TY - JOUR
T1 - Species asynchrony stabilises productivity under extreme drought across Northern China grasslands
AU - Muraina, Taofeek O.
AU - Xu, Chong
AU - Yu, Qiang
AU - Yang, Yadong
AU - Jing, Minghui
AU - Jia, Xiaotong
AU - Jaman, Md Shahariar
AU - Dam, Quockhanh
AU - Knapp, Alan K.
AU - Collins, Scott L.
AU - Luo, Yiqi
AU - Luo, Wentao
AU - Zuo, Xiaoan
AU - Xin, Xiaoping
AU - Han, Xingguo
AU - Smith, Melinda D.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 British Ecological Society
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - Biodiversity can stabilise productivity through different mechanisms, such as asynchronous species responses to environmental variability and species stability. Global changes, like intensified drought, could negatively affect species richness, species asynchrony and species stability, but it is unclear how changes in these mechanisms will affect the stability of above-ground primary productivity (ANPP) across ecosystems. We studied the effects of a 4-year extreme drought on ANPP stability and the underlying mechanisms (species richness, species asynchrony and species stability) across six grasslands in Northern China. We also assessed the relative importance of these mechanisms in determining ANPP stability under extreme drought. We found that extreme drought decreased ANPP stability, species richness, species asynchrony and species stability across the six grasslands. However, structural equation modelling revealed that species asynchrony, not species richness or species stability, was the most important mechanism promoting stability of ANPP, regardless of drought across the six grasslands. Synthesis. Our results suggest that species asynchrony, not species richness and species stability, consistently buffers ecosystem stability against extreme drought across and within grasslands spanning a broad precipitation gradient. Thus, species asynchrony may be a more general mechanism for promoting stability of ANPP in grasslands in the face of intensified drought.
AB - Biodiversity can stabilise productivity through different mechanisms, such as asynchronous species responses to environmental variability and species stability. Global changes, like intensified drought, could negatively affect species richness, species asynchrony and species stability, but it is unclear how changes in these mechanisms will affect the stability of above-ground primary productivity (ANPP) across ecosystems. We studied the effects of a 4-year extreme drought on ANPP stability and the underlying mechanisms (species richness, species asynchrony and species stability) across six grasslands in Northern China. We also assessed the relative importance of these mechanisms in determining ANPP stability under extreme drought. We found that extreme drought decreased ANPP stability, species richness, species asynchrony and species stability across the six grasslands. However, structural equation modelling revealed that species asynchrony, not species richness or species stability, was the most important mechanism promoting stability of ANPP, regardless of drought across the six grasslands. Synthesis. Our results suggest that species asynchrony, not species richness and species stability, consistently buffers ecosystem stability against extreme drought across and within grasslands spanning a broad precipitation gradient. Thus, species asynchrony may be a more general mechanism for promoting stability of ANPP in grasslands in the face of intensified drought.
KW - Eurasia steppe
KW - above-ground productivity
KW - biodiversity
KW - coordinated experiments
KW - ecosystem function and structure
KW - global change ecology
KW - grassland communities
KW - terrestrial ecosystem
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U2 - 10.1111/1365-2745.13587
DO - 10.1111/1365-2745.13587
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85100034860
SN - 0022-0477
VL - 109
SP - 1665
EP - 1675
JO - Journal of Ecology
JF - Journal of Ecology
IS - 4
ER -