Disturbance of plateau zokor-made mound stimulates plant community regeneration in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China  

作　　者：XIANG Zeyu Arvind BHATT TANG Zhongbin PENG Yansong WU Weifeng ZHANG Jiaxin WANG Jingxuan David GALLACHER ZHOU Saixia 

机构地区：[1]Lushan Botanical Garden,Chinese Academy of Sciences,Jiujiang 332900,China [2]School of Life and Environmental Sciences,The University of Sydney,Narrabri NSW 2390,Australia

出　　处：《Journal of Arid Land》2021年第10期1054-1070,共17页干旱区科学（英文版）

基　　金：This study was funded by the Lushan Plant Special Project of Lushan Botanical Garden,Chinese Academy of Sciences(2019ZWZX01).

摘　　要：Mounds constructed by plateau zokors,which is widely distributed in alpine meadows significantly modified plant community structure.However,the variations of plant community structure under the disturbance of plateau zokor-made mound are less concerned.Therefore,we investigated the responses of plant community on zokor-made mound of different years(1 a and 3-4 a),and compared with undisturbed sites(no mound)in an alpine meadow in the eastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau(QTP),China.Species richness,coverage and Simpson diversity index were all significantly reduced by the presence of zokor-made mound,but plant heights were significantly increased,particularly in grasses and sedges.Several perennial forage species showed an increased importance value and niche breadth,including Koeleria macrantha,Elymus nutans and Poa pratensis.The effect of zokor-made mound on niche overlap showed that more intense interspecific competition produced a greater utilization of environmental resources.And this interspecific niche overlap was strengthened as succession progressed.The bare mound created by zokor burrowing activities provided a colonizing opportunity for non-dominant forage species,resulting in abundant plant species and plant diversity during the succession period.We concluded that presence of zokor-made mound was conducive to regeneration and vitality of plant community in alpine meadows,thus improving their resilience to anthropogenic stress.

关 键 词：RODENT mound zokor disturbance alpine meadow vegetation recovery NICHE 

分 类 号：S812[农业科学—草业科学]