TY - JOUR
T1 - Carbon in Chinese grasslands
T2 - meta-analysis and theory of grazing effects
AU - Deng, Lei
AU - Shangguan, Zhouping
AU - Bell, Stephen Mackenzie
AU - Soromotin, Andrey V.
AU - Peng, Changhui
AU - An, Shaoshan
AU - Wu, Xing
AU - Xu, Xingliang
AU - Wang, Kaibo
AU - Li, Jianping
AU - Tang, Zhuangsheng
AU - Yan, Weiming
AU - Zhang, Fengbao
AU - Li, Jiwei
AU - Wu, Jianzhao
AU - Kuzyakov, Yakov
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023, The Author(s).
PY - 2023/5/4
Y1 - 2023/5/4
N2 - Globally, livestock grazing is an important management factor influencing soil degradation, soil health and carbon (C) stocks of grassland ecosystems. However, the effects of grassland types, grazing intensity and grazing duration on C stocks are unclear across large geographic scales. To provide a more comprehensive assessment of how grazing drives ecosystem C stocks in grasslands, we compiled and analyzed data from 306 studies featuring four grassland types across China: desert steppes, typical steppes, meadow steppes and alpine steppes. Light grazing was the best management practice for desert steppes (< 2 sheep ha−1) and typical steppes (3 to 4 sheep ha−1), whereas medium grazing pressure was optimal for meadow steppes (5 to 6 sheep ha−1) and alpine steppes (7 to 8 sheep ha−1) leading to the highest ecosystem C stocks under grazing. Plant biomass (desert steppes) and soil C stocks (meadow steppes) increased under light or medium grazing, confirming the ‘intermediate disturbance hypothesis’. Heavy grazing decreased all C stocks regardless of grassland ecosystem types, approximately 1.4 Mg ha−1 per year for the whole ecosystem. The regrowth and regeneration of grasslands in response to grazing intensity (i.e., grazing optimization) depended on grassland types and grazing duration. In conclusion, grassland grazing is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, proper management (light or medium grazing) can maintain and even increase C stocks above- and belowground, and increase the harvested livestock products from grasslands. On the other hand, human-induced overgrazing can lead to rapid degradation of vegetation and soils, resulting in significant carbon loss and requiring long-term recovery. Grazing regimes (i.e., intensity and duration applied) must consider specific grassland characteristics to ensure stable productivity rates and optimal impacts on ecosystem C stocks.
AB - Globally, livestock grazing is an important management factor influencing soil degradation, soil health and carbon (C) stocks of grassland ecosystems. However, the effects of grassland types, grazing intensity and grazing duration on C stocks are unclear across large geographic scales. To provide a more comprehensive assessment of how grazing drives ecosystem C stocks in grasslands, we compiled and analyzed data from 306 studies featuring four grassland types across China: desert steppes, typical steppes, meadow steppes and alpine steppes. Light grazing was the best management practice for desert steppes (< 2 sheep ha−1) and typical steppes (3 to 4 sheep ha−1), whereas medium grazing pressure was optimal for meadow steppes (5 to 6 sheep ha−1) and alpine steppes (7 to 8 sheep ha−1) leading to the highest ecosystem C stocks under grazing. Plant biomass (desert steppes) and soil C stocks (meadow steppes) increased under light or medium grazing, confirming the ‘intermediate disturbance hypothesis’. Heavy grazing decreased all C stocks regardless of grassland ecosystem types, approximately 1.4 Mg ha−1 per year for the whole ecosystem. The regrowth and regeneration of grasslands in response to grazing intensity (i.e., grazing optimization) depended on grassland types and grazing duration. In conclusion, grassland grazing is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, proper management (light or medium grazing) can maintain and even increase C stocks above- and belowground, and increase the harvested livestock products from grasslands. On the other hand, human-induced overgrazing can lead to rapid degradation of vegetation and soils, resulting in significant carbon loss and requiring long-term recovery. Grazing regimes (i.e., intensity and duration applied) must consider specific grassland characteristics to ensure stable productivity rates and optimal impacts on ecosystem C stocks.
KW - Carbon dynamics
KW - Grassland
KW - Grazing duration
KW - Grazing intensity
KW - Land use change
KW - Overgrazing
KW - Plant and soil
KW - Carbon dynamics
KW - Grassland
KW - Grazing duration
KW - Grazing intensity
KW - Land use change
KW - Overgrazing
KW - Plant and soil
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85160064315&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/215912ac-d44e-3926-a9fb-325154dfeed7/
UR - https://portalrecerca.uab.cat/en/publications/097e86d2-09ce-4cdc-9246-53459280d7b4
U2 - 10.1007/s44246-023-00051-7
DO - 10.1007/s44246-023-00051-7
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85160064315
VL - 2
JO - Carbon Research
JF - Carbon Research
IS - 1
M1 - 19
ER -