grasslands and assessed precipitation controls on nematode genus diversity, community structure, and C footprint. Increasing annual precipitation reduced nematode diversity and evenness over time at all sites, but the mechanism behind these temporal responses differed for dry and moist grasslands. In arid and semiarid sites, there was a loss of drought-adapted rare taxa with increasing precipitation, whereas in mesic conditions increases in the population of predaceous taxa with increasing precipitation may have caused the observed reductions in dominant colonizer taxa and yielded the negative precipitation-diversity relationship. The effects of temporal changes in precipitation on all aspects of the nematode C footprint (respiration, production, and biomass C) were all dependent on the site (significant spatial × temporal precipitation interaction) and consistent with diversity responses at mesic, but not at arid and semiarid, grasslands. These results suggest that free-living nematode biodiversity and their C footprint will respond to climate change-driven shifts in water availability and that more frequent extreme wet years may accelerate decomposition and C turnover in semiarid and arid grasslands.
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Affiliation(s)
- André L C Franco
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Pingting Guan
- State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Vegetation Restoration, School of Environment, Northeast Normal University, Changchun, China
- Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Management, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China
| | - Shuyan Cui
- Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Management, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China
| | | | - Laureano A Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences & Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, School of Sustainability & Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Diana H Wall
- Department of Biology & School of Global Environmental Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
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6
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Iwaniec DM, Gooseff M, Suding KN, Samuel Johnson D, Reed DC, Peters DPC, Adams B, Barrett JE, Bestelmeyer BT, Castorani MCN, Cook EM, Davidson MJ, Groffman PM, Hanan NP, Huenneke LF, Johnson PTJ, McKnight DM, Miller RJ, Okin GS, Preston DL, Rassweiler A, Ray C, Sala OE, Schooley RL, Seastedt T, Spasojevic MJ, Vivoni ER. Connectivity: insights from the U.S. Long Term Ecological Research Network. Ecosphere 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- David M. Iwaniec
- Urban Studies Institute Andrew Young School of Policy Studies Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia30303USA
| | - Michael Gooseff
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - Katharine N. Suding
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - David Samuel Johnson
- Virginia Institute of Marine Science William & Mary Gloucester Point Virginia23062USA
| | - Daniel C. Reed
- Marine Science Institute University of California Santa Barbara California93106USA
| | - Debra P. C. Peters
- US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Jornada Experimental Range Unit Las Cruces New Mexico88003‐0003USA
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
| | - Byron Adams
- Department of Biology and Monte L. Bean Museum Brigham Young University Provo Utah84602USA
| | - John E. Barrett
- Department of Biological Sciences Virginia Tech University Blacksburg Virginia24061USA
| | - Brandon T. Bestelmeyer
- US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Jornada Experimental Range Unit Las Cruces New Mexico88003‐0003USA
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
| | - Max C. N. Castorani
- Department of Environmental Sciences University of Virginia Charlottesville Virginia22904USA
| | - Elizabeth M. Cook
- Environmental Sciences Department Barnard College New York New York10027USA
| | - Melissa J. Davidson
- School Sustainability and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability Arizona State University Tempe Arizona85287USA
| | - Peter M. Groffman
- City University of New York Advanced Science Research Center at the Graduate Center New York New York10031USA
- Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies Millbrook New York12545USA
| | - Niall P. Hanan
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
| | - Laura F. Huenneke
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- School of Earth and Sustainability Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona86011USA
| | - Pieter T. J. Johnson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - Diane M. McKnight
- Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - Robert J. Miller
- Marine Science Institute University of California Santa Barbara California93106USA
| | - Gregory S. Okin
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- Department of Geography University of California Los Angeles California90095USA
| | - Daniel L. Preston
- Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado80523USA
| | - Andrew Rassweiler
- Department of Biological Science Florida State University Tallahassee Florida32304USA
| | - Chris Ray
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- Global Drylands Center School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability Arizona State University Tempe Arizona85287USA
| | - Robert L. Schooley
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences University of Illinois Urbana Illinois61801USA
| | - Timothy Seastedt
- Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research University of Colorado Boulder Colorado80309USA
| | - Marko J. Spasojevic
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology University of California Riverside Riverside California92521USA
| | - Enrique R. Vivoni
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program New Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico88003USA
- School of Earth and Space Exploration and School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment Arizona State University Tempe Arizona85287USA
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7
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Yahdjian L, Sala OE, PiÑEiro-Guerra JM, Knapp AK, Collins SL, Phillips RP, Smith MD. Why Coordinated Distributed Experiments Should Go Global. Bioscience 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biab033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
The performance of coordinated distributed experiments designed to compare ecosystem sensitivity to global-change drivers depends on whether they cover a significant proportion of the global range of environmental variables. In the present article, we described the global distribution of climatic and soil variables and quantified main differences among continents. Then, as a test case, we assessed the representativeness of the International Drought Experiment (IDE) in parameter space. Considering the global environmental variability at this scale, the different continents harbor unique combinations of parameters. As such, coordinated experiments set up across a single continent may fail to capture the full extent of global variation in climate and soil parameter space. IDE with representation on all continents has the potential to address global scale hypotheses about ecosystem sensitivity to environmental change. Our results provide a unique vision of climate and soil variability at the global scale and highlight the need to design globally distributed networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Yahdjian
- Ecology Department, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | | | - Juan Manuel PiÑEiro-Guerra
- Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Laboratório de Ecologia Aplicada e Conservação, Cidade Universitária, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, in João Pessoa, Brazil
| | - Alan K Knapp
- Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States
| | - Scott L Collins
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
| | - Richard P Phillips
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States
| | - Melinda D Smith
- Department of Biology and the director of the Semiarid Grassland Research Center, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, United States
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8
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Franco ALC, Gherardi LA, Tomasel CM, Andriuzzi WS, Ankrom KE, Bach EM, Guan P, Sala OE, Wall DH. Root herbivory controls the effects of water availability on the partitioning between above‐ and below‐ground grass biomass. Funct Ecol 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.13661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Laureano A. Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences & Global Drylands Center Arizona State University Tempe AZ USA
| | | | - Walter S. Andriuzzi
- Department of Biology Colorado State University Fort Collins CO USA
- Nature Communications, Nature Research Berlin Germany
| | | | | | - Pingting Guan
- State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Vegetation Restoration School of Environment Northeast Normal University Changchun China
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- School of Life Sciences School of Sustainability & Global Drylands Center Arizona State University Tempe AZ USA
| | - Diana H. Wall
- Department of Biology & School of Global Environmental Sustainability Colorado State University Fort Collins CO USA
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9
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Ankrom KE, Franco ALC, Fonte SJ, Gherardi LA, de Tomasel CM, Andriuzzi WS, Shaw EA, Sala OE, Wall DH. Ecto- and endoparasitic nematodes respond differently across sites to changes in precipitation. Oecologia 2020; 193:761-771. [PMID: 32656605 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-020-04708-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2019] [Accepted: 07/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Plant parasitic nematodes are among the greatest consumers of primary production in terrestrial ecosystems. Their feeding strategies can be divided into endoparasites and ectoparasites that differ substantially, not only in their damage potential to host tissue and primary production, but also in their susceptibility to environmental changes. Climate change is predicted to increase variability of precipitation in many systems, yet the effects on belowground biodiversity and associated impacts on primary productivity remain poorly understood. To examine the impact of altered precipitation on endo- and ectoparasitic soil nematodes, we conducted a 2-year precipitation manipulation study across an arid, a semiarid, and a mesic grassland. Plant parasite feeding type abundance, functional guilds, and herbivory index in response to precipitation were evaluated. Responses of endo- and ectoparasites to increased precipitation varied by grassland type. There was little response of ectoparasites to increased precipitation although their population declined at the mesic site with increased precipitation. The abundance of endoparasites remained unchanged with increasing precipitation at the arid site, increased at the semiarid, and decreased at the mesic site. The herbivory index followed closely the trends seen in the endoparasites response by stagnating at the arid site, increasing at the semiarid, and decreasing at the mesic site. Our findings suggest that altered precipitation has differing effects on plant parasite feeding strategies as well as functional guilds. This may have important implications for grassland productivity, as plant parasite pressure may exacerbate the effects of climate change on host plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharine E Ankrom
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA.
| | - André L C Franco
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Steven J Fonte
- Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Laureano A Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences and Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | | | - Walter S Andriuzzi
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - E Ashley Shaw
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, 1878 Biology, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, School of Sustainability and Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Diana H Wall
- Department of Biology and School of Global Environmental Sustainability, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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10
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Schreiner-McGraw AP, Vivoni ER, Ajami H, Sala OE, Throop HL, Peters DPC. Woody Plant Encroachment has a Larger Impact than Climate Change on Dryland Water Budgets. Sci Rep 2020; 10:8112. [PMID: 32415221 PMCID: PMC7229153 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-65094-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2019] [Accepted: 04/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Woody plant encroachment (WPE) into grasslands is a global phenomenon that is associated with land degradation via xerification, which replaces grasses with shrubs and bare soil patches. It remains uncertain how the global processes of WPE and climate change may combine to impact water availability for ecosystems. Using a process-based model constrained by watershed observations, our results suggest that both xerification and climate change augment groundwater recharge by increasing channel transmission losses at the expense of plant available water. Conversion from grasslands to shrublands without creating additional bare soil, however, reduces transmission losses. Model simulations considering both WPE and climate change are used to assess their relative roles in a late 21st century condition. Results indicate that changes in focused channel recharge are determined primarily by the WPE pathway. As a result, WPE should be given consideration when assessing the vulnerability of groundwater aquifers to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam P Schreiner-McGraw
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA.
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of California, Riverside, CA, 92587, USA.
| | - Enrique R Vivoni
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
- School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Hoori Ajami
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of California, Riverside, CA, 92587, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Heather L Throop
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
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11
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Maurer GE, Hallmark AJ, Brown RF, Sala OE, Collins SL. Sensitivity of primary production to precipitation across the United States. Ecol Lett 2020; 23:527-536. [DOI: 10.1111/ele.13455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 12/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gregory E. Maurer
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management University of California, Berkeley Berkeley CA 94720 USA
| | | | - Renée F. Brown
- Department of Biology University of New Mexico Albuquerque NM 87131 USA
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- School of Life Sciences Arizona State University Tempe AZ 85287 USA
- School of Sustainability Arizona State University Tempe AZ 85287 USA
- Global Drylands Center Arizona State University Tempe AZ 85287 USA
| | - Scott L. Collins
- Department of Biology University of New Mexico Albuquerque NM 87131 USA
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12
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Gherardi LA, Sala OE. Effect of interannual precipitation variability on dryland productivity: A global synthesis. Glob Chang Biol 2019; 25:269-276. [PMID: 30338886 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2018] [Accepted: 09/11/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Climate-change assessments project increasing precipitation variability through increased frequency of extreme events. However, the effects of interannual precipitation variance per se on ecosystem functioning have been largely understudied. Here, we report on the effects of interannual precipitation variability on the primary production of global drylands, which include deserts, steppes, shrublands, grasslands, and prairies and cover about 40% of the terrestrial earth surface. We used a global database that has 43 datasets, which are uniformly distributed in parameter space and each has at least 10 years of data. We found (a) that at the global scale, precipitation variability has a negative effect on aboveground net primary production. (b) Expected increases in interannual precipitation variability for the year 2,100 may result in a decrease of up to 12% of the global terrestrial carbon sink. (c) The effect of precipitation interannual variability on dryland productivity changes from positive to negative along a precipitation gradient. Arid sites with mean precipitation under 300 mm/year responded positively to increases in precipitation variability, whereas sites with mean precipitation over 300 mm/year responded negatively. We propose three complementary mechanisms to explain this result: (a) concave-up and concave-down precipitation-production relationships in arid vs. humid systems, (b) shift in the distribution of water in the soil profile, and (c) altered frequency of positive and negative legacies. Our results demonstrated that enhanced precipitation variability will have direct impacts on global drylands that can potentially affect the future terrestrial carbon sink.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laureano A Gherardi
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- Global Drylands Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
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13
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Okin GS, Sala OE, Vivoni ER, Zhang J, Bhattachan A. The Interactive Role of Wind and Water in Functioning of Drylands: What Does the Future Hold? Bioscience 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biy067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Gregory S Okin
- Department of Geography at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
- Institute of Environment and Sustainability at UCLA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, the School of Sustainability, and the Global Drylands Center at Arizona State University, in Tempe
| | - Enrique R Vivoni
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, and the Global Drylands Center at Arizona State University
| | - Junzhe Zhang
- Department of Geography at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
| | - Abinash Bhattachan
- Department of Geography at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
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14
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Peters DPC, Burruss ND, Rodriguez LL, McVey DS, Elias EH, Pelzel-McCluskey AM, Derner JD, Schrader TS, Yao J, Pauszek SJ, Lombard J, Archer SR, Bestelmeyer BT, Browning DM, Brungard CW, Hatfield JL, Hanan NP, Herrick JE, Okin GS, Sala OE, Savoy H, Vivoni ER. An Integrated View of Complex Landscapes: A Big Data-Model Integration Approach to Transdisciplinary Science. Bioscience 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/biosci/biy069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Debra P C Peters
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - N Dylan Burruss
- New Mexico State University, Jornada Experimental Range Unit, and Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Luis L Rodriguez
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Plum Island Animal Disease Center, in Orient Point, New York
| | - D Scott McVey
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Center for Grain and Animal Health Research, Arthropod-Borne Animal Diseases Research Unit, in Manhattan, Kansas
| | - Emile H Elias
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Angela M Pelzel-McCluskey
- US Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, in Fort Collins, Colorado
| | - Justin D Derner
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Rangeland Resources and Systems Research Unit, in Cheyenne, Wyoming
| | - T Scott Schrader
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Jin Yao
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Steven J Pauszek
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Plum Island Animal Disease Center, in Orient Point, New York
| | - Jason Lombard
- US Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, in Fort Collins, Colorado
| | - Steven R Archer
- School of Natural Resources and the Environment at the University of Arizona, in Tucson
| | - Brandon T Bestelmeyer
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Dawn M Browning
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Colby W Brungard
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, New Mexico State University, in Las Cruces
| | - Jerry L Hatfield
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment, in Ames, Iowa
| | - Niall P Hanan
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, New Mexico State University, in Las Cruces
| | - Jeffrey E Herrick
- US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range Unit and the Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Gregory S Okin
- Department of Geography at the University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University, in Tempe
| | - Heather Savoy
- New Mexico State University, Jornada Experimental Range Unit, and Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program, in Las Cruces, New Mexico
| | - Enrique R Vivoni
- School of Earth and Space Exploration and the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment at Arizona State University, in Tempe
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15
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Affiliation(s)
- Seth M Munson
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, 2255 N Gemini Dr., Flagstaff, AZ, 86001, USA
| | - Sasha C Reed
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, 2290 SW Resource Blvd, Moab, UT, 84532, USA
| | - Josep Peñuelas
- Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, CSIC, Bellaterra, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
| | | | - Osvaldo E Sala
- Global Drylands Center, School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
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16
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Petrie MD, Peters DPC, Yao J, Blair JM, Burruss ND, Collins SL, Derner JD, Gherardi LA, Hendrickson JR, Sala OE, Starks PJ, Steiner JL. Regional grassland productivity responses to precipitation during multiyear above- and below-average rainfall periods. Glob Chang Biol 2018; 24:1935-1951. [PMID: 29265568 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2017] [Revised: 12/01/2017] [Accepted: 12/07/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
There is considerable uncertainty in the magnitude and direction of changes in precipitation associated with climate change, and ecosystem responses are also uncertain. Multiyear periods of above- and below-average rainfall may foretell consequences of changes in rainfall regime. We compiled long-term aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and precipitation (PPT) data for eight North American grasslands, and quantified relationships between ANPP and PPT at each site, and in 1-3 year periods of above- and below-average rainfall for mesic, semiarid cool, and semiarid warm grassland types. Our objective was to improve understanding of ANPP dynamics associated with changing climatic conditions by contrasting PPT-ANPP relationships in above- and below-average PPT years to those that occurred during sequences of multiple above- and below-average years. We found differences in PPT-ANPP relationships in above- and below-average years compared to long-term site averages, and variation in ANPP not explained by PPT totals that likely are attributed to legacy effects. The correlation between ANPP and current- and prior-year conditions changed from year to year throughout multiyear periods, with some legacy effects declining, and new responses emerging. Thus, ANPP in a given year was influenced by sequences of conditions that varied across grassland types and climates. Most importantly, the influence of prior-year ANPP often increased with the length of multiyear periods, whereas the influence of the amount of current-year PPT declined. Although the mechanisms by which a directional change in the frequency of above- and below-average years imposes a persistent change in grassland ANPP require further investigation, our results emphasize the importance of legacy effects on productivity for sequences of above- vs. below-average years, and illustrate the utility of long-term data to examine these patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew D Petrie
- Department of Plant & Environmental Sciences, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
- Jornada Basin LTER Program, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - Debra P C Peters
- Jornada Basin LTER Program, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
- United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - Jin Yao
- Jornada Basin LTER Program, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - John M Blair
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, USA
| | - Nathan D Burruss
- Jornada Basin LTER Program, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
| | - Scott L Collins
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Justin D Derner
- United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Rangeland Resources and Systems Research Unit, Cheyenne, WY, USA
| | | | - John R Hendrickson
- United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory, Mandan, ND, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Patrick J Starks
- United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Grazinglands Research Laboratory, El Reno, OK, USA
| | - Jean L Steiner
- United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Grazinglands Research Laboratory, El Reno, OK, USA
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17
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Wilcox KR, Tredennick AT, Koerner SE, Grman E, Hallett LM, Avolio ML, La Pierre KJ, Houseman GR, Isbell F, Johnson DS, Alatalo JM, Baldwin AH, Bork EW, Boughton EH, Bowman WD, Britton AJ, Cahill JF, Collins SL, Du G, Eskelinen A, Gough L, Jentsch A, Kern C, Klanderud K, Knapp AK, Kreyling J, Luo Y, McLaren JR, Megonigal P, Onipchenko V, Prevéy J, Price JN, Robinson CH, Sala OE, Smith MD, Soudzilovskaia NA, Souza L, Tilman D, White SR, Xu Z, Yahdjian L, Yu Q, Zhang P, Zhang Y. Asynchrony among local communities stabilises ecosystem function of metacommunities. Ecol Lett 2017; 20:1534-1545. [PMID: 29067791 PMCID: PMC6849522 DOI: 10.1111/ele.12861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2017] [Revised: 08/01/2017] [Accepted: 09/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Temporal stability of ecosystem functioning increases the predictability and reliability of ecosystem services, and understanding the drivers of stability across spatial scales is important for land management and policy decisions. We used species‐level abundance data from 62 plant communities across five continents to assess mechanisms of temporal stability across spatial scales. We assessed how asynchrony (i.e. different units responding dissimilarly through time) of species and local communities stabilised metacommunity ecosystem function. Asynchrony of species increased stability of local communities, and asynchrony among local communities enhanced metacommunity stability by a wide range of magnitudes (1–315%); this range was positively correlated with the size of the metacommunity. Additionally, asynchronous responses among local communities were linked with species’ populations fluctuating asynchronously across space, perhaps stemming from physical and/or competitive differences among local communities. Accordingly, we suggest spatial heterogeneity should be a major focus for maintaining the stability of ecosystem services at larger spatial scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin R Wilcox
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, 770 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
| | - Andrew T Tredennick
- Department of Wildland Resources and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5230 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT, 84321, USA
| | - Sally E Koerner
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, NC, 27412, USA
| | - Emily Grman
- Biology Department, Eastern Michigan University, 441 Mark Jefferson Science Complex, Ypsilanti, MI, 48197, USA
| | - Lauren M Hallett
- Environmental Studies Program and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, 97403, USA
| | - Meghan L Avolio
- Morton K. Blaustein Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, 301 Olin Hall 3400 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Kimberly J La Pierre
- Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, 647 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater, MD, 21037, USA
| | - Gregory R Houseman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wichita State University, Wichita, KS, 67260, USA
| | - Forest Isbell
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, USA
| | | | - Juha M Alatalo
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
| | - Andrew H Baldwin
- Department of Environmental Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
| | - Edward W Bork
- Agriculture/Forestry Center, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2P5
| | - Elizabeth H Boughton
- Archbold Biological Station, MacArthur Agroecology Research Center, 300 Buck Island Ranch Road, Lake Placid, FL, 33852, USA
| | - William D Bowman
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Mountain Research Station, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA
| | - Andrea J Britton
- The James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, AB15 8QH, UK
| | - James F Cahill
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada
| | - Scott L Collins
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Guozhen Du
- School of Life Science, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Anu Eskelinen
- Department of Physiological Diversity, Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research - UFZ, Permoserstr. 15, D-04318, Leipzig, Germany.,German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena- Leipzig, Deutscher Platz 5e, D-04103, Leipzig, Germany.,Department of Ecology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 3000, FI-90014, Oulu, Finland
| | - Laura Gough
- Department of Biological Sciences, Towson University, Towson, MD, 21252, USA
| | - Anke Jentsch
- Department of Disturbance Ecology, University of Bayreuth, D-95440, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Christel Kern
- Northern Research Station, US Forest Service, 5985 Highway K, Rhinelander, WI, 54501, USA
| | - Kari Klanderud
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Natural Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, P.O. Box 5003, NO-1432, Aas, Norway
| | - Alan K Knapp
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Juergen Kreyling
- Institute of Botany and Landscape Ecology, Experimental Plant Ecology, Greifswald University, Soldmannstrasse 15, D-17487, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Yiqi Luo
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, 770 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK, 73019, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Center for Ecosystem Science and Society (Ecoss), Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA.,Department for Earth System Science, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Jennie R McLaren
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, 79968, USA
| | - Patrick Megonigal
- Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD, 20754, USA
| | - Vladimir Onipchenko
- Department of Geobotany, Moscow State Lomonosov University, Leninskie gory 1-12, 119234, Moscow, Russia
| | - Janet Prevéy
- USFS Pacific Northwest Research Station, 3625 93rd Ave SW, Olympia, WA, 98512, USA
| | - Jodi N Price
- Institute of Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, Albury, NSW, 2640, Australia
| | - Clare H Robinson
- School of Earth & Environmental Sciences, The University of Manchester, Williamson Building, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Melinda D Smith
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Nadejda A Soudzilovskaia
- Conservation Biology Department, Institute of Environmental Sciences, CML, Leiden University, Einsteinweg 2, 2333 CC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Lara Souza
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, 770 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK, 73019, USA.,Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
| | - David Tilman
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, College of Biological Sciences, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN, 55108, USA
| | - Shannon R White
- Environment and Parks, Government of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, T5K 2M4, Canada
| | - Zhuwen Xu
- Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, Liaoning, 110016, China
| | - Laura Yahdjian
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA), Facultad de Agronomía, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Qiang Yu
- National Hulunber Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station/Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China
| | - Pengfei Zhang
- School of Life Science, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
| | - Yunhai Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100093, China.,Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Blichers Allé 20, 8830, Tjele, Denmark
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18
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Knapp AK, Avolio ML, Beier C, Carroll CJW, Collins SL, Dukes JS, Fraser LH, Griffin-Nolan RJ, Hoover DL, Jentsch A, Loik ME, Phillips RP, Post AK, Sala OE, Slette IJ, Yahdjian L, Smith MD. Pushing precipitation to the extremes in distributed experiments: recommendations for simulating wet and dry years. Glob Chang Biol 2017; 23:1774-1782. [PMID: 27633752 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2016] [Accepted: 08/29/2016] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
Intensification of the global hydrological cycle, ranging from larger individual precipitation events to more extreme multiyear droughts, has the potential to cause widespread alterations in ecosystem structure and function. With evidence that the incidence of extreme precipitation years (defined statistically from historical precipitation records) is increasing, there is a clear need to identify ecosystems that are most vulnerable to these changes and understand why some ecosystems are more sensitive to extremes than others. To date, opportunistic studies of naturally occurring extreme precipitation years, combined with results from a relatively small number of experiments, have provided limited mechanistic understanding of differences in ecosystem sensitivity, suggesting that new approaches are needed. Coordinated distributed experiments (CDEs) arrayed across multiple ecosystem types and focused on water can enhance our understanding of differential ecosystem sensitivity to precipitation extremes, but there are many design challenges to overcome (e.g., cost, comparability, standardization). Here, we evaluate contemporary experimental approaches for manipulating precipitation under field conditions to inform the design of 'Drought-Net', a relatively low-cost CDE that simulates extreme precipitation years. A common method for imposing both dry and wet years is to alter each ambient precipitation event. We endorse this approach for imposing extreme precipitation years because it simultaneously alters other precipitation characteristics (i.e., event size) consistent with natural precipitation patterns. However, we do not advocate applying identical treatment levels at all sites - a common approach to standardization in CDEs. This is because precipitation variability varies >fivefold globally resulting in a wide range of ecosystem-specific thresholds for defining extreme precipitation years. For CDEs focused on precipitation extremes, treatments should be based on each site's past climatic characteristics. This approach, though not often used by ecologists, allows ecological responses to be directly compared across disparate ecosystems and climates, facilitating process-level understanding of ecosystem sensitivity to precipitation extremes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alan K Knapp
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Meghan L Avolio
- National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center, Annapolis, MD, 21401, USA
| | - Claus Beier
- Centre for Catchments and Urban Water Research, Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Gaustadalleen 21, Oslo, 0349, Norway
| | - Charles J W Carroll
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Scott L Collins
- Department of Biology, University of New Mexico, MSC30-2020, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Jeffrey S Dukes
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue Climate Change Research Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA
| | - Lauchlan H Fraser
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, BC, V2C0C8, Canada
| | - Robert J Griffin-Nolan
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - David L Hoover
- US Geological Survey, Southwest Biological Science Center, Moab, UT, 84532, USA
| | - Anke Jentsch
- Department of Disturbance Ecology, University of Bayreuth, BayCEER, Bayreuth, 95440, Germany
| | - Michael E Loik
- Department of Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA
| | - Richard P Phillips
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 47405-7005, USA
| | - Alison K Post
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Ingrid J Slette
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
| | - Laura Yahdjian
- Facultad de Agronomía, IFEVA, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET, Cátedra de Ecología. Av. San Martín 4453, Buenos Aires, C1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Melinda D Smith
- Department of Biology and Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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19
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Flombaum P, Yahdjian L, Sala OE. Global-change drivers of ecosystem functioning modulated by natural variability and saturating responses. Glob Chang Biol 2017; 23:503-511. [PMID: 27435939 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2016] [Revised: 07/04/2016] [Accepted: 07/08/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Humans are altering global environment at an unprecedented rate through changes in biodiversity, climate, nitrogen cycle, and land use. To address their effects on ecosystem functioning, experiments most frequently explore one driver at a time and control as many confounding factors as possible. Yet, which driver exerts the largest influence on ecosystem functioning and whether their relative importance changes among systems remain unclear. We analyzed experiments in the Patagonian steppe that evaluated the aboveground net primary production (ANPP) response to manipulated gradients of species richness, precipitation, temperature, nitrogen fertilization (N), and grazing intensity. We compared the effect on ANPP relative to ambient conditions considering intensity and direction of manipulations for each driver. The ranking of responses to drivers with comparable manipulation intensity was as follows: biodiversity>grazing>precipitation>N. For a similar intensity of manipulation, the effect of biodiversity loss was 4.0, 3.6, and 1.5, times larger than N deposition, decreased precipitation, and increased grazing intensity. We interpreted our results considering two hypotheses. First, the response of ANPP to changes in precipitation and biodiversity is saturating, so we expected larger effects when the driver was reduced, relative to ambient conditions, than when it was increased. Experimental manipulations that reduced ambient levels had larger effects than those that increased them. Second, the sensitivity of ANPP to each driver is inversely related to the natural variability of the driver. In Patagonia, the ranking of natural variability of drivers is as follows: precipitation>grazing>temperature>biodiversity>N. So, in general, the ecosystem was most sensitive to drivers that varied the least. Comparable results from Cedar Creek (MN) support both hypotheses and suggest that sensitivity to drivers varies among ecosystem types. Given the importance of understanding ecosystem sensitivity to predict global-change impacts, it is necessary to design new experiments located in regions with contrasting natural variability and that include the full range of drivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Flombaum
- Centro de Investigaciones del Mar y la Atmósfera, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, and Departamento de Ecología Genética y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Pabellón II piso 2, Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, C1428EGA, Argentina
| | - Laura Yahdjian
- Facultad de Agronomía, Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura, and Cátedra de Ecología, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Avenida San Martín 4453, Buenos Aires, C1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, PO Box 874501, Tempe, AZ, 85287-4501, USA
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20
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21
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22
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Estiarte M, Vicca S, Peñuelas J, Bahn M, Beier C, Emmett BA, Fay PA, Hanson PJ, Hasibeder R, Kigel J, Kröel-Dulay G, Larsen KS, Lellei-Kovács E, Limousin JM, Ogaya R, Ourcival JM, Reinsch S, Sala OE, Schmidt IK, Sternberg M, Tielbörger K, Tietema A, Janssens IA. Few multiyear precipitation-reduction experiments find a shift in the productivity-precipitation relationship. Glob Chang Biol 2016; 22:2570-81. [PMID: 26946322 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2015] [Revised: 02/15/2016] [Accepted: 02/17/2016] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Well-defined productivity-precipitation relationships of ecosystems are needed as benchmarks for the validation of land models used for future projections. The productivity-precipitation relationship may be studied in two ways: the spatial approach relates differences in productivity to those in precipitation among sites along a precipitation gradient (the spatial fit, with a steeper slope); the temporal approach relates interannual productivity changes to variation in precipitation within sites (the temporal fits, with flatter slopes). Precipitation-reduction experiments in natural ecosystems represent a complement to the fits, because they can reduce precipitation below the natural range and are thus well suited to study potential effects of climate drying. Here, we analyse the effects of dry treatments in eleven multiyear precipitation-manipulation experiments, focusing on changes in the temporal fit. We expected that structural changes in the dry treatments would occur in some experiments, thereby reducing the intercept of the temporal fit and displacing the productivity-precipitation relationship downward the spatial fit. The majority of experiments (72%) showed that dry treatments did not alter the temporal fit. This implies that current temporal fits are to be preferred over the spatial fit to benchmark land-model projections of productivity under future climate within the precipitation ranges covered by the experiments. Moreover, in two experiments, the intercept of the temporal fit unexpectedly increased due to mechanisms that reduced either water loss or nutrient loss. The expected decrease of the intercept was observed in only one experiment, and only when distinguishing between the late and the early phases of the experiment. This implies that we currently do not know at which precipitation-reduction level or at which experimental duration structural changes will start to alter ecosystem productivity. Our study highlights the need for experiments with multiple, including more extreme, dry treatments, to identify the precipitation boundaries within which the current temporal fits remain valid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc Estiarte
- Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, CSIC, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
| | - Sara Vicca
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Josep Peñuelas
- Global Ecology Unit CREAF-CSIC-UAB, CSIC, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
| | - Michael Bahn
- Institute of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Sternwarte str. 15, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Claus Beier
- Department of Geoscience and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 23, 1958, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- NIVA, Center for Catchments and Urban Water Research, Oslo, NO-0349, Norway
| | - Bridget A Emmett
- Center for Ecology and Hydrology, Environment Centre Wales, Bangor, Gwynedd, LL57 2UW, UK
| | - Philip A Fay
- USDA-ARS, 808 E Blackland Rd, Temple, TX, 76502, USA
| | - Paul J Hanson
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Climate Change Science Institute, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831-6301, USA
| | - Roland Hasibeder
- Institute of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Sternwarte str. 15, 6020, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Jaime Kigel
- Institute for Plant Sciences and Genetics, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 76100, Israel
| | - Gyorgy Kröel-Dulay
- Institute of Ecology and Botany, MTA Centre for Ecological Research, Vacratot, H-2163, Hungary
| | - Klaus Steenberg Larsen
- Department of Geoscience and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 23, 1958, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Eszter Lellei-Kovács
- Institute of Ecology and Botany, MTA Centre for Ecological Research, Vacratot, H-2163, Hungary
| | - Jean-Marc Limousin
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive CEFE, UMR5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier, EPHE, 1919 Route de Mende, 34293, Montpellier, Cedex 5, France
| | - Romà Ogaya
- CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Catalonia, E-08193, Spain
| | - Jean-Marc Ourcival
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive CEFE, UMR5175, CNRS, Université de Montpellier, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier, EPHE, 1919 Route de Mende, 34293, Montpellier, Cedex 5, France
| | - Sabine Reinsch
- NIVA, Center for Catchments and Urban Water Research, Oslo, NO-0349, Norway
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA
| | - Inger Kappel Schmidt
- Department of Geoscience and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, Rolighedsvej 23, 1958, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Marcelo Sternberg
- Department of Molecular Biology & Ecology of Plants, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, 69978, Israel
| | - Katja Tielbörger
- Department of Biology, Plant Ecology Group, University of Tübingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 3, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Albert Tietema
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, PO Box 94240, 1090 GE, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ivan A Janssens
- Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Gherardi LA, Sala OE. Enhanced interannual precipitation variability increases plant functional diversity that in turn ameliorates negative impact on productivity. Ecol Lett 2015; 18:1293-300. [PMID: 26437913 DOI: 10.1111/ele.12523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2015] [Revised: 05/27/2015] [Accepted: 08/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Although precipitation interannual variability is projected to increase due to climate change, effects of changes in precipitation variance have received considerable less attention than effects of changes in the mean state of climate. Interannual precipitation variability effects on functional diversity and its consequences for ecosystem functioning are assessed here using a 6-year rainfall manipulation experiment. Five precipitation treatments were switched annually resulting in increased levels of precipitation variability while maintaining average precipitation constant. Functional diversity showed a positive response to increased variability due to increased evenness. Dominant grasses decreased and rare plant functional types increased in abundance because grasses showed a hump-shaped response to precipitation with a maximum around modal precipitation, whereas rare species peaked at high precipitation values. Increased functional diversity ameliorated negative effects of precipitation variability on primary production. Rare species buffered the effect of precipitation variability on the variability in total productivity because their variance decreases with increasing precipitation variance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laureano A Gherardi
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-4501, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-4501, USA.,School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-4501, USA
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Knapp AK, Hoover DL, Wilcox KR, Avolio ML, Koerner SE, La Pierre KJ, Loik ME, Luo Y, Sala OE, Smith MD. Characterizing differences in precipitation regimes of extreme wet and dry years: implications for climate change experiments. Glob Chang Biol 2015; 21:2624-2633. [PMID: 25652911 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.12888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2014] [Revised: 01/24/2015] [Accepted: 01/27/2015] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Climate change is intensifying the hydrologic cycle and is expected to increase the frequency of extreme wet and dry years. Beyond precipitation amount, extreme wet and dry years may differ in other ways, such as the number of precipitation events, event size, and the time between events. We assessed 1614 long-term (100 year) precipitation records from around the world to identify key attributes of precipitation regimes, besides amount, that distinguish statistically extreme wet from extreme dry years. In general, in regions where mean annual precipitation (MAP) exceeded 1000 mm, precipitation amounts in extreme wet and dry years differed from average years by ~40% and 30%, respectively. The magnitude of these deviations increased to >60% for dry years and to >150% for wet years in arid regions (MAP<500 mm). Extreme wet years were primarily distinguished from average and extreme dry years by the presence of multiple extreme (large) daily precipitation events (events >99th percentile of all events); these occurred twice as often in extreme wet years compared to average years. In contrast, these large precipitation events were rare in extreme dry years. Less important for distinguishing extreme wet from dry years were mean event size and frequency, or the number of dry days between events. However, extreme dry years were distinguished from average years by an increase in the number of dry days between events. These precipitation regime attributes consistently differed between extreme wet and dry years across 12 major terrestrial ecoregions from around the world, from deserts to the tropics. Thus, we recommend that climate change experiments and model simulations incorporate these differences in key precipitation regime attributes, as well as amount into treatments. This will allow experiments to more realistically simulate extreme precipitation years and more accurately assess the ecological consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alan K Knapp
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - David L Hoover
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Kevin R Wilcox
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Meghan L Avolio
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA
| | - Sally E Koerner
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Kimberly J La Pierre
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Michael E Loik
- Department of Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Yiqi Luo
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA
| | - Melinda D Smith
- Department of Biology, Graduate Degree Program in Ecology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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Vandegehuchte ML, Sylvain ZA, Reichmann LG, de Tomasel CM, Nielsen UN, Wall DH, Sala OE. Responses of a desert nematode community to changes in water availability. Ecosphere 2015. [DOI: 10.1890/es14-00319.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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Abstract
A large fraction of the world grasslands and savannas are undergoing a rapid shift from herbaceous to woody-plant dominance. This land-cover change is expected to lead to a loss in livestock production (LP), but the impacts of woody-plant encroachment on this crucial ecosystem service have not been assessed. We evaluate how tree cover (TC) has affected LP at large spatial scales in rangelands of contrasting social-economic characteristics in the United States and Argentina. Our models indicate that in areas of high productivity, a 1% increase in TC results in a reduction in LP ranging from 0.6 to 1.6 reproductive cows (Rc) per km(2). Mean LP in the United States is 27 Rc per km(2), so a 1% increase in TC results in a 2.5% decrease in mean LP. This effect is large considering that woody-plant cover has been described as increasing at 0.5% to 2% per y. On the contrary, in areas of low productivity, increased TC had a positive effect on LP. Our results also show that ecological factors account for a larger fraction of LP variability in Argentinean than in US rangelands. Differences in the relative importance of ecological versus nonecological drivers of LP in Argentina and the United States suggest that the valuation of ecosystem services between these two rangelands might be different. Current management strategies in Argentina are likely designed to maximize LP for various reasons we are unable to explore in this effort, whereas land managers in the United States may be optimizing multiple ecosystem services, including conservation or recreation, alongside LP.
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Affiliation(s)
- José D Anadón
- Department of Biology, Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, NY 11367; Schools of Life Sciences,
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- Schools of Life Sciences, Sustainability, and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287; and
| | - B L Turner
- Sustainability, and Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287; and Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, and
| | - Elena M Bennett
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences and McGill School of Environment, McGill University, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, Canada H9X 3V9
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Sylvain ZA, Wall DH, Cherwin KL, Peters DPC, Reichmann LG, Sala OE. Soil animal responses to moisture availability are largely scale, not ecosystem dependent: insight from a cross-site study. Glob Chang Biol 2014; 20:2631-43. [PMID: 24399762 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.12522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2013] [Accepted: 12/06/2013] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Climate change will result in reduced soil water availability in much of the world either due to changes in precipitation or increased temperature and evapotranspiration. How communities of mites and nematodes may respond to changes in moisture availability is not well known, yet these organisms play important roles in decomposition and nutrient cycling processes. We determined how communities of these organisms respond to changes in moisture availability and whether common patterns occur along fine-scale gradients of soil moisture within four individual ecosystem types (mesic, xeric and arid grasslands and a polar desert) located in the western United States and Antarctica, as well as across a cross-ecosystem moisture gradient (CEMG) of all four ecosystems considered together. An elevation transect of three sampling plots was monitored within each ecosystem and soil samples were collected from these plots and from existing experimental precipitation manipulations within each ecosystem once in fall of 2009 and three times each in 2010 and 2011. Mites and nematodes were sorted to trophic groups and analyzed to determine community responses to changes in soil moisture availability. We found that while both mites and nematodes increased with available soil moisture across the CEMG, within individual ecosystems, increases in soil moisture resulted in decreases to nematode communities at all but the arid grassland ecosystem; mites showed no responses at any ecosystem. In addition, we found changes in proportional abundances of mite and nematode trophic groups as soil moisture increased within individual ecosystems, which may result in shifts within soil food webs with important consequences for ecosystem functioning. We suggest that communities of soil animals at local scales may respond predictably to changes in moisture availability regardless of ecosystem type but that additional factors, such as climate variability, vegetation composition, and soil properties may influence this relationship over larger scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary A Sylvain
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA; Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA
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Reichmann LG, Sala OE. Differential sensitivities of grassland structural components to changes in precipitation mediate productivity response in a desert ecosystem. Funct Ecol 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lara G. Reichmann
- USDA-ARS Grassland, Soil and Water Research Laboratory; 808 E. Blackland Rd. Temple Texas 76502 USA
- Integrative Biology; University of Texas at Austin; 1 University Station, C0930 Austin Texas USA
| | - Osvaldo E. Sala
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability; Arizona State University; Tempe Arizona 85287-4501 USA
- Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program; New Mexico State University; Las Cruces New Mexico 88003-0003 USA
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Gherardi LA, Sala OE, Yahdjian L. Preference for different inorganic nitrogen forms among plant functional types and species of the Patagonian steppe. Oecologia 2013; 173:1075-81. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-013-2687-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2013] [Accepted: 05/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Abstract
In arid ecosystems, current-year precipitation often explains only a small proportion of annual aboveground net primary production (ANPP). We hypothesized that lags in the response of ecosystems to changes in water availability explain this low explanatory power, and that lags result from legacies from transitions from dry to wet years or the reverse. We explored five hypotheses regarding the magnitude of legacies, two possible mechanisms, and the differential effect of previous dry or wet years on the legacy magnitude. We used a three-year manipulative experiment with five levels of rainfall in the first two years (-80% and -50% reduced annual precipitation (PPT), ambient, +50% and +80% increased PPT), and reversed treatments in year 3. Legacies of previous two years, which were dry or wet, accounted for a large fraction (20%) of interannual variability in production on year 3. Legacies in ANPP were similar in absolute value for both types of precipitation transitions, and their magnitude was a function of the difference between previous and current-year precipitation. Tiller density accounted for 40% of legacy variability, while nitrogen and carryover water availability showed no effect. Understanding responses to changes in interannual precipitation will assist in assessing ecosystem responses to climate change-induced increases in precipitation variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara G Reichmann
- School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287-4501, USA.
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Sala OE, Gherardi LA, Reichmann L, Jobbágy E, Peters D. Legacies of precipitation fluctuations on primary production: theory and data synthesis. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2013; 367:3135-44. [PMID: 23045711 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2011.0347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 254] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Variability of above-ground net primary production (ANPP) of arid to sub-humid ecosystems displays a closer association with precipitation when considered across space (based on multiyear averages for different locations) than through time (based on year-to-year change at single locations). Here, we propose a theory of controls of ANPP based on four hypotheses about legacies of wet and dry years that explains space versus time differences in ANPP-precipitation relationships. We tested the hypotheses using 16 long-term series of ANPP. We found that legacies revealed by the association of current- versus previous-year conditions through the temporal series occur across all ecosystem types from deserts to mesic grasslands. Therefore, previous-year precipitation and ANPP control a significant fraction of current-year production. We developed unified models for the controls of ANPP through space and time. The relative importance of current-versus previous-year precipitation changes along a gradient of mean annual precipitation with the importance of current-year PPT decreasing, whereas the importance of previous-year PPT remains constant as mean annual precipitation increases. Finally, our results suggest that ANPP will respond to climate-change-driven alterations in water availability and, more importantly, that the magnitude of the response will increase with time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Osvaldo E Sala
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.
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Abstract
Grassland aboveground net primary production (ANPP) increases linearly with precipitation in space and time, but temporal models relating time series of ANPP and annual precipitation for single sites show lower slopes and regression coefficients than are shown by spatial models. The analysis of several ANPP time series showed lags in the ecosystem response to increased water availability, which may explain the difference between spatial and temporal models. The lags may result from constraints that ecosystems experience after drought. Our objective was to explore the structural constraints of the ANPP response to rainfall variability in a semiarid ecosystem, the Patagonian steppe, in southern Argentina. We designed a 3-yr rainfall manipulation experiment where we decreased water input with rainout shelters during two consecutive years, which included three levels of rainfall interception (30%, 55%, and 80%) and a control. In the third year, we irrigated one-half of the plots of each rainfall-interception treatment. We evaluated the immediate effects of drought on current-year ANPP and the effects of previous-year drought on vegetation recovery after water supplementation. ANPP (g x m(-2) x yr(-1)) was linearly related to annual precipitation input (APPT; mm/yr) along the experimental precipitation gradient (ANPP = 0.13 x APPT + 58.3; r2 = 0.34, P < 0.01), and this relationship was mostly accounted for by changes in the ANPP of grasses. Plant density (D; no. individuals/mm2) was related to the precipitation received during the drought period (D = 0.11 x APPT + 18; r2 = 0.39, P < 0.05). The recovery of plants after irrigation was lower for those plots that had experienced experimental drought the previous years relative to controls, and the lags were proportional to the intensity of drought. Therefore, our results suggest that the density of plants may constrain the recovery of vegetation after drought, and these constraints may determine lags that limit the capacity of the ecosystem to take advantage of wet years after dry years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Yahdjian
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura, Department of Ecology, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, CONICET, Avenida San Martin 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Yahdjian L, Sala OE, Austin AT. Differential Controls of Water Input on Litter Decomposition and Nitrogen Dynamics in the Patagonian Steppe. Ecosystems 2006. [DOI: 10.1007/s10021-004-0118-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 117] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Schwinning S, Sala OE, Loik ME, Ehleringer JR. Thresholds, memory, and seasonality: understanding pulse dynamics in arid/semi-arid ecosystems. Oecologia 2004; 141:191-3. [PMID: 15300489 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-004-1683-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 267] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Huxman TE, Smith MD, Fay PA, Knapp AK, Shaw MR, Loik ME, Smith SD, Tissue DT, Zak JC, Weltzin JF, Pockman WT, Sala OE, Haddad BM, Harte J, Koch GW, Schwinning S, Small EE, Williams DG. Convergence across biomes to a common rain-use efficiency. Nature 2004; 429:651-4. [PMID: 15190350 DOI: 10.1038/nature02561] [Citation(s) in RCA: 386] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2004] [Accepted: 04/15/2004] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Water availability limits plant growth and production in almost all terrestrial ecosystems. However, biomes differ substantially in sensitivity of aboveground net primary production (ANPP) to between-year variation in precipitation. Average rain-use efficiency (RUE; ANPP/precipitation) also varies between biomes, supposedly because of differences in vegetation structure and/or biogeochemical constraints. Here we show that RUE decreases across biomes as mean annual precipitation increases. However, during the driest years at each site, there is convergence to a common maximum RUE (RUE(max)) that is typical of arid ecosystems. RUE(max) was also identified by experimentally altering the degree of limitation by water and other resources. Thus, in years when water is most limiting, deserts, grasslands and forests all exhibit the same rate of biomass production per unit rainfall, despite differences in physiognomy and site-level RUE. Global climate models predict increased between-year variability in precipitation, more frequent extreme drought events, and changes in temperature. Forecasts of future ecosystem behaviour should take into account this convergent feature of terrestrial biomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis E Huxman
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.
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Robson TM, Pancotto VA, Ballaré CL, Sala OE, Scopel AL, Caldwell MM. Reduction of solar UV-B mediates changes in the Sphagnum capitulum microenvironment and the peatland microfungal community. Oecologia 2004; 140:480-90. [PMID: 15179579 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-004-1600-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2003] [Accepted: 04/20/2004] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
The influence of near-ambient and reduced solar UV-B radiation on a peatland microfungal community was assessed by exposing experimental plots to UV-selective filtration. Replicate plots were covered with special plastic films to effect treatments of near-ambient and attenuated solar UV-B. The microfungal community from the top 1 cm of Sphagnum capitulum in a Tierra del Fuego peatland was censused throughout three growing seasons, between 1999 and 2002. Sphagnum capitula under near-ambient UV-B were more compressed and held more water than capitula under reduced UV-B. This water had a greater conductivity and was more acidic under near-ambient UV-B, as would be expected with increased leaching from the Sphagnum leaves. Nine regularly occurring hyphal fungi from the peatland were identified, at least to genus. Over three field seasons, no treatment effect on total fungal colony abundance was recorded, but individual species abundance was increased (Mortierella alpina), decreased (Penicillium frequentans), or was unaffected (P. thomii, Aureobasidium) by near-ambient UV-B. Species richness was also slightly lower under near-ambient UV-B. These treatment differences were smaller than seasonal or inter-annual fluctuations in abundance and species richness. In a growth chamber experiment, lamp UV-B treatments indicated that realistic fluxes of UV-B can inhibit fungal growth in some species. In addition to this direct UV-B effect, we suggest that changes in the peatland fungal community under near-ambient solar UV-B may also result from increased nutrient and moisture availability in the Sphagnum capitulum. The subtle nature of the responses of peatland fungi to solar UV-B suggests that most fungal species we encountered are well adapted to current solar UV-B fluxes in Tierra del Fuego.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Matthew Robson
- The Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5205, USA.
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Abstract
In arid/semi-arid ecosystems, biological resources, such as water, soil nutrients, and plant biomass, typically go through periods of high and low abundance. Short periods of high resource abundance are usually triggered by rainfall events, which, despite of the overall scarcity of rain, can saturate the resource demand of some biological processes for a time. This review develops the idea that there exists a hierarchy of soil moisture pulse events with a corresponding hierarchy of ecological responses, such that small pulses only trigger a small number of relatively minor ecological events, and larger pulses trigger a more inclusive set and some larger ecological events. This framework hinges on the observation that many biological state changes, where organisms transition from a state of lower to higher physiological activity, require a minimal triggering event size. Response thresholds are often determined by the ability of organisms to utilize soil moisture pulses of different infiltration depth or duration. For example, brief, shallow pulses can only affect surface dwelling organisms with fast response times and high tolerance for low resource levels, such as some species of the soil micro-fauna and -flora, while it takes more water and deeper infiltration to affect the physiology, growth or reproduction of higher plants. This review first discusses how precipitation, climate and site factors translate into soil moisture pulses of varying magnitude and duration. Next, the idea of the response hierarchy for ecosystem processes is developed, followed by an exploration of the possible evolutionary background for the existence of response thresholds to resource pulses. The review concludes with an outlook on global change: does the hierarchical view of precipitation effects in ecosystems provide new perspectives on the future of arid/semiarid lands?
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne Schwinning
- School of Natural Resources, University of Arizona, 325 BioSciences East, Tucson 85721, USA.
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Zaller JG, Searles PS, Caldwell MM, Flint SD, Scopel AL, Sala OE. Growth responses to ultraviolet-B radiation of two Carex species dominating an Argentinian fen ecosystem. Basic Appl Ecol 2004. [DOI: 10.1078/1439-1791-00222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Robson TM, Pancotto VA, Flint SD, Ballaré CL, Sala OE, Scopel AL, Caldwell MM. Six years of solar UV-B manipulations affect growth of Sphagnum and vascular plants in a Tierra del Fuego peatland. New Phytol 2003; 160:379-389. [PMID: 33832179 DOI: 10.1046/j.1469-8137.2003.00898.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
• Tierra del Fuego is subject to increases in solar UV-B radiation in the austral spring and summer due to ozone depletion. • Plastic films were used to filter solar UV-B radiation over peatland plots through six field seasons, resulting in near-ambient (c. 90%) and reduced (c. 17%) solar UV-B treatments. • As in the first three field seasons of treatments, near-ambient UV-B caused reduced height growth but had no effect on biomass production of the moss Sphagnum magellanicum. It reduced leaf and rhizome growth of Tetroncium magellanicum. Height growth and morphology of Empetrum rubrum and Nothofagus antarctica were only affected by solar UV-B during the fourth to sixth field seasons. There was also a decrease in Tetroncium leaf nitrogen under near-ambient UV-B. • Growth of Sphagnum was less affected than that of most emergent vascular plants. This enabled the Sphagnum mat to engulf more Nothofagus, and limit the escape of Empetrum under near-ambient UV-B. Yet, differences in the response of species to solar UV-B were not expressed as changes in plant community composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Matthew Robson
- The Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5205, USA
| | - Verónica A Pancotto
- IFEVA-CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martin 4453 (C1417 DSE) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Stephan D Flint
- The Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5205, USA
| | - Carlos L Ballaré
- IFEVA-CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martin 4453 (C1417 DSE) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- IFEVA-CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martin 4453 (C1417 DSE) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Ana L Scopel
- IFEVA-CONICET, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martin 4453 (C1417 DSE) Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Martyn M Caldwell
- The Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5205, USA
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Affiliation(s)
- Osvaldo E. Sala
- The author is in the Department of Ecology and Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires and Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires 1417, Argentina
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Abstract
Field manipulative experiments represent a straightforward way to explore temporal relationships between annual precipitation and productivity. Water exclusion usually involves the use of rainout shelters, which are in general formed by a complete roof that intercepts 100% of the rainfall and require complicated mechanisms to move the shelter into place. The rainout-shelter design described here is a fixed-location shelter with a roof consisting of bands of transparent acrylic that blocks different amounts of rainfall while minimally affecting other environmental variables. We constructed thirty 3.76-m2 shelters in an arid steppe near Río Mayo, Argentina (at 45°41'S, 70°16'W), to impose 30%, 55%, and 80% of rainfall interception. We tested the effectiveness of the design by collecting all the intercepted water in storage tanks and we evaluated changes in soil water content with the time domain reflectometry technique. We also measured soil water content in regular grids to assess the magnitude of the edge effect. We analysed the microclimate impact of the shelters by measuring photosynthetically active radiation and air and soil temperature inside and outside shelters. We did not detect significant differences between the observed and the expected rainfall interception for the 30% and 55% interception treatments but the 80% shelters intercepted 71% of incoming rainfall, which was significantly (P<0.05) lower than the expected value. Soil water content was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the control plots than in the plots with rainout shelter at all dates, except in January (summer). Radiation was not affected by the 30% interception treatment, but the roof with the largest number of acrylics bands (80% interception treatment) reduced incident radiation throughout the day by 10%. Air and soil temperatures were lower under than outside the shelters during the period of highest radiation but the opposite occurred with low radiation but with smaller differences. The two characteristics of the shelter, fixed design and low cost, allow for proper replication in space, which is required in ecological field experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Yahdjian
- IFEVA - Department of Ecology, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, CONICET, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- IFEVA - Department of Ecology, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, CONICET, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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48
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Abstract
Field manipulative experiments represent a straightforward way to explore temporal relationships between annual precipitation and productivity. Water exclusion usually involves the use of rainout shelters, which are in general formed by a complete roof that intercepts 100% of the rainfall and require complicated mechanisms to move the shelter into place. The rainout-shelter design described here is a fixed-location shelter with a roof consisting of bands of transparent acrylic that blocks different amounts of rainfall while minimally affecting other environmental variables. We constructed thirty 3.76-m2 shelters in an arid steppe near Río Mayo, Argentina (at 45°41'S, 70°16'W), to impose 30%, 55%, and 80% of rainfall interception. We tested the effectiveness of the design by collecting all the intercepted water in storage tanks and we evaluated changes in soil water content with the time domain reflectometry technique. We also measured soil water content in regular grids to assess the magnitude of the edge effect. We analysed the microclimate impact of the shelters by measuring photosynthetically active radiation and air and soil temperature inside and outside shelters. We did not detect significant differences between the observed and the expected rainfall interception for the 30% and 55% interception treatments but the 80% shelters intercepted 71% of incoming rainfall, which was significantly (P<0.05) lower than the expected value. Soil water content was significantly (P<0.05) higher in the control plots than in the plots with rainout shelter at all dates, except in January (summer). Radiation was not affected by the 30% interception treatment, but the roof with the largest number of acrylics bands (80% interception treatment) reduced incident radiation throughout the day by 10%. Air and soil temperatures were lower under than outside the shelters during the period of highest radiation but the opposite occurred with low radiation but with smaller differences. The two characteristics of the shelter, fixed design and low cost, allow for proper replication in space, which is required in ecological field experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Yahdjian
- IFEVA - Department of Ecology, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, CONICET, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Osvaldo E Sala
- IFEVA - Department of Ecology, Faculty of Agronomy, University of Buenos Aires, CONICET, Av. San Martín 4453, C1417DSE, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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