Different categories of biodiversity explain productivity variation after fertilization in a Tibetan alpine meadow community. Issue 10 (6th April 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhou, Xiaolong; Guo, Zhi; Zhang, Pengfei; Li, Honglin; Chu, Chengjin; Li, Xilai; Du, Guozhen
• Is Part Of: Ecology and evolution. Volume 7:Issue 10(2017:Jun.)
• Page Start: 3464
• Page End: 3474
• Publication Date: 2017-04-06
• Subjects: alpine meadow -- functional diversity -- nitrogen and phosphorus fertilization -- phylogenetic diversity -- productivity -- species diversity; Ecology -- Periodicals; Evolution -- Periodicals; 577.05
• DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2723
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2045-7758

Abstract

Abstract: The relationship between productivity and biodiversity has long been an important issue in ecological research. However, in recent decades, most ecologists have primarily focused on species diversity while paying little attention to functional diversity and phylogenetic diversity (PD), especially in alpine meadow communities following fertilization. In this study, a fertilization experiment involving the addition of nitrogen, phosphorus, and a mixture of both was implemented in an alpine meadow on the Tibetan Plateau. Species diversity, functional diversity, and PD were measured, and the responses of these parameters to the variation in productivity were analyzed. We found that the productivity of alpine plant communities was colimited by N and P, with N being the principal and P being the secondary limiting nutrient. Our results supported the prediction of both the mass ratio hypothesis and niche complementarity hypothesis in fertilized communities, but these hypotheses were not mutually exclusive. The combination of different aspects of biodiversity not only provides a crucial tool to explain the variation in productivity and to understand the underlying mechanisms but also plays an important role in predicting the variation in productivity of alpine meadow communities, which are sensitive to nutrient enrichment in the context of global change. Abstract : A fertilization experiment with adjunction of nitrogen, phosphorus, and their mixture was conducted in an alpine meadow of the Tibetan Plateau to explore the limitation of different nutrient on the productivity, as well as the effect of different aspects of biodiversity on variation of productivity after fertilization. We found that the productivity of alpine meadow plant community is N and P colimitation, with N being the principal and P being the secondary limiting nutrient. Our results also demonstrated that both mass ratio hypothesis and niche complementary hypothesis existed in fertilization community but not mutually exclusive of each other. Moreover, the combination of different aspects of biodiversity not only is a crucial tool to explain variation of productivity and understand the mechanisms, but also plays an important role in predicting the productivity variation in alpine meadow which is regarded as an ecosystem sensitive to nutrient enrichment.