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doi:10.1111/gcb.2007.13.issue-2

Cited by 12 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…the mechanisms driving local changes in vegetation, biodiversity dynamics, and ecosystemic processes than traditional diversity indices of species richness (Díaz et al, 2007;Hillebrand & Matthiessen, 2009;Hooper et al, 2005;Pfestorf et al, 2013).…”

Section: Functional Composition and Diversity Can Provide Clearer Insmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fertilization and disturbance intensity, for instance, have been closely linked to these functional indices before (Hooper et al, 2005;Pakeman, 2011;Sala, 2000;Socher et al, 2013), and their effects have been well studied (e.g., Díaz et al, 2007;Garnier et al, 2007;Laliberte et al, 2010). Fertilization, for example, favors species with high levels of vegetative growth and seed output (Lavorel & Garnier, 2002), whereas disturbance, such as mowing or herbivory, tend to select for short, rosette-forming species producing either many small or few large diaspores (Díaz et al, 2007;Lienin & Kleyer, 2011). In contrast, decreasing land use can lead to the dominance of both tall-and small-growing plants with conservative traits of foliar economy such as low-specific leaf area (SLA), high leaf dry matter content (LDMC), and delayed flowering (Garnier et al, 2007;McIntyre, 2008).…”

Section: Functional Composition and Diversity Can Provide Clearer Insmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These species are usually highly productive species with high nutrient acquisition rates in productive environments, quickly investing nutrients in high-quality biomass and growth (Díaz et al, 2007). Species with high LDMC, on the other hand, show higher leaf durability and lower decomposition rate, thus higher nutrient conservation rates and decreased palatability often occur in unproductive, nutrient-poor, and rather undisturbed, unmanaged environments.…”

Section: Plant Functional Traitsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Heavy, nonselective grazing pressure has been frequently associated with the promotion of small-growing species with a rosette or stoloniferous architecture and a fast regrowth of high-quality, very palatable tissue (Díaz et al, 2007;Westoby, 1998). This strategy is indicative of a grazing tolerance, as species are able to cope with frequent destruction of aboveground biomass.…”

Section: Land-use Type and Intensitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Under drier conditions or moderate, selective grazing, however, a grazing avoidance strategy is more useful. Prostrate and perennial, slow-growing species, investing in the production of tough, long-lived, and rather unpalatable tissues are promoted under these conditions (Díaz et al, 2007;Pakeman, 2004).…”

Section: Land-use Type and Intensitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Nutrient stoichiometry and land use rather than species richness determine plant functional diversity

Busch

Klaus

Penone

et al. 2017

Ecology and Evolution

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Plant functional traits reflect individual and community ecological strategies. They allow the detection of directional changes in community dynamics and ecosystemic processes, being an additional tool to assess biodiversity than species richness. Analysis of functional patterns in plant communities provides mechanistic insight into biodiversity alterations due to anthropogenic activity. Although studies have consi‐dered of either anthropogenic management or nutrient availability on functional traits in temperate grasslands, studies combining effects of both drivers are scarce. Here, we assessed the impacts of management intensity (fertilization, mowing, grazing), nutrient stoichiometry (C, N, P, K), and vegetation composition on community‐weighted means (CWMs) and functional diversity (Rao's Q) from seven plant traits in 150 grasslands in three regions in Germany, using data of 6 years. Land use and nutrient stoichiometry accounted for larger proportions of model variance of CWM and Rao's Q than species richness and productivity. Grazing affected all analyzed trait groups; fertilization and mowing only impacted generative traits. Grazing was clearly associated with nutrient retention strategies, that is, investing in durable structures and production of fewer, less variable seed. Phenological variability was increased. Fertilization and mowing decreased seed number/mass variability, indicating competition‐related effects. Impacts of nutrient stoichiometry on trait syndromes varied. Nutrient limitation (large N:P, C:N ratios) promoted species with conservative strategies, that is, investment in durable plant structures rather than fast growth, fewer seed, and delayed flowering onset. In contrast to seed mass, leaf‐economics variability was reduced under P shortage. Species diversity was positively associated with the variability of generative traits. Synthesis. Here, land use, nutrient availability, species richness, and plant functional strategies have been shown to interact complexly, driving community composition, and vegetation responses to management intensity. We suggest that deeper understanding of underlying mechanisms shaping community assembly and biodiversity will require analyzing all these parameters.

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Section: Functional Composition and Diversity Can Provide Clearer Insmentioning

confidence: 99%