Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession

Plant diversity plays an important role in maintaining the stability of ecosystem functioning. Based on field surveys and indoor analyses, this study investigated the relationship between species diversity and community stability at different stages of bare patch succession in degraded alpine meadow...

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Main Authors: Yandi She, Xilai Li, Chengyi Li, Pengnian Yang, Zihan Song, Jing Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-10-01
Series:Plants
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/20/3582
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author Yandi She
Xilai Li
Chengyi Li
Pengnian Yang
Zihan Song
Jing Zhang
author_facet Yandi She
Xilai Li
Chengyi Li
Pengnian Yang
Zihan Song
Jing Zhang
author_sort Yandi She
collection DOAJ
description Plant diversity plays an important role in maintaining the stability of ecosystem functioning. Based on field surveys and indoor analyses, this study investigated the relationship between species diversity and community stability at different stages of bare patch succession in degraded alpine meadow ecosystems. Results show that: (1) Using the ICV (the Inverse of the Coefficient of Variation) method to analyze changes in plant community stability, community stability was generally ranked as follows: Long-term recovered patches > Healthy alpine meadow > Degraded alpine meadow > Short-term recovered patch > Bare Patches. (2) Using factor analysis to construct an evaluation system, the stability ranking based on species diversity was as follows: Healthy alpine meadow > Long-term recovered patches > Degraded alpine meadow > Short-term recovered patches > Bare Patches. (3) The community stability index was significantly positively correlated with vegetation coverage, height, biomass, species richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity index, species evenness, and Simpson’s diversity index (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Therefore, a positive correlation exists between plant diversity and community stability, such that plant communities with a higher species diversity tend to be more stable. To maintain the plant diversity and community stability of alpine meadow ecosystems, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of grassland plant composition and community structure, as well as their influencing factors, and promote the positive succession process of grasslands.
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spelling doaj.art-a98fa1150b7547ad9b5b1671451640d02023-11-19T17:49:05ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472023-10-011220358210.3390/plants12203582Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch SuccessionYandi She0Xilai Li1Chengyi Li2Pengnian Yang3Zihan Song4Jing Zhang5College of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaCollege of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaCollege of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaCollege of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaCollege of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaCollege of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, Qinghai University, Xining 810016, ChinaPlant diversity plays an important role in maintaining the stability of ecosystem functioning. Based on field surveys and indoor analyses, this study investigated the relationship between species diversity and community stability at different stages of bare patch succession in degraded alpine meadow ecosystems. Results show that: (1) Using the ICV (the Inverse of the Coefficient of Variation) method to analyze changes in plant community stability, community stability was generally ranked as follows: Long-term recovered patches > Healthy alpine meadow > Degraded alpine meadow > Short-term recovered patch > Bare Patches. (2) Using factor analysis to construct an evaluation system, the stability ranking based on species diversity was as follows: Healthy alpine meadow > Long-term recovered patches > Degraded alpine meadow > Short-term recovered patches > Bare Patches. (3) The community stability index was significantly positively correlated with vegetation coverage, height, biomass, species richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity index, species evenness, and Simpson’s diversity index (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Therefore, a positive correlation exists between plant diversity and community stability, such that plant communities with a higher species diversity tend to be more stable. To maintain the plant diversity and community stability of alpine meadow ecosystems, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of grassland plant composition and community structure, as well as their influencing factors, and promote the positive succession process of grasslands.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/20/3582successionpatchily degraded alpine meadowspecies diversitycommunity stabilitystability evaluation
spellingShingle Yandi She
Xilai Li
Chengyi Li
Pengnian Yang
Zihan Song
Jing Zhang
Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
Plants
succession
patchily degraded alpine meadow
species diversity
community stability
stability evaluation
title Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
title_full Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
title_fullStr Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
title_full_unstemmed Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
title_short Relationship between Species Diversity and Community Stability in Degraded Alpine Meadows during Bare Patch Succession
title_sort relationship between species diversity and community stability in degraded alpine meadows during bare patch succession
topic succession
patchily degraded alpine meadow
species diversity
community stability
stability evaluation
url https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/20/3582
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AT pengnianyang relationshipbetweenspeciesdiversityandcommunitystabilityindegradedalpinemeadowsduringbarepatchsuccession
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