Habitat degradation, topography and rainfall variability interact to determine seed distribution and recruitment in a sand dune grassland

Journal of Vegetation Science

Volumn 20, Issue 5, 2009, Pages 847-859

  Li, Feng Rui ^a   Zhao, Li Ya ^a   Zhang, Hua ^a   Liu, Ji Liang ^a   Lu, Hai Yan ^a   Kang, Ling Fen ^a  

^a Chinese Academy of Sciences   (China)

Author keywords

Habitat heterogeneity; Path analysis; Rainfall availability; Sand dune systems; Seed bank formation; Seedling recruitment; Spatial variation; Topography effects

Indexed keywords

COMMUNITY COMPOSITION; COMMUNITY DYNAMICS; DENSITY DEPENDENCE; DUNE; GRADIENT ANALYSIS; GRASSLAND; HABITAT FRAGMENTATION; HABITAT LOSS; IN SITU TEST; MICROTOPOGRAPHY; NUTRIENT AVAILABILITY; PATH ANALYSIS; PRECIPITATION INTENSITY; RECRUITMENT (POPULATION DYNAMICS); SEED BANK; SEEDLING EMERGENCE; SEEDLING ESTABLISHMENT; SEMIARID REGION; SOIL EROSION; SOIL MOISTURE; SPATIAL VARIATION; VEGETATION COVER; WIND EROSION;

ASIA; CHINA; EURASIA; FAR EAST; NEI MONGGOL;

EID: 70349690593     PISSN: 11009233     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.01087.x     Document Type: Article

References (68)

1. Adler, P.B, Raff, D.A. & Lauenroth, W.K. 2001. The effect of grazing on the spatial heterogeneity of vegetation. Oecologia 128: 465-479.
2. Aguiar, M.R. & Sala, O.E. 1997. Seed distribution constrains the dynamics of the Patagonian steppe. Ecology 78: 93-100.
3. Bengtson, P., Falkengren-Grerup, U. & Bengtsson, G. 2006. Spatial distributions of plants and gross N transformation rates in a forest soil. Journal of Ecology 94: 754-764.
4. Ben-Natan, G., Abramsky, Z., Kotler, B.P. & Brown, J.S. 2004. Seed redistribution in sand dunes: a basis for coexistence of two rodent species. Oikos 105: 325-335.
5. Bowers, M.A. 1987. Precipitation and the relative abundances of desert winter annuals: a 6-year study in the northern Mojave Desert. Journal of Arid Environments 12: 141-149.
6. Brooker, R.W. & Callaghan, T.V. 1998. The balance between positive and negative plant interactions and its relationship to environmental gradients: a model. Oikos 8I: 196-207.
7. Brooker, R.W., Maestre, F.T. & Callaway, R.M., et al. 2008. Facilitation in plant communities: the past, the present, and the future. Journal of Ecology 96: 18-34.
8. Buckley, R. 1987. The effect of sparse vegetation on the transport of dune sand by wind. Nature 325: 426-428.
9. Bullock, J.M. & Moy, I.L. 2004. Plants as seed traps: inter-specific interference with dispersal. Acta Oecologica 25: 35-41.
10. Cabin, R.J., Marshall, D.L. & Mitchell, R.J. 2000. The demographic role of soil seed banks. II. Investigations of the fate of experimental seeds of the desert mustard Lesquerellafendleri. Journal of Ecology 88: 293-302.
11. Callaway, R.M. & Walker, L.R. 1997. Competition and facilitation: a synthetic approach to interactions in plant communities. Ecology 78: 1958-1965.
12. Capon, M.H. & O'Connor, T.G. 1990. The predation of perennial grass seeds in Transvaal savanna grasslands. South Africa Journal of Botany 56: 11-15.
13. Chesson, P. 1985. Coexistence of competitors in spatially and temporally varying environments: a look at the combined effects of different sorts of variability. Theoretical Population Biology 28: 263-287.
14. Chesson, P. 1986. Environmental variation and the coexistence of species. In: Diamond, J. & Case, T.J. (eds.) Community ecology, pp. 240-254. Harper & Row, New York.
15. Chesson, P. 2000. Mechanisms of maintenance of species diversity. Annual Review of Ecology Evolution and Systmatics 31: 343-366.
16. Cohen, D. 1966. Optimizing reproduction in a randomly varying environment. Journal of Theoretical Biology 12:119-129.
17. Dullinger, S., Kleinbauer, I. & Pauli, H., et al. 2007. Weak and variable relationships between environmentalcseverity and small-scale co-occurrence in alpine plant communities. Journal of Ecology 95: 1284-1295.
18. Eriksson, O. & Ehrlen, J. 1992. Seed and microsite limitation of recruitment in plant populations. Oecologia 91: 360-364.
19. Gross, K.L. 1990. A comparison of methods for estimating seed numbers in the soil. Journal of Ecology 78: 1079-1193.
20. Goldberg, D.E. & Barton, A.M. 1992. Patterns and consequences of interspecific competition in natural communities: field experiments with plants. American Naturalist 139:771-801.
21. Goldberg, D.E., Turkington, R. & Olsvig-Whittaker, L. 2001. Density dependence in an annual plant community: variation among life history stages. Ecological Monographs 71: 423-446.
22. Henderson, C.B., Petersen, K.E. & Redak, R.A. 1988. Spatial and temporal patterns in the seed bank and vegetation of a desert grassland community. Journal of Ecology 76: 717-728.
23. Jeltsch, F., Milton, S.J., Dean, W.R.J., van Rooyen, N. & Moloney, K.A. 1998. Modeling the impact of small-scale heterogeneities on tree-grass coexistence in semiarid savannas. Journal of Ecology 86: 780-794.
24. Jones, C.C. & del Moral, R. 2005. Effects of microsite conditions on seedling establishment on the foreland of Coleman Glacier, Washington. Journal of Vegetation Science 16: 293-300.
25. Johnson, M.T., Dinnage, R., Zhou, A.Y. & Hunter, M.D. 2008. Environmental variation has stronger effects than plant genotype on competition among plant species. Journal of Ecology 96: 947-955.
26. Kalisz, S. & McPeek, M.A. 1992. Demography of an age-structured annual: resampled projection matrices, elasticity analyses and seed bank effects. Ecology 73: 1082-1093.
27. Kelt, D.A., Meserve, P.L. & Gutierrez, J.R. 2004. Seed removal by small mammals, birds and ants in semi-arid Chile, and comparison with other systems. Journal of Biogeography 31: 931-942.
28. Kemp, P.R. 1989. Seed banks and vegetation processes in deserts. In: Leek, M.A., Parker, V.T. & Simpson, R.L. (eds.) Ecology of soil seed banks, pp. 257-281. Academic Press, San Diego.
29. Levine, J.M., McEachern, A.K. & Cowan, C. 2008. Rainfall effects on rare annual plants. Journal of Ecology 96: 795-806.
30. Li, F.R. 2008. Presence of shrubs influences the spatial pattern of soil seed banks in desert herbaceous vegetation. Journal of Vegetation Science 19: 537-548.
31. Li, F.R., Kang, L.F., Zhang, H, Zhao, L.Y., Shirato, Y. & Taniyama, I. 2005a. Changes in intensity of wind erosion at different stages of degradation development in grasslands of Inner Mongolia, China. Journal Arid Environments 62: 567-585.
32. Li, F.R., Wang, T., Zhang, A.S., Zhao, L. Y. & Kang, L.F. 2005b. Wind-dispersed seed deposition patterns andseedling recruitment of Artemisia halodendron in a moving sandy land. Annals of Botany 96: 69-80.
33. Li, F.R., Zhao, L.Y., Zhao, X.Y., Zhang, T.H. & Li, G. 2005c. The relative importance of pre- and post-germination determinants for recruitment of an annual plant community on moving sandy land. Annals of Botany 96: 1215-1223.
34. Li, F.R., Zhao, W.Z., Liu, J.L. & Huang, Z.G. 2008. Degraded vegetation and wind erosion influence soil carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus accumulation in sandy grasslands. Plant Soil 317: 79-92.
35. Linzey, A.V. & Washok, K.A. 2000. Seed removal by ants, birds and rodents in a woodland savanna habitat in Zimbabwe. African Zoology 35: 295-299.
36. Looney, P.B. & Gibson, D.J. 1995. The relationship between the soil seed bank and above-ground vegetation of a coastal barrier island. Journal of Vegetation Science 6: 825-836.
37. Lortie, C.J. & Turkington, R. 2002a. The effect of initial seed density on the structure of a desert annual plant community. Journal of Ecology 90: 435-445.
38. Lortie, C.J. & Turkington, R. 2002b. The facilitative effects by seeds and seedlings on emergence from the seed bank of a desert annual plant community. Ecoscience 9: 106-111.
39. Luzuriaga, A.L. & Escudero, A. 2008. What determines emergence and net recruitment in an early succession plant community? Disentangling biotic and abiotic effects. Journal of Vegetation Science 19: 445-455.
40. Ma, J. & Liu, Z. 2008. Spatiotemporal pattern of seed bank in the annual psammophyte Agriophyllum squarrosum Moq. (Chenopodiaceae) on the active sand dunes of northeastern Inner Mongolia, China. Plant Soil 311: 97-107.
41. Maestre, FT., Valladares, F. & Reynolds, J.F. 2005. Is the change of plant-plant interactions with abiotic stress predictable? A meta-analysis of field results in arid environments. Journal of Ecology 93: 748-757.
42. McEvoy, P.B. & Cox, C.S. 1987. Wind dispersal distance in dimorphic achenes of ragwort, Senecio jacobaea. Ecology 68: 2006-2015.
43. Moody-Weis, J. & Alexander, H.M. 2007. The mechanisms and consequences of seed bank formation in wild sunflowers (Helianthus annuus). Journal of Ecology 95: 851-864.
44. Moro, M.J., Pugnaire, F.I., Haase, P. & Puigdefabregas, J. 1997. Effect of the canopy of Retama sphaerocarpa on its understorey in a semi-arid environment. Functional Ecology 11: 425-431. (Pubitemid 27369835)
45. Nathan, R., Horn, H.S., Chave, J. & Levin, S.A. 2002. Mechanistic models for tree seed dispersal by wind in dense forests and open landscapes. In: Levey, D.J., Silva, W.R. & Galetti, M. (eds.) Seed dispersal and frugivory. CABI Publishing, Wallingford.
46. O'Connor, T.G. & Roux, P.W. 1995. Vegetation changes (1949-71) in a semi-arid, grassy dwarf shrubland in theKaroo, South Africa: influence of rainfall variability and grazing by sheep. Journal of Applied Ecology 32: 612-626.
47. Olofsson, J., de Mazancourt, C. & Crawley, M.J. 2008. Spatial heterogeneity and plant species richness at different spatial scales under rabbit grazing. Oecologia 156:825-834.
48. Orrock, J.L., Levey, D.J., Danielson, B.J. & Damschen, E.I. 2006. Seed predation, not seed dispersal, explains the landscape-level abundance of an early-successional plant. Journal of Ecology 94: 838-845.
49. Pedhazur, E.J. 1982. Multiple regression in behavioral research: explanation and prediction. 2nd ed. Holt, Rinehart and Winston Inc, Fort Worth, TX, US.
50. Pugnaire, F.I. & Lazaro, R. 2000. Seed bank and under-storey composition in a semi-arid environment: the effect of shrub age and rainfall. Annals of Botany 86: 807-813.
51. Pugnaire, F.I. & Luque, M.T. 2001. Changes in plant interactions along a gradient of environmental stress. Oikos 93: 42-49.
52. Rees, M. 1997. Seed dormancy. In: Crawley, M.J. (ed.) Plant ecology, pp. 484-508. Blackwell Science, Oxford.
53. Rees, M. & Long, M.J. 1992. Germination biology and the ecology of annual plants. American Naturalist 139: 484-508.
54. Russell, S.K. & Schupp, E.W. 1998. Effects of microhabitat patchiness on patterns of seed dispersal and seed predation of Cercocarpus ledifolius (Rosaceae). Oikos 81: 434-443.
55. Shilo-Volin, H., Novoplansky, A., Goldberg, D.E. & Turkington, R. 2005. Density regulation in annual plant communities under variable resource levels. Oikos 108:241-252.
56. Simonetti, J.A. 1989. Microhabitat use by small mammals in central Chile. Oikos 56: 309-318.
57. Swemmer, A.M., Knapp, A.K. & Snyman, H.A. 2007. Intra-seasonal precipitation patterns and above-ground productivity in three perennial grasslands. Journal of Ecology 95: 780-788.
58. Tielbörger, K. & Kadmon, R. 2000. Temporal environmental variation tips the balance between facilitation and interference in desert plants. Ecology 81: 1544-1553.
59. Tsujino, R., Takafumi, H. & Agetsuma, N., et al. 2006. Variation in tree growth, mortality and recruitment among topographic positions in a warm temperate forest. Journal of Vegetation Science 3: 281-290.
60. Wang, S.P. & Li, Y.H. 1998. Degradation mechanisms of typical grasslands in Inner Mongolia. Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology 10: 437-441.
61. Wang, T., Xue, X. & Luo, Y.Q., et al. 2008. Human causes of aeolian desertification in northern China. Sciences in Cold and Arid Regions 1 (initial issue): 1-13.
62. Wu, B. & Ci, L. 1998. Developmental stages and causes of desertification in China. Chinese Science Bulletin 43: 2437-2240.
63. Yan, Q.L., Liu, Z.M., Zhu, J.J., Luo, Y.M. & Wang, H.M. 2005. Structure, pattern and mechanisms of formation of seed banks in sand dune systems in northeastern Inner Mongolia, China. Plant Soil 277: 175-184.
64. Yang, X., Zhang, K., Jia, B. & Ci, L. 2005. Desertification assessment in China: an overview. Journal of Arid Environments 63: 517-531.
65. Zhang, H., Li, F.R. & Li, Y.L. 2004. Wind regime and the resultant sand-transporting potential of Naiman Banner in Horqin Sandy Land during the past five years. Journal of Desert Research 24: 623-628.
66. Zhang, J., Zhao, H., Zhang, T., Zhao, X. & Drake, S. 2005. Community succession along a chronosequence of vegetation restoration on sand dunes in Horqin Sandy Land. Journal of Arid Environments 62: 555-566.
67. Zhao, L.Y., Li, F.R. & Wang, X.Z. 2003. The characteristics of soil seed bank and standing vegetation changes in sandy grasslands along a desertification gradient. Acta Ecologica Sinica 23: 1745-1756.
68. Zhu, J.R. et al. (eds.) 2001. Dictionary of Seed-plants Names Latin - Chinese - English (2nd edn). Science Press, Beijing, http://www.sciencep.com.