Effects of parasitic plant Cistanche deserticola on chlorophyll a fluorescence and nutrient accumulation of host plant Haloxylon ammodendron in the Taklimakan Desert

The parasitic plant Cistanche deserticola attaches to Haloxylon ammodendron, a perennial shrub with high tolerance to salinity and drought. However, little was known about the parasite-host relation between the two species. Effects of the parasite on chlorophyll a fluorescence and nutrient accumulation in the host plant (H. ammodendron) were investigated in the Taklimakan Desert. Some photosynthetic parameters of both host and non-host H. ammodendron plants were measured by in vivo chlorophyll a fluorescence technology in the field. The assimilating branches of host and non-host plants were collected and nutrient and inorganic ion contents were analyzed. The results from field experiments showed that the infection of C. deserticola reduced the non-photochemical quenching of the variable chlorophyll fluorescence (NPQ) and the potential maximum quantum yield for primary photochemistry (F v /F m ) of the host. Compared with non-host plants, the host H. ammodendron had low nutrient, low inorganic ion contents (Na + and K + ) and low K + /Na + ratios in the assimilating branches. It suggested that C. deserticola infection reduced the nutrient acquisition and caused damage to the photoprotection through thermal dissipation of the energy of the photosystem II in the host, resulting in a decrease in the tolerance to salinity and high radiation. It was concluded that the attachment of the parasite plant (C. deserticola) had negative effects on the growth of its host.     

Effects of vegetation types on soil water dynamics during vegetation restoration in the Mu Us Sandy Land,northwestern China

The arid and semi-arid northwestern China has been undergoing ecological degradation and the efforts to reverse the ecological degradation have been undertaken for many years. Some shifting dunes have been fixed and the vegetation has been partially recovered in certain areas and the Mu Us Sandy Land in the Ordos Plateau is an example of the success. The present study attempts to reveal the relationships between the vegetation restoration and ecohydrology in the Mu Us Sandy Land. We continuously measured soil water content at 10-min intervals under three vegetation types(i.e., shifting dune, shrub-dominated community, and herb-dominated community) in the Mu Us Sandy Land from April 2012 to October 2013. The results show the infiltration coefficient increased with increased rainfall amount and eventually reached a stable value. Infiltration coefficients were 0.91, 0.64, and 0.74 in the shifting dune, in the shrub-dominated community, and in the herb-dominated community, respectively. Cumulative infiltration and soil texture are two vital factors affecting the depths of rainfall penetration. Only rainfall events larger than 35.0 mm could recharge soil water at the 60–80 cm layer in the herb-dominated community. Our results imply that the expected forward succession of restored vegetation may be destined to deterioration after reaching the climax simply because of following two facts:(1) soil water is mainly retained at shallower layer and(2) plant fine roots mainly distribute in deeper layer in the herb-dominated community.     

Scale dependence of plant species richness and vegetation-environment relationship along a gradient of dune stabilization in Horqin Sandy Land,Northern China

Ecological patterns and processes in dune ecosystems have been a research focus in recent years, however the information on how dune stabilization influences the spatial scale dependence of plant diversity is still lacking. In this study, we measured the plant species richness, soil properties and altitude across four spatial scales(1, 10, 100 and 1,000 m2) at three different dune stabilization stages(mobile dune, semi-fixed dune and fixed dune) in Horqin Sandy Land, Northern China. We also examined the relationships between plant species richness, community composition and environmental factors along the gradient of dune stabilization. Our results showed that plant species richness increased with the increase of spatial scales in each dune stabilization stage, as well as with the increase of dune stabilization degrees. Canonical correspondence analysis(CCA) showed that plant distribu- tions in the processes of dune stabilization were determined by the combined environmental gradient in relation to soil organic carbon(SOC), total nitrogen(TN), carbon/nitrogen(C/N), pH, electrical conductivity(EC), soil water content(SWC), fine sand(FS), very fine sand(VFS), silt and clay(SC), and altitude. Plant species richness was significantly and positively correlated to SOC and TN in mobile dune, and significantly and positively correlated to SOC, TN, C/N, VFS and SC in semi-fixed dune. However, no significant correlation between plant species richness and environmental factors was observed in fixed dune. In addition, plant species richness in different dune stabili- zation stages was also determined by the combined gradient of soil properties and altitude. These results suggest that plant species richness has obvious scale dependence along the gradient of dune stabilization. Soil resources depending on dune habitats and environmental gradients caused by dune stabilization are important factors to de- termine the scale dependence of species diversity in sand dune ecosystems.     

围栏禁牧对毛乌素沙地土壤理化特征的影响

过度放牧导致干旱半干旱区毛乌素沙地草地严重退化。通过禁牧措施排除放牧干扰,使草地自然恢复,作为一种低投入的措施在世界各国退化草地生态系统恢复中得到广泛采用。文中对毛乌素沙地三种不同管理类型(持续放牧、围栏5年和围栏16年)土壤理化性状进行了研究,研究结果显示:围栏禁牧5年对0～30cm土壤颗粒组成和容重没有显著影响;围栏禁牧16年0～10cm土壤容重显著小于持续放牧区,而极细沙、粉粒和粘粒含量显著高于持续放牧区;围栏5年显著增加了0～5cm土壤有机碳,而0～30cm的全氮均没有显著增加。围栏16年土壤有机碳较放牧区在0～5cm、5～10cm、10～30cm分别显著增加了231%、81%、55%;全氮含量的变化趋势与之相同。结果表明,围栏5年对土壤粘粉粒、全氮含量的恢复基本没有效果;围栏16年能显著增加表层土壤粘粉粒含量和有机碳、全氮,但土壤碳、氮水平还是在比较低的水平(有机碳:4.30g.kg-1;全氮:0.74g.kg-1),即长期禁牧可以逐渐改善土壤质地和提高土壤肥力。研究结果为半干旱退化沙质草地生态系统的恢复、重建及管理提供科学依据。     

Effect of spatial scale and topography on spatial heterogeneity of soil seed banks under grazing disturbance in a sandy grassland of Horqin Sand Land, Northern China

Soil seed banks play an important role in the distribution and composition of plant communities in semiarid grassland ecosystems.However,information on how spatial scale influences the spatial heterogeneity of soil seed banks in a grassland under grazing disturbance is still lacking.Based on field sampling and greenhouse germination,we measured the species composition and seed density of soil seed banks at different spatial scales (30 m×30 m,30 m×60 m and 30 m×90 m)along a topographical gradient in a sandy grassland in Horqin Sand Land, Northern China.By applying geostatistical methods,we examined how spatial scale and topography affected the spatial distribution of soil seed banks in the study area.Our results showed that the total number of species in soil seed banks,as well as the number of dominant annuals,increased with the increase of spatial scales.Seed density in soil seed banks decreased with the increase of spatial scales due to an increase in the slopes and relative heights of the sampling points.Geostatistical analysis showed that the relative structural variance(C/(C0+C))of seed density and species richness were over 65%for all spatial scales,indicating that these variables had an obvious spatial autocorrelation and the spatial structured variance accounted for the largest proportion of the total sample variance.Spatial autocorrelation of seed density in soil seed banks increased with the increase of measured scales,while that of species richness showed a reverse trend.These results suggest that the total number of species in soil seed banks is spatial scale dependent and lower topography may accommodate more seeds.Spatial distribution of seed density in soil seed banks is also scale dependent due to topographic variation.Grassland management,therefore,needs to consider local grazing disturbance regime,spatial scale and topography.