Grassland responses to grazing disturbance: plant diversity changes with grazing intensity in a desert steppe
Abstract
Abstract This study quantifies the impact of four different grazing regimes (heavy, moderate, light and ungrazed) on the vegetation dynamics of rangeland ecosystems along the southern boundary area of the Mu Us Desert, China. As the grazing intensities decreased, the soil quality, canopy cover, height, density, above‐ and below‐ground biomass, litter, root/shoot ratio and native plant (Aneurolepidium dasystachys) and grass abundances significantly increased; the above‐ground biomass of grasses increased, but the above‐ground biomass of forbs decreased. Ungrazed grassland has significantly improved from grasslands experiencing three other levels of grazing pressure, especially in the grassland biomass. Species richness increased as the grazing intensity decreased in the grazing grasslands, but peak species richness appeared under moderate and light grazing against lower productivity. Grazing exclusion causes desirable transitions in plant communities of desert steppe rangelands. Therefore, appropriate and efficient grazing exclusion is an available way to counteract local grassland degradation and promote rangeland sustainability.
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Overgrazing has become one of the dominant causes of grassland degradation, and a high percentage of rangelands worldwide suffers from overuse, leading to declining livestock numbers and economic/social problems.
“overgrazing has become one of the dominant causes of grassland degradation. A high percentage of rangelands worldwide suffers from overuse of the land, such grasslands support a declining livestock number and, consequently, economic and social problems are created in the communities supported by those grasslands.171”
From Technologies and perspectives for achieving carbon neutrality (2021) · cites this paper as [171]
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Technologies and perspectives for achieving carbon neutrality
Wang, F., Harindintwali, J. D., Yuan, Z., Wang, M., Wang, F., Li, S., Yin, Z., Huang, L., Fu, Y., Li, L., et al. (2021) · The Innovation · doi:10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100180 · Cited by 1,330 · see citing works
- Authors
- Deng, L., Sweeney, S., & Shangguan, Z. ‐.
- Affiliations
- State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau (CN)
- Institute of Environmental Sciences University of the Bosphorus Istanbul Turkey
- Corresponding author
- Shangguan, Z.‐P.
- Venue
- Grass and Forage Science
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2013-06-08
- Volume
- 69
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 524-533
- ISSN
- 0142-5242 (ISSN-L)
- 1365-2494
- OpenAlex
- W2079059442
- Cited by
- 132
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 8.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Grass and Forage Science (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Chinese Academy of Sciences
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Ecology › Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Keywords
- grazing intensity, desert steppe, plant diversity, species richness, aboveground biomass, forbs, grazing exclusion, rangeland degradation, Mu Us Desert, root-shoot ratio, grassland productivity, rangeland sustainability
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