Inter‐annual variation in primary production of a semi‐arid grassland related to previous‐year production

Oesterheld, Martín; Loreti, Juan; Semmartin, María; Sala, Osvaldo E.

doi:10.1111/j.1654-1103.2001.tb02624.x

Cited by 117 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…Previous studies in grasslands have reported a correlation between current and previous-year precipitation with ANPP and implied causality (Lauenroth and Sala 1992, Knapp et al 1998, Jobba´gy and Sala 2000, Oesterheld et al 2001. We suggest that this work represents a step forward in our understanding because it experimentally tested the hypothesis of the lags and it proposes a mechanism.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

Vegetation Structure Constrains Primary Production Response to Water Availability in the Patagonian Steppe

Yahdjian

Sala

2006

Ecology

Self Cite

238

212

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Grassland aboveground net primary production (ANPP) increases linearly with precipitation in space and time, but temporal models relating time series of ANPP and annual precipitation for single sites show lower slopes and regression coefficients than are shown by spatial models. The analysis of several ANPP time series showed lags in the ecosystem response to increased water availability, which may explain the difference between spatial and temporal models. The lags may result from constraints that ecosystems experience after drought. Our objective was to explore the structural constraints of the ANPP response to rainfall variability in a semiarid ecosystem, the Patagonian steppe, in southern Argentina. We designed a 3-yr rainfall manipulation experiment where we decreased water input with rainout shelters during two consecutive years, which included three levels of rainfall interception (30%, 55%, and 80%) and a control. In the third year, we irrigated one-half of the plots of each rainfall-interception treatment. We evaluated the immediate effects of drought on current-year ANPP and the effects of previous-year drought on vegetation recovery after water supplementation. ANPP (g x m(-2) x yr(-1)) was linearly related to annual precipitation input (APPT; mm/yr) along the experimental precipitation gradient (ANPP = 0.13 x APPT + 58.3; r2 = 0.34, P < 0.01), and this relationship was mostly accounted for by changes in the ANPP of grasses. Plant density (D; no. individuals/mm2) was related to the precipitation received during the drought period (D = 0.11 x APPT + 18; r2 = 0.39, P < 0.05). The recovery of plants after irrigation was lower for those plots that had experienced experimental drought the previous years relative to controls, and the lags were proportional to the intensity of drought. Therefore, our results suggest that the density of plants may constrain the recovery of vegetation after drought, and these constraints may determine lags that limit the capacity of the ecosystem to take advantage of wet years after dry years.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

Vegetation Structure Constrains Primary Production Response to Water Availability in the Patagonian Steppe

Yahdjian

Sala

2006

Ecology

Self Cite

238

212

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“…If the previous year had conditions conducive to high flowering rates, then many of the individuals who flowered the previous year may not have the resources necessary to flower in the current year regardless of environmental conditions. Evidence for lagged effects of precipitation on ANPP has been found in other systems (Cable 1975; Oesterheld et al. 2001; Wiegand et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 58%

“…The previous year’s climate has been shown to play a role in determining ANPP in other systems (Cable 1975; Oesterheld et al. 2001; Wiegand et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Explaining temporal variation in above-ground productivity in a mesic grassland: the role of climate and flowering

et al. 2011

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Summary1. Annual above-ground net primary productivity (ANPP) in mesic grasslands is known to be highly temporally variable. While yearly precipitation or average yearly temperature can explain some of this temporal variability, much of the variation in ANPP remains unexplained. 2. Here we address the heretofore unexplained variation in 25 years of productivity data from a mesic grassland at Konza Prairie (north-eastern Kansas) by examining the effects of precipitation and temperature during periods relevant to the phenology and growth cycle of the dominant C 4 grasses and the flowering stalk production of these species. We assessed both the direct effects and indirect effects via flowering of phenologically relevant climate periods on ANPP using structural equation modelling (SEM). 3. We found ANPP to be strongly positively influenced by flowering stalk production of the dominant C 4 grasses, precipitation during periods relevant to vegetative growth (15 April-14 July) and flowering stalk elongation (15 July-14 August) of the dominant grasses, and fire. In addition, flowering stalk production was negatively influenced by high temperatures during the flowering stalk elongation period, which therefore resulted in a negative indirect effect on ANPP. We found little evidence for the effects of the previous year's total annual precipitation or mean annual temperature on ANPP. 4. By including flowering stalk production and separating climate variables into phenologically relevant periods we were able to increase the percentage of observed variance in ANPP explained by six models, relating to different topographic positions and burn regimes, from an average of 22% to 48%, with the best model explaining 61% of variation in ANPP. 5. Synthesis. The link between climatic periods relevant to the phenology and growth of dominant C 4 grasses, flowering stalk production of these grasses and ANPP shown here improves our ability to predict productivity in mesic grasslands, an ecologically and economically important ecosystem.

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“…In semiarid systems, the cover of clonal forage grasses can be highly variable from year to year (Craddock and Forsling 1938, Lauenroth and Sala 1992, Oesterheld et al 2001. Because the importance of growth, survival, and recruitment vary with genet size, the size distribution of the populations may help to inform management strategies.…”

Section: Population Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

Climate influences the demography of three dominant sagebrush steppe plants

Dalgleish

Koons

Hooten

et al. 2011

Ecology

108

120

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Climate change could alter the population growth of dominant species, leading to profound effects on community structure and ecosystem dynamics. Understanding the links between historical variation in climate and population vital rates (survival, growth, recruitment) is one way to predict the impact of future climate change. Using a unique, long-term data set from eastern Idaho, USA, we parameterized integral projection models (IPMs) for Pseudoroegneria spicata, Hesperostipa comata, and Artemisia tripartita to identify the demographic rates and climate variables most important for population growth. We described survival, growth, and recruitment as a function of genet size using mixed-effect regression models that incorporated climate variables. Elasticites for the survival + growth portion of the kernel were larger than the recruitment portion for all three species, with survival + growth accounting for 87-95% of the total elasticity. The genet sizes with the highest elasticity values in each species were very close to the genet size threshold where survival approached 100%. We found strong effects of climate on the population growth rate of two of our three species. In H. comata, a 1% decrease in previous year's precipitation would lead to a 0.6% decrease in population growth. In A. tripartita, a 1% increase in summer temperature would result in a 1.3% increase in population growth. In both H. comata and A. tripartita, climate influenced population growth by affecting genet growth more than survival or recruitment. Late-winter snow was the most important climate variable for P. spicata, but its effect on population growth was smaller than the climate effects we found in H. comata or A. tripartita. For all three species, demographic responses lagged climate by at least one year. Our analysis indicates that understanding climate effects on genet growth may be crucial for anticipating future changes in the structure and function of sagebrush steppe vegetation.

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Inter‐annual variation in primary production of a semi‐arid grassland related to previous‐year production

Cited by 117 publications

References 20 publications

Vegetation Structure Constrains Primary Production Response to Water Availability in the Patagonian Steppe

Vegetation Structure Constrains Primary Production Response to Water Availability in the Patagonian Steppe

Explaining temporal variation in above-ground productivity in a mesic grassland: the role of climate and flowering

Climate influences the demography of three dominant sagebrush steppe plants

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