Cao Guang-min

Changes in plant biomass and species composition of alpine Kobresia meadows along altitudinal gradient on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Alpine Kobresia meadows are major vegetation types on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. There is growing concern over their relationships among biodiversity, productivity and environments. Despite the importance of species composition, species richness, the type of different growth forms, and plant biomass structure for Kobresia meadow ecosystems, few studies have been focused on the relationship between biomass and environmental gradient in the Kobresia meadow plant communities, particularly in relation to soil moisture and edaphic gradients. We measured the plant species composition, herbaceous litter, aboveground and belowground biomass in three Kobresia meadow plant communities in Haibei Alpine Meadow Ecosystem Research Station from 2001 to 2004. Community differences in plant species composition were reflected in biomass distribution. The total biomass showed a decrease from 13196.96±719.69 g/m2 in the sedge-dominated K. tibetica swamp to 2869.58±147.52 g/m2 in the forb and sedge dominated K. pygmaea meadow, and to 2153.08±141.95 g/m2 in the forbs and grasses dominated K. humilis along with the increase of altitude. The vertical distribution of belowground biomass is distinct in the three meadow communities, and the belowground biomass at the depth of 0–10 cm in K. tibetica swamp meadow was significantly higher than that in K. humilis and K. pygmaea meadows (P<0.01). The herbaceous litter in K. tibetica swamp was significantly higher than those in K. pygnaeca and K. humilis meadows. The effects of plant litter are enhanced when ground water and soil moisture levels are raised. The relative importance of litter and vegetation may vary with soil water availability. In the K. tibetica swamp, total biomass was negatively correlated to species richness (P<0.05); aboveground biomass was positively correlated to soil organic matter, soil moisture, and plant cover (P<0.05); belowground biomass was positively correlated with soil moisture (P<0.05). However, in the K. pygnaeca and K. humilis meadow communities, aboveground biomass was positively correlated to soil organic matter and soil total nitrogen (P<0.05). This suggests that the distribution of biomass coincided with soil moisture and edaphic gradient in alpine meadows.

Distribution of soil carbon in different grassland types of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Accurate estimate of soil carbon storage is essential to reveal the role of soil in global carbon cycle. However, there is large uncertainty on the estimation of soil organic carbon (SOC) storage in grassland among previous studies, and the study on soil inorganic carbon (SIC) is still lack. We surveyed 153 sites during plant peak growing season and estimated SOC and SIC for temperate desert, temperate steppe, alpine steppe, steppe meadow, alpine meadow and swamp, which covered main grassland in the Qinghai Plateau during 2011 to 2012. The results showed that the vertical and spatial distributions of SOC and SIC varied by grassland types. The SOC amount mainly decreased from southeast to northwest, whereas the SIC amount increased from southeast to northwest. The magnitude of SOC amount in the top 50 cm across grassland types ranked by: swamp > alpine meadow > steppe meadow > temperate steppe > alpine steppe > temperate desert, while the SIC amount showed an opposite order. There was a great deal of variation in proportion of SOC and SIC among different grassland types (from 55.17 to 94.59 for SOC and 5.14 to 44.83 for SIC). The total SOC and SIC storage was 5.78 Pg and 1.37 Pg, respectively, in the top 50 cm of soil in Qinghai Province. The mixed linear model revealed that grassland types was the predominant factor in spatial variations of SOC amount while grassland types and soil pH accounted for those of SIC amount. Our results suggested that the community shift of alpine meadow towards alpine grassland induced by climate warming would decrease carbon sequestration capacity by 6.0 kg C m2.