Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 20150284 |
| Journal | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |
| Volume | 371 |
| Issue number | 1694 |
| Publication status | Published - 19 May 2016 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Abstract
Ecosystems managed for production of biomass are often characterized by low biodiversity because management aims to optimize single ecosystem functions (i.e. yield) involving deliberate selection of species or cultivars. In consequence, considerable differences in observed plant species richness and productivity remain across systems, and the drivers of these differences have remained poorly resolved so far. In addition, it has remained unclear if species richness feeds back on ecosystem functions such as yield in real-world systems. Here, we establish N = 360 experimental plots across a broad range of managed ecosystems in several European countries, and use structural equation models to unravel potential drivers of plant species richness. We hypothesize that the relationships between productivity, total biomass and observed species richness are affected by management intensity, and that these effects differ between habitat types (dry grasslands, grasslands, and wetlands). We found that local management was an important driver of species richness across systems. Management caused system disturbance, resulting in reduced productivity yet enhanced total biomass. Plant species richness was directly and positively driven by management, with consistently negative effects of total biomass. Productivity effects on richness were positive, negative or neutral. Our study shows that management and total biomass drive plant species richness across real-world managed systems.
Keywords
- Diversity-productivity, Land-use, Plant community biomass, Plant species richness, Production system, Structural equation modeling
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- General Biochemistry,Genetics and Molecular Biology
- Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
- General Agricultural and Biological Sciences
Sustainable Development Goals
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In: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Vol. 371, No. 1694, 20150284, 19.05.2016.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Consistent drivers of plant biodiversity across managed ecosystems.
AU - Minden, Vanessa
AU - Scherber, Cristoph
AU - Cebrian-Piqueras, Miguel Angel
AU - Trinogga, Juliane
AU - Trenkamp, Anastasia
AU - Mantilla-Contreras, Jasmin
AU - Lienin, Patrick
AU - Kleyer, Michael
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2016 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.
PY - 2016/5/19
Y1 - 2016/5/19
N2 - Ecosystems managed for production of biomass are often characterized by low biodiversity because management aims to optimize single ecosystem functions (i.e. yield) involving deliberate selection of species or cultivars. In consequence, considerable differences in observed plant species richness and productivity remain across systems, and the drivers of these differences have remained poorly resolved so far. In addition, it has remained unclear if species richness feeds back on ecosystem functions such as yield in real-world systems. Here, we establish N = 360 experimental plots across a broad range of managed ecosystems in several European countries, and use structural equation models to unravel potential drivers of plant species richness. We hypothesize that the relationships between productivity, total biomass and observed species richness are affected by management intensity, and that these effects differ between habitat types (dry grasslands, grasslands, and wetlands). We found that local management was an important driver of species richness across systems. Management caused system disturbance, resulting in reduced productivity yet enhanced total biomass. Plant species richness was directly and positively driven by management, with consistently negative effects of total biomass. Productivity effects on richness were positive, negative or neutral. Our study shows that management and total biomass drive plant species richness across real-world managed systems.
AB - Ecosystems managed for production of biomass are often characterized by low biodiversity because management aims to optimize single ecosystem functions (i.e. yield) involving deliberate selection of species or cultivars. In consequence, considerable differences in observed plant species richness and productivity remain across systems, and the drivers of these differences have remained poorly resolved so far. In addition, it has remained unclear if species richness feeds back on ecosystem functions such as yield in real-world systems. Here, we establish N = 360 experimental plots across a broad range of managed ecosystems in several European countries, and use structural equation models to unravel potential drivers of plant species richness. We hypothesize that the relationships between productivity, total biomass and observed species richness are affected by management intensity, and that these effects differ between habitat types (dry grasslands, grasslands, and wetlands). We found that local management was an important driver of species richness across systems. Management caused system disturbance, resulting in reduced productivity yet enhanced total biomass. Plant species richness was directly and positively driven by management, with consistently negative effects of total biomass. Productivity effects on richness were positive, negative or neutral. Our study shows that management and total biomass drive plant species richness across real-world managed systems.
KW - Diversity-productivity
KW - Land-use
KW - Plant community biomass
KW - Plant species richness
KW - Production system
KW - Structural equation modeling
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964465700&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1098/rstb.2015.0284
DO - 10.1098/rstb.2015.0284
M3 - Article
VL - 371
JO - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
JF - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
SN - 0080-4622
IS - 1694
M1 - 20150284
ER -