Impacts of burrows and mounds formed by plateau rodents on plant species diversity on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau
Ruixin Wu A B , Qi Chai C , Jianquan Zhang C , Mengying Zhong A , Yuehua Liu A , Xiaoting Wei A , Duo Pan A and Xinqing Shao A D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Grassland Science Department, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
B Pratacultural College, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730070, China.
C College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, China.
D Corresponding author. Email: shaoxinqing@163.com
The Rangeland Journal 37(1) 117-123 https://doi.org/10.1071/RJ14056
Submitted: 29 April 2014 Accepted: 15 December 2014 Published: 5 February 2015
Abstract
The relationships among environmental factors, rodent activity disturbance and plant-community diversity were studied across four sites in a prefecture of the ‘Three-River-Source’ region of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. It was found that burrow number and mound area had little impact on plant diversity indices, which were mainly affected by altitude, soil total P and pH. Altitude and mound area, especially mound area, can strongly affect the aboveground biomass and the vegetation cover of plants was mainly influenced by mound area. There was some evidence that moderate levels of disturbance by rodents could lead to the highest levels of plant diversity. These findings indicated that moderate levels of disturbance by rodents may be beneficial to grassland productivity and plant diversity. Understanding these impacts is vital for better rangeland management practices so that rodents should be controlled within a suitable range rather than being exterminated.
Additional keywords: alpine meadow, environmental factor, plant-community diversity. rodent activity disturbance, ‘Three-River-Source’ region.
References
Dong, Q. M., Ma, Y. S., Li, Q. Y., Zhao, X. Q., Wang, Q. J., and Shi, J. J. (2005). Effects of stocking rates for Yak on community composition and plant diversity in Kobresia parva alpine meadow warm season pasture. Acta Botanica Boreali-Occidentalia Sinica 25, 94–101.Dong, S. K., Li, J. P., and Li, X. Y. (2010). Application of design theory for restoring the “black beach” degraded rangeland at the headwater areas of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. African Journal of Agricultural Research 5, 3542–3552.
Downhower, J. F., and Hall, E. R. (1966). ‘The Pocket Gopher in Kansas.’ (State Biological Survey of Kansas: Lawrence, KS, USA.)
Foster, M. A., and Stubbendieck, J. (1980). Effects of the plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) on rangeland. Journal of Range Management 33, 74–78.
| Effects of the plains pocket gopher (Geomys bursarius) on rangeland.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Grant, W. E., and McBeayer, J. F. (1981). Effects of California gopher as agents in soil formation. Journal of Mammalogy 4, 137–149.
Guo, Z. G., Cheng, G. D., and Wang, G. X. (2004). Plant diversity of alpine Kobresia Meadow in the northern region of the Tibetan plateau. Journal of Glaciology and Geocryology 26, 95–100.
Hankins, J., Launchbaugh, K., and Hyde, G. (2004). Rangeland inventory as a tool for science education: program pairs range professionals, teachers and students together to conduct vegetation measurements and teach inquiry-based science. Rangelands 26, 28–32.
| Rangeland inventory as a tool for science education: program pairs range professionals, teachers and students together to conduct vegetation measurements and teach inquiry-based science.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
He, J. L., Zhang, J. S., Yang, Y. F., Deng, H. G., Wei, J. Z., and Zhang, W. G. (2006). The study of patterns and characteristics of plateau zokor mound. Acta Prataculturae Sinica 15, 107–112.
Hector, A., Bazeley-White, E., Loreau, M., Otway, S., and Schmid, B. (2002). Over yielding in grassland communities: testing the sampling effect hypothesis with replicated biodiversity experiments. Ecology Letters 5, 502–511.
| Over yielding in grassland communities: testing the sampling effect hypothesis with replicated biodiversity experiments.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
ISSCAS (1978). ‘Physical and Chemical Analytical Methods of Soil.’ (Shanghai Science Technology Press: Shanghai, China.) [In Chinese]
Jiang, X. L., Zhang, W. G., Yang, Z. Y., and Du, G. Z. (2004). Plant diversity variations in zokor-mound communities along a successional stage. Journal of Applied Ecology 15, 814–818.
Kutiel, P., Lavee, H., and Ackerman, O. (1998). Spatial distribution of soil surface coverage on northern and southern slopes along a climatic gradient. Geomorphology 23, 245–256.
| Spatial distribution of soil surface coverage on northern and southern slopes along a climatic gradient.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Laycock, W. A. (1958). The initial pattern of re-vegetation of pocket gopher mounds. Ecology 39, 346–351.
| The initial pattern of re-vegetation of pocket gopher mounds.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Le Brocque, A. F., and Buckney, R. T. (2003). Species richness–environment relationships within coastal sclerophyll and mesophyll vegetation in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, New South Wales, Australia. Austral Ecology 28, 404–412.
| Species richness–environment relationships within coastal sclerophyll and mesophyll vegetation in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, New South Wales, Australia.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Li, Y. F., Lai, D. Z., and Zhou, M. X. (1999). Rat and insect controls in grassland of Guoluo Prefecture Chinese Qinghai. Journal of Animal and Veterinary Sciences 29, 16–17.
| 1:CAS:528:DyaK1MXmsVaht70%3D&md5=29c1f7d41f6907ab703d8cbec7646c45CAS |
Lindsey, A., Crankshaw, W. B., and Qadir, S. A. (1965). Soil relations and distribution map of the vegetation of pre-settlement Indiana. Botanical Gazette 126, 155–163.
| Soil relations and distribution map of the vegetation of pre-settlement Indiana.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Liu, X. D. (2010). Study on information extraction and the dynamic monitoring of grassland coverage in Three River Source Area. MSc Thesis, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China. [In Chinese]
Liu, W., and Wang, Q. J. (1999). Ecological process of forming ‘black soil-type’ degraded grassland. Acta Agrestia Sinica 7, 300–307.
Liu, W., Xu, Q. M., Wang, X., Zhao, J. Z., and Zhou, L. (2010). Influence of burrowing activity of plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) on nitrogen in soils. Acta Theriologia Sinica 30, 35–44.
| 1:CAS:528:DC%2BC3cXmvVOrsr0%3D&md5=654b36b41f213208c514995a239acfadCAS |
Loreau, M. (2000). Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: recent theoretical advances. Oikos 91, 3–17.
| Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: recent theoretical advances.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Loreau, M., Naeem, S., Inchausti, P., Bengtsson, J., Grime, J. P., Hector, A., Hooper, D. U., Huston, M. A., Raffaelli, D., Schmid, B., Tilman, D., and Wardle, D. A. (2001). Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: current knowledge and future challenges. Science 294, 804–808.
| Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning: current knowledge and future challenges.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:CAS:528:DC%2BD3MXotVCitLw%3D&md5=a10bb8737c0cef0cd91e2d887e7d43a3CAS | 11679658PubMed |
Naeem, S., and Li, S. B. (1997). Biodiversity enhances ecosystem reliability. Nature 390, 507–509.
| Biodiversity enhances ecosystem reliability.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:CAS:528:DyaK2sXnvF2gur4%3D&md5=2401a62e0e4e8cecdeec5106616b194dCAS |
National Soil Survey Office (1998). ‘Soils of China.’ (China Agricultural Press: Beijing, China.) [In Chinese]
Schaffers, A. P. (2002). Soil, biomass, and management of semi-natural vegetation. Part II. Factors controlling species diversity. Plant Ecology 158, 247–268.
| Soil, biomass, and management of semi-natural vegetation. Part II. Factors controlling species diversity.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Spencer, S. R., Cameron, G. N., Eshelman, B. D., Cooper, L. C., and Williams, L. R. (1985). Influence of pocket gopher mounds on a Texas coastal prairie. Oecologia 66, 111–115.
| Influence of pocket gopher mounds on a Texas coastal prairie.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Sun, F. D., Long, R. J., and Lu, C. X. (2010). Effects of plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) burrow densities on plant community composition and population diversity in alpine meadow. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment 24, 181–186.
Tilman, D. (1987). Secondary succession and the pattern of plant dominance along experimental nutrient gradients. Ecological Monographs 57, 189–214.
| Secondary succession and the pattern of plant dominance along experimental nutrient gradients.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Turner, G. T., Hansen, R. M., Rrid, V. H., Tietijen, H. P., and Ward, A. L. (1973). ‘Pocket Gophers and Colorado Mountain Rangeland.’ Colorado State University Experiment Station Bulletin 554S. (Colorado State University Experiment Station: Fort Collins, CO, USA.)
Waide, R. B., Willig, M. R., Steiner, C. F., Mittelbach, G., Gough, L., Dodson, S. I., Juday, G. P., and Parmenter, R. (1999). The relationship between productivity and species richness. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 30, 257–300.
| The relationship between productivity and species richness.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Wang, W. Y., and Wang, Q. J. (2001). The structure and plant species diversity of the degraded ecosystems in alpine kobresia meadow. Acta Prataculturae Sinica 10, 8–14.
Wang, C. T., Wang, Q. J., Long, R. J., Zeng, J. C., and Shi, H. L. (2004). Changes in plant species diversity and productivity along an elevation gradient in an Alpine Meadow. Acta Phytoecologica Sinica 28, 240–245.
Wang, W. Y., Wang, Q. J., Zeng, J. C., Li, S. X., and Shi, H. L. (2006). Effects of vegetation cover change of alpine kobersia meadow on plant community structure and diversity in source region of the Yangtze and Yellow River. Resources Science 28, 118–124.
Wen, L., Dong, S. K., Zhu, L., Shi, J. J., Liu, D. M., Wang, Y. L., and Ma, Y. S. (2011). The effect of natural factors and disturbance intensity on spatial heterogeneity of plant diversity in alpine meadow. Acta Ecologica Sinica 31, 1844–1854.
Williams, L. R., and Cameron, G. N. (1986). Effects of removal of pocket gophers on a Texas coastal prairie. American Midland Naturalist 115, 216–223.
| Effects of removal of pocket gophers on a Texas coastal prairie.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Zhang, J. E. (2006). ‘Ecological Experimental Research Method and Technique.’ (Publishing Company of Chemistry Industry: Beijing, China.) [In Chinese]
Zhang, Y. M., and Liu, J. K. (2002). Effects of plateau zokors on vegetation characteristics and productivity of alpine meadow. Acta Theriologica Sinica 22, 201–211.
Zhang, Y. M., Fan, N. C., and Wang, Q. Y. (1999). Effects of environmental factors on population abundance of plateau zokor. Acta Biologica Plateau Sinica 14, 101–109.
Zhang, Y. M., Zhang, Z. B., and Liu, J. K. (2003). Burrowing rodents are ecosystem engineers: the ecology and management of plateau zokors Myospalax fontanierii in alpine meadow ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau. Mammal Review 33, 284–294.
| Burrowing rodents are ecosystem engineers: the ecology and management of plateau zokors Myospalax fontanierii in alpine meadow ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Zhang, W. G., Jiang, X. L., Wang, S. M., and Yang, Z. Y. (2004). Effects of mound-building activity of zokor (Myospalax baileyi) and different regimes of grazing-prohibited on vegetation productivity. Acta Botanica Boreali-Occidentalia Sinica 24, 1882–1887.
Zhao, G. Q., Li, G. Y., Ma, W. H., Zhao, D. Z., and Li, X. Y. (2013). Impacts of Ochotona pallasi disturbance on alpine grassland community characteristics. Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology 24, 2122–2128.
| 24380328PubMed |
Zhou, X. R., Guo, Z. G., and Guo, X. H. (2010). The role of plateau pika and plateall zokor in alpine meadow. Pratacultural Science 27, 38–44.
| 1:CAS:528:DC%2BC3cXhtVCqtLvI&md5=d1f22af52c5e75df3c0da36d56eb40feCAS |
Zohary, M., and Feinbrun-Dothan, N. (1966). ‘Flora Palaestina.’ Vol. 1–4. pp. 45–48. (Goldberg’s Press: Jerusalem, Israel.)
