Effects of Grazing on Above- vs. Below-Ground Biomass Allocation of Alpine Grasslands on the Northern Tibetan Plateau.

ABSTRACT: Biomass allocation is an essential concept for understanding above- vs. below-ground functions and for predicting the dynamics of community structure and ecosystem service under ongoing climate change. There is rare available knowledge of grazing effects on biomass allocation in multiple zonal alpine grassland types along climatic gradients across the Northern Tibetan Plateau. We collected the peak above- and below-ground biomass (AGB and BGB) values at 106 pairs of well-matched grazed vs. fenced sites during summers of 2010-2013, of which 33 pairs were subject to meadow, 52 to steppe and 21 to desert-steppe. The aboveground net primary productivity (ANPP) was represented by the peak AGB while the belowground net primary productivity (BNPP) was estimated from ANPP, the ratio of living vs.

SUBMITTER: Zeng C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4540449 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature