草原植物的放牧抗性

放牧抗性是指在放牧系统中 ,草原植物生存和生长的相对能力 ,包括避食性和耐牧性两部分 .放牧避食性是指植物降低被牧食的机率和强度等机制 ,而耐牧性是指植物被牧食以后刺激植物再生长的机制 .对物种抗性阈值和耐牧性阈值的研究将有利于解释放牧演替理论的原因和机制 .不同的物种其抗性阈值和耐牧性阈值不同 ,这主要起决于它们放牧抗性策略 .在草地管理中 ,认识植物将避食性和

放牧牲畜蛇毒中毒的防治

新疆伊犁地区是我国重要的畜牧业生产基地。笔者曾在某军马场从事兽医工作。该场每年牲畜因毒蛇咬伤致死者,少则数十,多则上百。笔者多年来对放牧牲畜蛇毒中毒的防治问题作过探索,现整理如下。

刈牧对草原植物的影响

Morphological, physiological and demographic responses to defoliation and grazing encompass the ecological scales of tillers, plants and populations within grassland communities. The ability of individual plants to regrow following defoliation is a multi-facetted process including the meristematic potential and compensatory physiological processes of individual plants, intra- and inter-specific competition of plants, and abiotic variables within the enviroment. The inherent morphological and physiological attributes of individual plants establish the potentialing for regrowth while the intensity of plant competition, resource availability and enviroment conditions constrain the extent to which this regrowth potentiality is realized.

Analysis of Characteristics of Grazed Artificial Pastures in the South of Guizhou

＂Ryegrass, orchard grass, Festuca arundinacea and Trifolium repens＂ were researched in Dushan County, Guizhou Province, in order explore grass characteristics by different grazing methods in seasons. The results show that grass community height in different groups was of little differences（P0.05）; the group of moderate grazing in spring, summer and autumn dominated in grass cover; grass density showed insignificant variations among different treatment groups（P0.05） and in the groups of heavy grazing in spring and autumn and moderate grazing in summer and of moderate grazing in spring, summer and autumn, grass community density was higher compared with the other groups（P0.05）; as for above-ground biomass, the group of moderate grazing in spring and autumn and heavy grazing in summer and of moderate grazing in spring, summer and autumn dominated.

Sustainability of Transhumance Grazing Systems under Socio-economic Threats in Langtang,Nepal

The decline or loss of traditional social- ecological systems may induce adverse effects to the societies and ecosystems. Transhumance, the recurring and seasonal movement of grazing livestock, is increasingly constrained by a numbers of factors including policy, land use and soeio-economic changes in Nepal. To explore how these changes have affected the transhumance, this study investigated transhumance at the Langtang valley in central Nepal. The specific objectives of this study were to determine the herd size and composition, spatial-temporal patterns and to identify the major drivers of the system and the system changes. Data were collected from field study comprising semi-structured interviews with the herders, focus group discussions, key informants survey, and observations of rangeland and livestock management systems. The study revealed that the transhumanee system in the Langtang is influenced by two types of drivers. In one hand, traditional practices are contributing to the sustainability of the system. On the other hand, the grazing patterns and adaptive responses are strongly influenced by changes in government policies, socioeconomic and cultural transformation, livestock productivity, markets, rangeland conditions and climate change. The findings of this study help with the development and implementation of transhumance management policy for the sustainability.

Characteristics of Momentum and Heat Transfer over Semiarid Grasslands with Different Grazing Intensities in Inner Mongolia,China

The drag coefficient （Ca） and heat transfer coefficient （Ch） with the bulk transfer scheme are usually used to calculate the momentum and heat fluxes in meteorological models. The aerodynamic roughness length （z0m） and thermal roughness length （z0h） are two crucial parameters for bulk transfer equations. To improve the meteorological models, the seasonal and interannual variations of Z0m, Z0h, coefficient kB-1, Cd, and Ch were investigated based on eddy covariance data over different grazed semiarid grasslands of Inner Mongolia during the growing seasons （May to September） from 2005 to 2008. For an ungrazed Leymus chinensis grassland （ungrazed since 1979）, Z0m and z0h had significant seasonal and in- terannual variations. Zorn was affected by the amount and distribution of rainfall, kB 1 exhibited a relatively negative variation compared with z0h, which indicates that the seasonal variation of z0h cannot be described by kB 1. To parameterize Zorn and z0h, the linear regressions between ln（z0m）, ln（z0h）, and the leaf area index （LAI） were performed with R2=0.71 and 0.83. The monthly average kB-1 was found to decrease linearly with LAI. The four-year averaged values of Ca and Ch were 4.5 × 10^-3 and 3.9× 10^-3, respectively. The monthly average Cd only varied by 8% while the variation of Ch was 18%, which reflects the dif- ferent impacts of dead vegetation on momentum and heat transfer at this natural grassland. Moreover, with the removal of vegetation cover, grazing intensities reduced Z0m, Z0h, Cd, and Ch.

Vegetation and Community Changes of Elm (Ulmus pumila) Woodlands in Northeastern China in 1983-2011

Elm （Ulmus pumila）, widely distributed in the north temperate zone, contributes to a special savanna-like woodland in typical grassland region in the northeastern China. This woodland performs a variety of ecological functions and environmental signifi- cance, such as decreasing soil erosion, stabilizing sand dunes, preserving species diversity. However, in the last approximate 30 years, the species composition, productivity and distribution area of elm woodland has decreased severely. A series of studies have been carried out to find out whether the climate changes or human disturbances caused the degradation of elm woodland and how these factors af- fected elm woodland. In this study, undisturbed, plowing and grazing elm woodland were investigated in 1983 and 2011 by using Point-Centered Quarter method. The relationship between vegetation changes and environmental factors was analyzed by Bray-Curtis ordination. The results show that in 2011, species diversity and understory productivity of undisturbed elm woodland decrease slightly compared to those of undisturbed elm woodland in 1983. However, nearly 60% of the species is lost in the plowing and grazing elm woodland relative to the species undisturbed elm woodland in 1983. Interestingly, plowing stimulates the growth of elm and certain understory species through furrowing soil and accelerating soil nutrient turnover rate. Grazing disturbance not only leads to species loss and productivity decrease, but also induces changes in elm growth （small, short and twisted）. The mean age of the elm was 29 -4- 2 yr in undisturbed and plowing elm woodland, while only 15 yr in the grazing elm woodland. The results of Bray-Curtis ordination analysis show that all sample stands clustered to three groups： Group I including the undisturbed sample stands of 83UE （undisturbed elm wood- land in 1983） and l lUE （undisturbed elm woodland in 2011）; Group II including sample stands of PE （elm woodland disturbed by plowing）; Group III including samples stands of GE （elm woodland disturbed by grazing）. The results indicate that the long time distur- bance of the plowing and grazing have converted elm woodland to different community types. Climate change is not the primary reason causing the degradation of elm woodland, but plowing and grazing disturbance. Both plowing and grazing decrease the vegetation composition and species diversity. Grazing further decreases vegetation productivity and inhibits the growth of elm tree. Therefore, we suggest that reasonable plowing and exclusive grazing would be favorable for future regeneration of degraded elm woodland.

Unpalatable Weed Stellera chamaejasme L. Provides Biotic Refuge for Neighboring Species and Conserves Plant Diversity in Overgrazing Alpine Meadows on the Tibetan Plateau in China

Steller chamaejasme L. （S. chamaejasme for short） is one of the most noxious unpalatable weeds in China, which has been frequently reported its negative interaction （i.e. competition and allelopathy） with other herbaceous species in grasslands. This study compared species diversity, biomass and sexual reproduction of herbaceous plants in meadows with S. chamaejasme and in open meadows without S. ehamaejasme in overgrazing meadows on the Tibetan Plateau in China to determine whether positive facilitation exist between S. chamaejasme and other herbaceous species under livestock＇s overgrazing. The results showed that there are more herbaceous species in meadows with S. chamaejasme than those in open meadows （35s and30s, respectively）. Diversity index and above-ground biomass were also significantly higher in meadows with S. charnaejasme. There were 39% （11/28） of all species with sexual reproduction found in meadows with S. charnaejasme, which was 7 times more than those in open meadows. Our study showed that S. charnaejasme could provide biotic refuge for neighboring plants and preserve plant diversity from livestock＇s overgrazing in alpine meadows on the Tibetan Plateau. It also suggested that inter-specific facilitation between S. charnaejasme and other herbaceous species may play a key role in overgrazing alpine meadows.

Soil and Vegetation Seasonal Changes in the Grazing Andean Mountain Grasslands

Andean grasslands ecosystems are fragile environments with rigorous climatologic conditions and low and variable food for the grazing. The Apolobamba area is located in the Bolivian Andean Mountains. Its high grasslands provide a natural habitat for wild and domestic camelids such as vicuna(Vicugna vicugna) and alpaca(Lama pacos). The botanical diversity plays an essential role in maintaining vital ecosystem functions. The objectives of this research were to determine the seasonal changes in soil properties, to study the vegetation changes during the wet and dry seasons and the influence of soil properties and camelid densities on the vegetation in the Apolobamba grasslands. Four zones with different vicuna populations were selected to be studied. The following soil parameters were determined: total organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorous, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable cations, pH and texture. The vegetation season changes were studied through botanical identification, above-ground biomass, plant cover and species richness. Results showed that some soil properties such as C/N ratio, CEC, silt and clay percentages kept stable against the seasonal changes. Generally, soil nutrients were relatively higher during the dry season in the surface and subsurface. The results did not point out the predominant vegetation growth during the wet season. The seasonal vegetation growth depended on each species. Thegood soil fertility corresponded to the highest plant cover. Soil fertility presented no influence on the above-ground biomass of the collected species. The negative influence of camelid grazing on soil properties could not be assessed. However, overgrazing could affect some plant species. Therefore, protection is needed in order to preserve the biodiversity in the Andean mountain grasslands.

Grazing effects on the relationship between plant functional diversity and soil carbon sequestration regulated by livestock species

Grazing exerts a profound influence on both the plant diversity and productivity of grasslands,while simultaneously exerting a significant impact on regulating grassland soil carbon sequestration.Moreover,besides altering the taxonomic diversity of plant communities,grazing can also affect their diversity of functional traits.However,we still poorly understand how grazing modifies the relationship between plant functional diversity(FD)and soil carbon sequestration in grassland ecosystems.Here,we conducted a grazing manipulation experiment to investigate the effects of different grazing regimes(no grazing,sheep grazing(SG)and cattle grazing(CG))on the relationships between plant FD and soil carbon sequestration in meadow and desert steppe.Our findings showed that different livestock species changed the relationships between plant FD and soil organic carbon(SOC)in the meadow steppe.SG decoupled the originally positive relationship between FD and SOC,whereas CG changed the relationship from positive to negative.In the desert steppe,both SG and CG strengthened the positive relationship between FD and SOC.Our study illuminates the considerable impact of livestock species on the intricate mechanisms of soil carbon sequestration,primarily mediated through the modulation of various measures of functional trait diversity.In ungrazed meadows and grazed deserts,maintaining high plant FD is conducive to soil carbon sequestration,whereas in grazed meadows and ungrazed deserts,this relationship may disappear or even reverse.By measuring the traits and controlling the grazing activities,we can accurately predict the carbon sequestration potential in grassland ecosystems.

Species Richness and Diversity of Alpine Grasslands on the Northern Tibetan Plateau:Effects of Grazing Exclusion and Growing Season Precipitation

Species richness and diversity indices （Shannon-Wiener index, Simpson dominance index and Pielou evenness index） in alpine grassland ecosystems （alpine meadow, alpine steppe and desert steppe） under grazing-excluded and freely grazed sites were investigated along the Northern Tibetan Plateau Alpine Grassland Transect during summer 2009 and 2010. We found that species richness and diversity have not been significantly altered by short-term grazing exclusion since 2006 at vegetation and regional scales. Species richness and diversity were mainly driven by growing season precipitation （GSP）, which accounted for over 87 % of the total variation observed, Species richness and diversity at grazing- excluded and freely grazed sites appear to respond to growing season precipitation in parallel. Species richness exponentially increased with GSP while diversity indices showed positively linear relationships with GSP. This indicates that GSP on the Northern Tibetan Plateau is crucial in regulating species richness and diversity and should be taken into account in future studies on alpine grassland conservation.

Predicting plant traits and functional types response to grazing in an alpine shrub meadow on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

The identification of easily measured plant functional types (PFTs) that consistently predict grazing response would be a major advance.The responses to grazing of individual traits and PFTs were analyzed along a grazing gradient in an alpine shrub meadow on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau,China.Three response types were identified;grazing increaser (GI),grazing decreaser (GD),and neutral (NE) for both traits and PFTs.Seven traits were measured:plant height,economic group,cotyledon type,plant inclination,growth form,life cycle,and vegetative structure.The first five were significantly affected by grazing.Ordinal regressions for grazing response of the seven traits showed that the best single predictors of response were growth form (including the attributes "Scattered","Bunched" or "Closely Bunched"),and plant inclination ("Rosette","Prostrate",or "Erect"),followed by economic group ("Shrub","Grass","Sedge","Legume","Forb",or "Harmful") and plant height ("Tall","Medium",or "Small").Within the four optimal traits,the summed dominance ratio (SDR) of small plants,forbs,rosette and bunched plants,invariably increased,while that of tall plants,shrubs,grasses,and erect plants decreased,when grazing pressure was enhanced.Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) identified eleven explanatory PFTs based on 195 defined PFTs,by combining the different attributes of the four optimal traits.Among explanatory PFTs,the most valuable in predicting the community response to grazing were Tall×Shrub×Erect×Scattered and Small×Forb×Rosette,as these have the closest connections with grazing disturbance and include fewer species.Species richness,diversity,and community evenness,did not differ among grazing treatments because turnover occurred in component species and their relative abundances along the grazing gradient.We have demonstrated that a minimum set of PFTs resulting from optimal individual traits can provide consistent prediction of community responses to grazing in this region.This approach provides a more accurate indicator of change within a changing environment than do univariate measures of species diversity.We hope to provide a link between management practices and vegetation structure,forming a basis for future,large scale,plant trait comparisons.

Multifunctionality and Thresholds of Alpine Grassland on the Tibetan Plateau

Ecosystems can simultaneously provide multiple functions and services. Knowledge on the combinations of such multi-dimensional functions is critical for accurately assessing the carrying capacity and implementing sustainable management. However, accurately quantify the multifunctionality of ecosystems remains challenging due to the dependence and close association among individual functions. Here, we quantified spatial patterns in the multifunctionality of alpine grassland on the Tibetan Plateau by integrating four important individual functions based on data collected from a field survey and remote sensing NDVI. After mapping the spatial pattern of multifunctionality, we extracted multifunctionality values across four types of grassland along the northern Tibet Plateau transect. Effects of climate and grazing intensity on the multifunctionality were differentiated. Our results showed that the highest values of multifunctionality occurred in the alpine meadow. Low values of multifunctionality were comparable in different types of grassland. Annual precipitation explained the large variation of multifunctionality across the different types of grassland in the transect, which showed a significantly positive effect on the multifunctionality. Grazing intensity further explained the rest of the variation in the multifunctionality(residuals), which showed a shift from neutral or positive to negative effects on multifunctionality across the different types of grassland. The consistently rapid declines of belowground biomass, SOC, and species richness resulted in the collapse of the multifunctionality as bare ground cover amounted to 75%, which corresponded to a multifunctionality value of 0.233. Our results are the first to show the spatial pattern of grassland multifunctionality. The rapid decline of the multifunctionality suggests that a collapse in the multifunctionality can occur after the vegetation cover decreases to 25%, which is also accompanied by rapid losses of species and other individual functions. Our results are expected to provide evidence and direction for the sustainable development of alpine grassland and restoration management.

Species turnover drives grassland community to phylogenetic clustering over long-term grazing disturbance

Aims Grazing exerts profound effects on grassland ecosystem service and functions by regulating species composition and diversity,and structuring community assembly worldwide.However,adaptions of phylogenetic diversity and phylogenetic community structure to long-term grazing disturbance remain poorly studied,especially for ecosystems distributed in extreme environments.Methods Here,we conducted an experiment with multigrazing intensities to explore the impacts of grazing disturbance on plant phylogenetic diversity and community structure in an alpine grassland of the Tibetan Plateau.Important Findings Grazing disturbance enriched plant species richness(SR),and stimulated species turnover from regional species pool,consequently changing community species composition.Under low intensities,grazing exerted no obvious effects on phylogenetic diversity and community structure,whereas communities changed from overdispersion to clustering under high grazing intensity.High grazing intensity resulted in stronger environmental filtering,which consequently selected those species with high resilience to grazing disturbance.The observed clustering structure was associated with the colonizing species which were closely related to resident species,and locally extinct species,and distantly related to residents.At the plant functional trait level,high grazing intensity increased species colonization largely by altering the effect of root depth on species colonization compared to light grazing.Our results highlight that solely utilization of SR and diversity cannot fully represent grassland communities responses to grazing.The effects of species turnover on community phylogenetic diversity and structure are entailed to be explored in the future grazing studies.

Response of endemic afroalpine rodents to the removal of livestock grazing pressure

The Bale Mountains of Ethiopia represent the world＇s largest continuous extent of afroalpine habitat. With a peak combined density of over 8000 individuals/km2, the endemic giant mole rat Tachyoryctes macrocephalus, Blick＇s grass rat Arvi- canthis blicki and the brush-furred mouse Lophuromys melanonyx are the dominant wild herbivores within this ecosystem and may be affected by the presence of high densities of domestic livestock. The purpose of this study was to establish whether these endemic rodent populations could respond to the removal of grazing pressure inside three 0.25 hectare livestock exclosures （paired with grazed control plots） and to determine whether such response was mediated through concomitant changes in the vegetation structure. We hypothesised that livestock grazing negatively affects endemic rodent populations through competition or increased predation risk and we predicted an increase in rodent biomass following the removal of grazing pressure. We found no evidence of rodent populations responding to the removal of livestock after fourteen months. The short-term nature of the ex- perimental design, environmental fluctuations and the ecosystem＇s inherent stochasticity may explain the apparent lack of a sig- nificant response. However, while this study is inconclusive, it emphasises the need for more long-term experimental investiga- tions to assess the effects of domestic grazers on vegetation and on dependent communities. The effects of rapidly increasing livestock numbers in the Bale Mountains will require continued close monitoring of vegetation and endemic animal communities as the afroalpine is altered by external biotic and abiotic forces .

Soil Macrofaunal Communities are Heterogeneous in Heathlands with Different Grazing Intensity

Moderate grazing by cattle increases the heterogeneity of soil and vegetation. This has been suggested as an ecologically sustainable mean of managing natural environments endangered by tree encroachment, such as heathlands. Our study was performed to test the impact of grazing intensity on soil macroinvertebrate communities in heterogeneous landscapes in a private property eligible to the Natura 2000 European Network of Special Protection Areas within the Brenne Natural Regional Park （Indre, ~rance）. We sampled macroinvertebrates along a broken line crossing 5 different land-use types, from pasture to pine forest, passing through a besom heath （Erica scoparia） heathland at 3 levels of cattle pressure. We hypothesized that： i） litter-dwelling （mostly arthropods and mollusks） and soil-dwelling macroinvertebrates （mostly earthworms） would respond in an opposite manner to various grazing intensities, and ii） intermediate cattle pressure （pastured heath） would increase soil and community heterogeneity. The results supported the first hypothesis, which was explained by land-use impacts mediated by soil properties. However, our results supported only partly the second hypothesis since maximum dissimilarity （whether in the composition of soil macroinvertebrate communities or in soil features） was observed in only one out of the two pastured heaths where cattle pressure was intermediate.

Abandoned corrals: colonization and vegetation recovery of ephemeral habitats in silvo-pastoral systems

Aims Management of silvo-pastoral systems in planted and natural forests in semi-arid Mediterranean regions often employs seasonal night corrals for animal protection.This management system changes the spatial distribution of animal excreta,resulting in a net transfer of soil mineral resources and their accumulation in the corrals.After abandonment,corrals are colonized by ruderal species,becoming focal sources for their spread in the forest.We aimed to implement a rational management of seasonal sheep corrals based on a better understanding of the vegetation processes occurring in abandoned corrals,in order to alleviate their negative impact in the forest.Methods Relationships between temporal changes in the vegetation,the soil seed-bank and levels of soil nutrients were studied in a chronosequence of abandoned sheep corrals and compared with nearby reference plots in planted Eucalyptus forests grazed by sheep in the semi-arid North-Western Negev,Israel.The region has a bi-seasonal Mediterranean climate,with high dominance of annual species in the grazing range.Important Findings Abandoned sheep corrals were colonized by seeds of ruderals originating in older abandoned corrals.Subsequent successional changes occur at a slow rate,driven by the depletion of soil resources in the abandoned corrals,and were still in progress 20 years after abandonment.Ruderals were gradually replaced,first by taller grasses and followed by short grasses,but most forbs and particularly geophytes did not recover during this period.Recovery of the original herbaceous vegetation in the corrals was through seed dispersal from the surrounding vegetation,not from the original soil seed-bank remaining in the corrals after abandonment.Ruderal species in the grazed,planted forests behave as patch-tracking metapopulations.Their persistency depends on constant creation of new corrals compensating for the gradually dwindling populations in older abandoned corrals,and on the availability of dispersal vectors.

Variation in regrowth ability in relation to land-use intensity in three common grassland herbs

Aims Plant populations in managed grasslands are subject to strong selection exerted by grazing,mowing and fertilization.Many previous studies showed that this can cause evolutionary changes in mean trait values,but little is known about the evolution of phenotypic plasticity in response to land use.In this study,we aimed to elucidate the relationships between phenotypic plasticity—specifically,regrowth ability after biomass removal—and the intensity of grassland management and levels of temporal variation therein.Methods We conducted an outdoor common garden experiment to test if plants from more intensively mown and grazed sites showed an increased ability to regrow after biomass removal.We used three common plant species from temperate European grasslands,with seed material from 58 to 68 populations along gradients of land-use intensity,ranging from extensive(only light grazing)to very intensive management(up to four cuts per year).Important Findings In two out of three species,we found significant population differentiation in regrowth ability after clipping.While variation in regrowth ability was unrelated to the mean land-use intensity of populations of origin,we found a relationship with its temporal variation in Plantago lanceolata,where plants experiencing less variable environmental conditions over the last 11 years showed stronger regrowth in reproductive biomass after clipping.Therefore,while mean grazing and mowing intensity may not select for regrowth ability,the temporal stability of the environmental heterogeneity created by land use may have caused its evolution in some species.

Stability analysis of n-species Lotka-Volterra almost periodic competition models with grazing rates and diffusions

In this pape, almost periodic solution of a n-species Lotka-Volterra competition system with grazing rates and diffusions is investigated. By using the method of upper and lower solutions anti Schauder fixed point theorem as well as Lyapunov stability theory, we give sufficient conditions under which the strictly positive space homogeneous almost perilodic solution of the system is globally asymptotically stable. Moreover, some numerical simulations are given to validate our theoretical analysis.