Effects of Stocking Rate on the Variability of Peak Standing Crop in a Desert Steppe of Eurasia Grassland

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• 作者：Zhongwu Wang (1)
  Shuying Jiao (2)
  Guodong Han (1)
  Mengli Zhao (1)
  Haijun Ding (1)
  Xinjie Zhang (1)
  Xiaoliang Wang (1)
  Eldon L. Ayers (3)
  Walter D. Willms (4)
  Kris Havsatad (5)
  Lata A (6)
  Yongzhi Liu (6)
  
• 关键词：Sheep grazing ; Peak standing crop ; Plant functional group ; Stipa breviflora ; Ecosystem stability
• 刊名：Environmental Management
• 出版年：2014
• 出版时间：February 2014
• 年：2014
• 卷：53
• 期：2
• 页码：266-273
• 全文大小：376 KB
• 作者单位：Zhongwu Wang (1)
  Shuying Jiao (2)
  Guodong Han (1)
  Mengli Zhao (1)
  Haijun Ding (1)
  Xinjie Zhang (1)
  Xiaoliang Wang (1)
  Eldon L. Ayers (3)
  Walter D. Willms (4)
  Kris Havsatad (5)
  Lata A (6)
  Yongzhi Liu (6)
  
  1. Department of Grassland Science, College of Ecology and Environmental Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, 010018, Inner Mongolia, People’s Republic of China
  2. College of Resources and Environment, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an, 271018, Shandong, People’s Republic of China
  3. Tristar Land Technologies, Dillon, MT, USA
  4. Lethrridge Research Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, P.O. Box 3000, Lethbridge, AB, T1J 4B1, Canada
  5. USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range, P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER, Las Cruces, NM, 88003-8003, USA
  6. Inner Mongolia Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Sciences, Hohhot, 010010, Inner Mongolia, People’s Republic of China
  
• ISSN：1432-1009

文摘

Proper grazing management practices can generate corresponding compensatory effects on plant community production, which may reduce inter-annual variability of productivity in some grassland ecosystems. However, it remains unclear how grazing influences plant community attributes and the variability of standing crop. We examined the effects of sheep grazing at four stocking rate treatments [control, 0?sheep?ha??month?; light (LG), 0.15?sheep?ha??month?; moderate (MG), 0.30?sheep?ha??month?; and heavy (HG), 0.45?sheep?ha??month?] on standing crop at the community level and partitioned by species and functional groups, in the desert steppe of Inner Mongolia, China. The treatments were arranged in a completely randomized block design over a 9-year period. Standing crop was measured every August from 2004 to 2012. Peak standing crop decreased (P?<?0.05) with increasing stocking rate; peak standing crop in the HG treatment decreased 40?% compared to the control. May–July precipitation explained at least 76?% of the variation in peak standing crop. MG and HG treatments resulted in a decrease (P?<?0.05) in shrubs, semi-shrubs, and perennials forbs, and an increase (P?<?0.05) in perennial bunchgrasses compared to the control. The coefficients of variation at plant functional group and species level in the LG and MG treatments were lower (P?<?0.05) than in the control and HG treatments. Peak standing crop variability of the control and HG community were greatest, which suggested that LG and MG have greater ecosystem stability.