Direct and indirect effects of dominant plants on ecosystem multifunctionality

Jingwei Chen; Ziyang Liu; Hanwen Cui; Hongxian Song; Jiajia Wang; Haining Gao; Shuyan Chen; Kun Liu; Zi Yang; Yajun Wang; Xiangtai Wang; Xiaoli Yang; Lihua Meng; Lizhe An; Sa Xiao; Yoann Le Bagousse-Pinguet

doi:10.3389/fpls.2023.1117903

Frontiers in Plant Science (Mar 2023)

Direct and indirect effects of dominant plants on ecosystem multifunctionality

Jingwei Chen,
Ziyang Liu,
Hanwen Cui,
Hongxian Song,
Jiajia Wang,
Haining Gao,
Shuyan Chen,
Kun Liu,
Zi Yang,
Yajun Wang,
Xiangtai Wang,
Xiaoli Yang,
Lihua Meng,
Lizhe An,
Sa Xiao,
Yoann Le Bagousse-Pinguet

Affiliations

Jingwei Chen: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Ziyang Liu: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Hanwen Cui: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Hongxian Song: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Jiajia Wang: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Haining Gao: College of Life Science and Engineering, Hexi University, Zhangye, Gansu, China
Shuyan Chen: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Kun Liu: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Zi Yang: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Yajun Wang: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Xiangtai Wang: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Xiaoli Yang: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Lihua Meng: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Lizhe An: Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Sa Xiao: State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, China
Yoann Le Bagousse-Pinguet: Aix Marseille Univ, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, Avignon Université, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d’Écologie marine et continentale, Technopôle Arbois-Méditerranée, Aix-en-Provence, France

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2023.1117903
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 14

Abstract

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Biodiversity is essential for the provision of multiple ecosystem functions simultaneously (ecosystem multifunctionality EMF). Yet, it remains unclear whether and how dominant plant species impact EMF. Here, we aimed at disentangling the direct from indirect above- and belowground pathways by which dominant plant species influence EMF. We evaluated the effects of two dominant plant species (Dasiphora fruticosa, and the toxic perennial plant Ligularia virgaurea) with expected positive and negative impacts on the abiotic environment (soil water content and pH), surrounding biological communities (plant and nematode richness, biomass, and abundance in the vicinity), and on the EMF of alpine meadows, respectively. We found that the two dominant plants enhanced EMF, with a positive effect of L. virgaurea on EMF greater than that of D. fruticosa. We also observed that dominant plants impacted on EMF through changes in soil water content and pH (indirect abiotic effects), but not through changes in biodiversity of surrounding plants and nematodes (indirect biotic pathway). Our study suggests that dominant plants may play an important role in promoting EMF, thus expanding the pervasive mass-ratio hypothesis originally framed for individual functions, and could mitigate the negative impacts of vegetation changes on EMF in the alpine meadows.

Published in Frontiers in Plant Science

ISSN: 1664-462X (Online)
Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Agriculture: Plant culture
Website: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science

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