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Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China

Inappropriate grazing management is one of the most common causes of grassland degradation, and thus, an assessment of soil properties under different grazing intensities is critical for understanding its effects on ecosystem nutrient cycling and for formulating appropriate management strategies. Ho...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Li, Gang, Zhang, Zhi, Shi, Linlu, Zhou, Yan, Yang, Meng, Cao, Jiaxi, Wu, Shuhong, Lei, Guangchun
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2018
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6266909/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30463233
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112584
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author Li, Gang
Zhang, Zhi
Shi, Linlu
Zhou, Yan
Yang, Meng
Cao, Jiaxi
Wu, Shuhong
Lei, Guangchun
author_facet Li, Gang
Zhang, Zhi
Shi, Linlu
Zhou, Yan
Yang, Meng
Cao, Jiaxi
Wu, Shuhong
Lei, Guangchun
author_sort Li, Gang
collection PubMed
description Inappropriate grazing management is one of the most common causes of grassland degradation, and thus, an assessment of soil properties under different grazing intensities is critical for understanding its effects on ecosystem nutrient cycling and for formulating appropriate management strategies. However, the responses of certain main elements, including soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, to grazing in alpine meadow ecosystems remain insufficiently clarified. Here, we measured carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus contents in the topmost 30 cm of soil in an alpine meadow under three grazing intensities (light, moderate, and heavy) and found clear differences in soil physical and chemical properties among different grazing intensities and soil layers. As grazing intensity increased, soil water content, carbon and nitrogen contents and stocks, and carbon to phosphorus and nitrogen to phosphorus ratios decreased, whereas soil bulk density increased. However, soil phosphorus and carbon to nitrogen ratio remained stable. Our findings highlight the negative impacts of heavy grazing intensity, in terms of soil carbon and nitrogen loss and phosphorus mineralization. Moreover, we emphasize that further related studies are necessary to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the effects of grazing on grassland ecosystems, and thereby provide information for sustainable management practices and eco-compensation policies.
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spelling pubmed-62669092018-12-15 Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China Li, Gang Zhang, Zhi Shi, Linlu Zhou, Yan Yang, Meng Cao, Jiaxi Wu, Shuhong Lei, Guangchun Int J Environ Res Public Health Article Inappropriate grazing management is one of the most common causes of grassland degradation, and thus, an assessment of soil properties under different grazing intensities is critical for understanding its effects on ecosystem nutrient cycling and for formulating appropriate management strategies. However, the responses of certain main elements, including soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, to grazing in alpine meadow ecosystems remain insufficiently clarified. Here, we measured carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus contents in the topmost 30 cm of soil in an alpine meadow under three grazing intensities (light, moderate, and heavy) and found clear differences in soil physical and chemical properties among different grazing intensities and soil layers. As grazing intensity increased, soil water content, carbon and nitrogen contents and stocks, and carbon to phosphorus and nitrogen to phosphorus ratios decreased, whereas soil bulk density increased. However, soil phosphorus and carbon to nitrogen ratio remained stable. Our findings highlight the negative impacts of heavy grazing intensity, in terms of soil carbon and nitrogen loss and phosphorus mineralization. Moreover, we emphasize that further related studies are necessary to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the effects of grazing on grassland ecosystems, and thereby provide information for sustainable management practices and eco-compensation policies. MDPI 2018-11-19 2018-11 /pmc/articles/PMC6266909/ /pubmed/30463233 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112584 Text en © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Li, Gang
Zhang, Zhi
Shi, Linlu
Zhou, Yan
Yang, Meng
Cao, Jiaxi
Wu, Shuhong
Lei, Guangchun
Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title_full Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title_fullStr Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title_full_unstemmed Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title_short Effects of Different Grazing Intensities on Soil C, N, and P in an Alpine Meadow on the Qinghai—Tibetan Plateau, China
title_sort effects of different grazing intensities on soil c, n, and p in an alpine meadow on the qinghai—tibetan plateau, china
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6266909/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30463233
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112584
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