Holger Brueck

N balance and cycling of Inner Mongolia typical steppe: a comprehensive case study of grazing effects

Increasing grazing pressure and climate change affect nitrogen (N) dynamics of grassland ecosystems in the Eurasian steppe belt with unclear consequences for future delivery of essential services such as forage production, C sequestration, and diversity conservation. The identification of key processes responsive to grazing is crucial to optimize grassland management. In this comprehensive case study of a Chinese typical steppe, we present an in-depth analysis of grazing effects on N dynamics, including the balance of N gains and losses, and N cycling. N pools and fluxes were simultaneously quantified on three grassland sites of different long-term grazing intensities. Dust deposition, wind erosion, and wet deposition were the predominant but most variable processes contributing to N losses and gains. Heavy grazing increased the risk of N losses by wind erosion. Hay-making and sheep excrement export to folds during nighttime keeping were important pathways of N losses from grassland sites. Compared to the...

Nitrogen availability in a grazed semi-arid grassland is dominated by seasonal rainfall

In semi-arid grassland ecosystems, soil biogeochemical processes are controlled by seasonal and inter-annual rainfall variation and temperature, which may override the long-term impact of grazers on N availability and N dynamics. In a three-year (2004–2006) case study of an Inner Mongolian grassland, we analysed time-integrated (ion-exchange resins) and instantaneous (soil mineral N extractions) inorganic N availability at three sites of varying grazing intensities and combined these data with information on soil water content (SWC), aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) and plant N uptake. Additionally, the effects of rainfall and grazing on N-form availability (NO3−-N, NH4+-N) were considered. Grazing had less impact on N availability compared to seasonal and annual rainfall distribution. One of the three study years (2004) showed a grazing effect with higher resin-N availability at the ungrazed site compared to the heavily grazed site. Inorganic N availability was low in the driest year (2005) and highest in a year of average rainfall amount and favourable distribution (2004). In general, we found a positive relationship between inorganic N availability and both plant productivity and plant N uptake. Rainfall also controlled the plant available NO3−-N and NH4+-N pools; NH4+-N dominated the available inorganic N-form in times of low SWC, while the available NO3−-N increased with SWC. We observed N availability and plant productivity in a temporal synchronized pattern. Increased rainfall variability and land-use practices affecting SWC will likely alter N availability dynamics (and the relation of N-forms) and, therefore, important processes of semi-arid natural grassland carbon and N cycling.

Land use and drought interactively affect interspecific competition and species diversity at the local scale in a semiarid steppe ecosystem

Few studies have considered interactive effects of grazing and drought on species composition and the relative contribution of species to total biomass, although it is important to understand the short-term dynamics and community succession in grazed ecosystems. We monitored species diversity and relative biomass contribution at one site protected from grazing since 1979 (UG79), and at winter grazing (WG) and heavily grazed (HG) sites. Continuous heavy grazing resulted in lower plant height and more but small individuals (tillers or stolons). Drought significantly reduced total plant density on all sites. Grazing affected species diversity more than drought. Species richness at site UG79 was significantly higher than at sites WG and HG, while drought only tended to reduce species diversity. Drought stress and grazing disturbance interactively controlled species competition and functional groups. Both perennial grasses and forbs had greater contribution to total biomass at site UG79, and perennial grasses contributed more than 97% of total biomass at site WG. The contribution to total biomass of annual forbs and semi-shrubs significantly increased at site HG after two dry years. The significant decrease in Potentilla acaulis and a substantial increase in annual species at this site indicate that the perennial vegetation of this ecosystem is in great danger of extinction under conditions of prolonged drought.

Chlorophyll index, photochemical reflectance index and chlorophyll fluorescence measurements of rice leaves supplied with different N levels

Rapid and non-destructive diagnosis of plant N status is highly required in order to optimise N fertilizer management and use-efficiency. Additionally to handheld devices for measurements of chlorophyll indices (e.g., SPAD meter) parameters of canopy reflectance via remote sensing approaches are intensively investigated and the photochemical reflectance index (PRI) appears to be a reliable indicator for changes of the epoxidation state of xanthophyll cycle pigments. In order to assess the suitability of a handheld PRI as an additional tool for N diagnosis, rice plants were grown in a nutrient solution experiment with seven N-supply levels (0.18-5.71 mM) and CI (SPAD) and PRI values and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters measured 20 and 28 days after onset of treatments. N-supply had effects on both CI (SPAD) and PRI values with a more reliable differentiation between levels. Maximum quantum yield of PSII (F(v)/F(m)), actual efficiency of PSII photochemistry (Ф(PSII)) and regulated non-photochemical quenching (Ф(NPQ)) did not differ significantly between N levels. Non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and fast- relaxing NPQ (NPQ(F)) were significantly affected by N-supply. NPQ and NPQ(F), but not the slow-relaxing component (NPQ(S)), were correlated with CI (SPAD) and PRI values. This finding which has not been reported for N-supply effects so far is indirect evidence that low N-supply induced xanthophyll cycle activity and that PRI values are able to indicate this at least in plants subject to severe N deficiency.

Community level offset of rain use- and transpiration efficiency for a heavily grazed ecosystem in inner Mongolia grassland.

Water use efficiency (WUE) is a key indicator to assess ecosystem adaptation to water stress. Rain use efficiency (RUE) is usually used as a proxy for WUE due to lack of transpiration data. Furthermore, RUE based on aboveground primary productivity (RUEANPP) is used to evaluate whole plant water use because root production data is often missing as well. However, it is controversial as to whether RUE is a reliable parameter to elucidate transpiration efficiency (TE), and whether RUEANPP is a suitable proxy for RUE of the whole plant basis. The experiment was conducted at three differently managed sites in the Inner Mongolia steppe: a site fenced since 1979 (UG79), a winter grazing site (WG) and a heavily grazed site (HG). Site HG had consistent lowest RUEANPP and RUE based on total net primary productivity (RUENPP). RUEANPP is a relatively good proxy at sites UG79 and WG, but less reliable for site HG. Similarly, RUEANPP is good predictor of transpiration efficiency based on aboveground net primary productivity (TEANPP) at sites UG79 and WG but not for site HG. However, if total net primary productivity is considered, RUENPP is good predictor of transpiration efficiency based on total net primary productivity (TENPP) for all sites. Although our measurements indicate decreased plant transpiration and consequentially decreasing RUE under heavy grazing, productivity was relatively compensated for with a higher TE. This offset between RUE and TE was even enhanced under water limited conditions and more evident when belowground net primary productivity (BNNP) was included. These findings suggest that BNPP should be considered when studies fucus on WUE of more intensively used grasslands. The consideration of the whole plant perspective and “real” WUE would partially revise our picture of system performance and therefore might affect the discussion on the C-sequestration and resilience potential of ecosystems.

The relation of biomass production with leaf traits varied under different land-use and precipitation conditions in an Inner Mongolia steppe

The analyses of plant leaf traits that strongly influence aboveground net primary production (ANPP) are indispensable for understanding the process of plant biomass formation. However, there are few studies that have attempted to relate patterns of ANPP under contrasting management practices to plant leaf-level traits. To assess how leaf traits affect plant biomass accumulation under different land-use practices, we examined leaf traits and biomass production in three differently managed sites in the Inner Mongolia steppe: a site fenced since 1979 (UG), a winter grazing site (WG), and a heavily grazed site (HG). Low soil water content, leaf area index, and potential growth ability of species at site HG led to low crop growth rate (CGR), net assimilation rate (NAR), and relative growth rate (RGR); resulting in lower ANPP as compared to sites WG and UG. Irrespective of land-use management, prolonged drought significantly decreases ANPP even though it systematically increases mean CGR and RGR. However, leaf N content and leaf weight ratio are the crucial components necessary to determine the RGR at site WG. This suggests that low leaf N and availability of soil N due to haymaking may be responsible for neither over-compensatory nor compensatory growth in this site. The low ANPP in dry years is not due to the low mean CGR and RGR but rather to the short effective growing days (referring to the days the vegetation actually grows), suggesting that production-adjusted grazing regimes may be the most suitable measures for precision land management and avoiding grassland degradation.