Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Effects of grazing exclusion on plant productivity and soil carbon, nitrogen storage in alpine meadows in northern Tibet, China

  • Published:
Chinese Geographical Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Grazing exclusion is widely adopted in restoring degraded alpine grasslands on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. However, its effectiveness remains poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the effects of grazing exclusion on plant productivity, species diversity and soil organic carbon (SOC) and soil total nitrogen (STN) storage along a transect spanning from east to west of alpine meadows in northern Tibet, China. After six years of grazing exclusion, plant cover, aboveground biomass (AGB), belowground biomass (BGB), SOC and STN were increased, but species diversity indices declined. The enhancement of AGB and SOC caused by grazing exclusion was correlated positively with mean annual precipitation (MAP). Grazing exclusion led to remarkable biomass increase of sedge species, especially Kobresia pygmaea, whereas decrease of biomass in forbs and no obvious change in grass, leguminous and noxious species. Root biomass was concentrated in the near surface layer (10 cm) after grazing exclusion. The effects of grazing exclusion on SOC storage were confined to shallow soil layer in sites with lower MAP. It is indicated that grazing exclusion is an effective measure to increase forage production and enhance soil carbon sequestration in the studied region. The effect is more efficient in sites with higher precipitation. However, the results revealed a tradeoff between vegetation restoration and ecological biodiversity. Therefore, carbon pools recover more quickly than plant biodiversity in the alpine meadows. We suggest that grazing exclusion should be combined with other measures to reconcile grassland restoration and biodiversity conservation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Akiyama T, Kawamura K, 2007. Grassland degradation in China: Methods of monitoring, management and restoration. Grassland Science, 53(1): 1–17. doi: 10.1111/j.1744-697X.2007.00073.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Altesor A, Pineiro G, Lezama F et al., 2006. Ecosystem changes associated with grazing in subhumid South American grasslands. Journal of Vegetation Science, 17(3): 323–332. doi: 10.1111/j.1654-1103.2006.tb02452.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheng J, Wu G L, Zhao L P et al., 2011. Cumulative effects of 20-year exclusion of livestock grazing on above- and belowground biomass of typical steppe communities in arid areas of the Loess Plateau, China. Plant Soil and Environment, 57(1): 40–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Conant R T, Paustian K, 2002. Potential soil carbon sequestration in overgrazed grassland ecosystems. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 16(4): 90. doi: 10.1029/2001gb001661

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cui X Y, Wang Y F, Niu H S et al., 2005. Effect of long-term grazing on soil organic carbon content in semiarid steppes in Inner Mongolia. Ecological Research, 20(5): 519–527. doi: 10.1007/s11284-005-0063-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Deyn G B, Cornelissen J H, Bardgett R D, 2008. Plant functional traits and soil carbon sequestration in contrasting biomes. Ecology Letters, 11(5): 516–531. doi: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2008.01164.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Derner J D, Boutton T W, Briske D D, 2006. Grazing and ecosystem carbon storage in the North American Great Plains. Plant and Soil, 280(1–2): 77–90. doi: 10.1007/s11104-005-2554-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diaz S, Lavorel S, McIntyre S et al., 2007. Plant trait responses to grazing—A global synthesis. Global Change Biology, 13(2): 313–341. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2006.01288.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fan Y J, Hou X Y, Shi H X et al., 2013. Effects of grazing and fencing on carbon and nitrogen reserves in plants and soils of alpine meadow in the three headwater resource regions. Russian Journal of Ecology, 44(1): 80–88. doi: 10.1134/s1067413612050165

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fuhlendorf S D, Zhang H, Tunnell T et al., 2002. Effects of grazing on restoration of southern mixed prairie soils. Restoration Ecology, 10(2): 401–407. doi: 10.1046/j.1526-100X.2002.00013.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gallego L, Distel R A, Camina R et al., 2004. Soil phytoliths as evidence for species replacement in grazed rangelands of central Argentina. Ecography, 27(6): 725–732. doi: 10.1111/j.0906-7590.2005.03964.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gao Qingzhu, Li Yue, Lin Erda et al., 2005. Temporal and spatial distribution of grassland degradation in Northern Tibet. Acta Geographica Sinica, 60(6): 965–973. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Gao Y H, Zeng X Y, Schumann M et al., 2011. Effectiveness of exclosures on restoration of degraded alpine meadow in the eastern Tibetan Plateau. Arid Land Research and Management, 25(2): 164–175. doi: 10.1080/15324982.2011.554954

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gao Y Z, Giese M, Lin S et al., 2008. Belowground net primary productivity and biomass allocation of a grassland in Inner Mongolia is affected by grazing intensity. Plant and Soil, 307(1–2): 41–50. doi: 10.1007/s11104-008-9579-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grime J, 1998. Benefits of plant diversity to ecosystems: Immediate, filter and founder effects. Journal of Ecology, 86(6): 902–910. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2745.1998.00306.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Han J G, Zhang Y Z, Wang C T et al., 2008. Rangeland degradation and restoration management in China. The Rangeland Journal, 30(2): 233–239. doi: 10.1071/RJ08009

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris R B, 2010. Rangeland degradation on the Qinghai-Tibetan plateau: A review of the evidence of its magnitude and causes. Journal of Arid Environments, 74(1): 1–12. doi: 10.1016/j.jaridenv.2009.06.014

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • He N P, Yu Q, Wu L et al., 2008. Carbon and nitrogen store and storage potential as affected by land-use in a Leymus chinensis grassland of northern China. Soil Biology & Biochemistry, 40(12): 2952–2959. doi: 10.1016/j.soilbio.2008.08.018

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hu Zhongming, Fan Jiangwen, Zhong Huaping et al., 2005. Progress on grassland underground biomass researches in China. Chinese Journal of Ecology, 24(09): 1095–1101. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Huston M A, 1994. Biological Diversity, the Coexistence of Species on Changing Landscapes. New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • ISSCAS (Institute of Soil Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences), 1978. Physical and Chemical Analysis Methods of Soils. Shanghai: Science Technology Press, 132–136. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson L C, Matchett J R, 2001. Fire and grazing regulate belowground processes in tallgrass prairie. Ecology, 82(12): 3377–3389. doi: 10.1890/0012-9658(2001)082[3377:fagrbp]2.0.co;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kauffman J B, Thorpe A S, Brookshire E N J, 2004. Livestock exclusion and belowground ecosystem responses in riparian meadows of Eastern Oregon. Ecological Applications, 14(6): 1671–1679. doi: 10.1890/03-5083

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Langley J A, Hungate B A, 2003. Mycorrhizal controls on belowground litter quality. Ecology, 84(9): 2302–2312. doi: 10.1890/02-0282

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Liu Zhongling, Wang Wei, Liang Cunzhu et al., 1998. The regressive succession pattern and its diagnostic of Inner Mongolia steppe in sustained and superstrong grazing. Acta Agrestia Sinica, 6(4): 244–251. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Mekuria W, Veldkamp E, 2012. Restoration of native vegetation following exclosure establishment on communal grazing lands in Tigray, Ethiopia. Applied Vegetation Science, 15(1): 71–83. doi: 10.1111/j.1654-109X.2011.01145.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ni J, 2002. Carbon storage in grasslands of China. Journal of Arid Environments, 50(2): 205–218. doi: 10.1006/jare.2201.0902

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pineiro G, Paruelo J M, Jobbagy E G et al., 2009. Grazing effects on belowground C and N storage along a network of cattle exclosures in temperate and subtropical grasslands of South America. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 23(2): 1–14. doi: 10.1029/2007GB003168

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schuman G E, Reeder J D, Manley J T et al., 1999. Impact of grazing management on the carbon and nitrogen balance of a mixed-grass rangeland. Ecological Applications, 9(1): 65–71. doi: 10.2307/2641168

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shi F S, Chen H, Wu Y et al., 2010. Effects of livestock exclusion on vegetation and soil properties under two topographic habitats in an alpine meadow on the eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Polish Journal of Ecology, 58(1): 125–133.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shi Fusun, Wu Ning, Luo Peng et al., 2007. Effect of enclosing on community structure of subalpine meadow in northwestern Sichuan, China. Chinese Journal of Applied & Environmental Biology, 13(6): 767–770. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Spooner P, Lunt I, Robinson W, 2002. Is fencing enough? The short-term effects of stock exclusion in remnant grassy woodlands in southern NSW. Ecological Management & Restoration, 3(2): 117–126. doi: 10.1046/j.1442-8903.2002.00103.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Su Y Z, Li Y L, Cui H Y et al., 2005. Influences of continuous grazing and livestock exclusion on soil properties in a degraded sandy grassland, Inner Mongolia, northern China. Catena, 59(3): 267–278. doi: 10.1016/j.catena.2004.09.001

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van der Maarel E, Titlyanova A, 1989. Above-ground and below-ground biomass relations in steppes under different grazing conditions. Oikos, 56: 364–370. doi: 10.2307/3565622

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van der Wal R, Bardgett R D, Harrison K A et al., 2004. Vertebrate herbivores and ecosystem control: Cascading effects of faeces on tundra ecosystems. Ecography, 27(2): 242–252. doi: 10.1111/j.0906-7590.2004.03688.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watkinson A R, Ormerod S J, 2001. Grasslands, grazing and biodiversity: Editors’ introduction. Journal of Applied Ecology, 38(2): 233–237. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2664.2001.00621.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu G L, Du G Z, Liu Z H et al., 2009. Effect of fencing and grazing on a Kobresia-dominated meadow in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Plant and Soil, 319(1–2): 115–126. doi: 10.1007/s11104-008-9854-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu G L, Liu Z H, Zhang L et al., 2010. Long-term fencing improved soil properties and soil organic carbon storage in an alpine swamp meadow of western China. Plant and Soil, 332(1–2): 331–337. doi: 10.1007/s11104-010-0299-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xie Y, Wittig R, 2004. The impact of grazing intensity on soil characteristics of Stipa grandis and Stipa bungeana steppe in northern China (autonomous region of Ningxia). Acta Oecologica, 25(3): 197–204. doi: 10.1016/j.actao.2004.01.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xie Z B, Zhu J G, Liu G et al., 2007. Soil organic carbon storage in China and changes from 1980s to 2000s. Global Change Biology, 13(9): 1989–2007. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01409.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xu Z R, Cheng S K, Zhen L et al., 2013. Impacts of Dung Combustion on the Carbon Cycle of Alpine Grassland of the North Tibetan Plateau. Environmental Management, 52(2): 441–449. doi: 10.1007/s00267-013-0107-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang Y H, Fang J Y, Ji C J et al., 2009. Above- and belowground biomass allocation in Tibetan grasslands. Journal of Vegetation Science, 20(1): 177–184. doi: 10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.05566.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang Jintun, Chai Baofeng, Qiu Yang et al., 2000. Changes in species diversity in the succession of plant communities of abandoned land in Luliang Mountain, western Shanxi. Chinese Biodiversity, 8(4): 378–384. (in Chinese)

    Google Scholar 

  • Zheng D, 2000. Mountain Geoecology and Sustainable Development of the Tibetan Plateau. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 15–16.

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lhasa National Ecological Research Station, Key Laboratory of Ecosystem Network Observation and Modeling, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China

    Dingpeng Xiong, Peili Shi, Yinliang Sun, Jianshuang Wu & Xianzhou Zhang

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Dingpeng Xiong & Yinliang Sun

Authors
  1. Dingpeng Xiong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peili Shi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Yinliang Sun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jianshuang Wu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Xianzhou Zhang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Peili Shi.

Additional information

Foundation item: Under the auspices of Strategic Priority Research Program of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. XDA05060700), Postdoctoral Science Foundation of China (No. 2013M530716)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Xiong, D., Shi, P., Sun, Y. et al. Effects of grazing exclusion on plant productivity and soil carbon, nitrogen storage in alpine meadows in northern Tibet, China. Chin. Geogr. Sci. 24, 488–498 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-014-0697-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11769-014-0697-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation