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opencc-zeroNov 2020View details →

Post-fire vegetation succession in the Siberian subarctic tundra over 45 years

Wildfires are relatively rare in subarctic tundra ecosystems, but they can strongly change ecosystem properties. Short-term fire effects on subarctic tundra vegetation are well documented, but long-term vegetation recovery has been studied less. The frequency of tundra fires will increase with climate warming. Understanding the long-term effects of fire is necessary to predict future ecosystem changes. We used a space-for-time approach to assess vegetation recovery after fire over more than four decades. We studied soil and vegetation patterns on three large fire scars (>44, 28 and 12 years old) in dry, lichen-dominated forest tundra in Western Siberia. On 60 plots, we determined soil temperature and permafrost thaw depth, sampled vegetation and measured plant functional traits. We assessed trends in NDVI to support the field-based results on vegetation recovery.Soil temperature, permafrost thaw depth and total vegetation cover had recovered to pre-fire levels after >44 years, as well as total vegetation cover. In contrast, after >44 years, functional groups had not recovered to the pre-fire state. Burnt areas had lower lichen and higher bryophyte and shrub cover. The dominating shrub species, Betula nana, exhibited a higher vitality (higher specific leaf area and plant height) on burnt compared with control plots, suggesting a fire legacy effect in shrub growth. Our results confirm patterns of shrub encroachment after fire that were detected before in other parts of the Arctic and Subarctic. In the so far poorly studied Western Siberian forest tundra we demonstrate for the first time, long-term fire-legacies on the functional composition of relatively dry shrub- and lichen-dominated vegetation.

opencc-zeroDec 2022View details →

Data from: Abiotic legacies mediate plant-soil feedback during early vegetation succession on rare earth element mine tailings

An increasing number of studies have shown how feedback interactions between plants and soil can influence primary and secondary succession. However, very little is known about the patterns and mechanisms of such plant-soil feedbacks on stressed mine tailings ecosystem, which can be severely contaminated by a range of toxic elements. In a two-phase plant-soil feedback experiment based on the rare earth element (REE) mine tailing soil, we investigated biotic (changes in bacterial and fungal community) and abiotic legacies (changes in chemical properties) of three pioneer grass species, and examined feedback effects of three grasses, two legumes and two woody plants with different root traits. Positive plant-soil feedback was found in Miscanthus sinensis, Paspalum thunbergii and Tephrosia candida, and neutral feedback was observed in other four plants. These effects corresponded with an increase of nutrients and total organic carbon, as well as a decrease of acidity and extractable aluminum and REEs. There were less signs of biotic changes in the conditioned tailings. The correlation analysis suggested a relationship between responses to soil legacies and root traits, as well as root economics spectrum. On the mine tailings, acquisitive species with higher specific root length appeared to have greater potential for positive feedback. Synthesis and application: Our study shows that early succession on contaminated REE mine tailings may lead to more positive plant-soil feedback than predicted based on results of non-contaminated soils, mainly due to the alleviation of abiotic stress in tailings. Therefore, the improvement of specific abiotic soil stress and the trait-based selection of acquisitive plants should be preferentially considered to promote the primary restoration of degraded land.

zenodo36/100

Data for: Synergistic mechanisms of plant phosphorus (P) resorption and microbial P-limitation affecting soil P during grassland vegetation succession

Data for: Synergistic mechanisms of plant phosphorus (P) resorption and microbial P-limitation affecting soil P during grassland vegetation succession

opencc-by-4.0Apr 2024View details →

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

Data for: Mammalian predators and vegetated nesting habitat drive reduced protected area nesting success of Kentish plovers, Yellow Sea region, China

Protected areas provide essential habitats for wildlife by conserving natural and semi-natural habitats and reducing human disturbance. However, whether breeding birds vulnerable to nest predation can benefit from strict land management in the protected area is unclear. Here, we compare the nesting performance of two groups of a ground-nesting shorebird, the Kentish plover (Charadrius alexandrinus), in the protected area (Liaohekou Natural Reserve, hereinafter PA) and the control non-protected area (Non-PA) around the Liaohekou Natural Reserve, in the north of the Yellow Sea, China, and identify which environmental factors, such as nesting habitat and nest materials, influence the daily nest survival rate (DSR). We found similar nesting habitats in both study areas, dominated by bare land or Suaeda salsa grassland. However, DSR was lower in PA (0.91 ± 0.01) than in Non-PA (0.97 ± 0.01). Kentish plovers nesting in areas with vegetation cover experienced lower DSR than in bare lands in both areas, and nests built with materials of S. salsa sticks had the lowest DSR in the bare land. Data from infrared cameras confirmed relatively higher predator abundances and nest predation rates by nocturnal mammals, such as Eurasian badgers (Meles meles), in PA than in Non-PA, and this pattern was especially evident for plover nests located in S. salsa grassland. Our results suggest that Liaohekou Natural Reserve protected area may not necessarily provide safe nesting sites for Kentish plovers due to the abundance of generalist mammal nest predators. However, the PA includes about 80% of the nests from both locations. This means the contribution of the total number of successful nests continues to be much higher within PA, with the benefit for the species that this brings in terms of conservation. The variation and mechanisms underlying differences in the nest predator communities of PA and non-PA deserve further study.

zenodo36/100

Data from: Herbivory limits success of vegetation restoration globally

Herbivory limits success of vegetation restoration globally. Restoring vegetation in degraded ecosystems is an increasingly common practice for promoting biodiversity and ecological function, but successful implementation is hampered by an incomplete understanding of the processes limiting restoration success. By assembling terrestrial and aquatic studies globally (2594 experimental tests from 610 articles), we reveal substantial herbivore control of vegetation under restoration. Herbivores at restoration sites reduced vegetation abundance more strongly (by 89%, on average) than at relatively undegraded sites, and suppressed, rather than fostered, plant diversity. These effects were particularly pronounced in regions with higher temperatures and lower precipitation. Temporally excluding targeted herbivores or introducing their predators improved restoration by magnitudes similar to or greater than managing plant competition or facilitation. Thus, managing herbivory is a promising strategy for enhancing vegetation restoration efforts. This ZIP file contains the following datasets and code for the above paper: 1) Xu_ConsumerEffects.xlsx This file contains the Global Consumer Effects dataset (and several subsets) 2) Xu_PlantInteractions.xlsx This file contains the Global Plant Interactions and Restoration dataset 3) Code_Xu_Restoration_Ms.R This file contains examples of main R code used.  See the Supplementary Materials of the paper for methods used to collect and analyze these data.

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2023View details →

publicFeb 2023View details →

Data for: Mammalian predators and vegetated nesting habitat drive reduced protected area nesting success of Kentish plovers, Yellow Sea region, China

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publicDec 2023View details →

Data from: Abiotic legacies mediate plant-soil feedback during early vegetation succession on rare earth element mine tailings

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publicOct 2025View details →

Data from: Multi-year water level drawdown and wildlife grazing drive wetland vegetation succession

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publicNov 2020View details →

Post-fire vegetation succession in the Siberian subarctic tundra over 45 years

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opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →

Data from: Does vegetation change over 28 years affect habitat use and reproductive success?

Individuals should prefer and use habitats that confer high fitness, but habitat use is not always adaptive. Vegetation in natural landscapes changes gradually and the ability of species to adaptively adjust their habitat use to long-term changes is largely unstudied. We studied nest patch and territory use over 28 years in Orange-crowned Warblers (Oreothlypis celata) in a system that has undergone natural long-term changes in vegetation. Abundance of maple (Acer grandidentatum), its preferred nesting habitat, has gradually declined from 1987 to 2015. We examined whether habitat use and its fitness consequences changed as the availability of preferred habitat decreased. We used resource selection function models to determine changes over time in the probability of using a nest patch given available patches, and the probability of using a territory given available territories. We estimated nest survival to evaluate changes over time in the fitness consequences of nest patch use. We also compared habitat use (nest patch and territory) and fitness (nest survival) between areas with naturally reduced abundance of maple and experimentally increased abundance of maple (fenced areas). Nest patch use depended on maple abundance and did not change drastically across 28 years, even though the availability of preferred maple patches decreased over time. In contrast, nest survival tended to decrease over time. We did not see differences in nest patch use and nest survival between unfenced and fenced areas, unlike territory use, which increased with the abundance of maple in fenced areas and decreased in unfenced areas. Our study depicts one example of relatively unchanged habitat use in the face of decreased availability of preferred vegetation across years, with a resulting decrease in reproductive success. Investigating changes in habitat use and fitness consequences for animals exposed to long-term habitat change is necessary to understand adaptive behavioral responses.

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2020View details →

Data set: Burn severity and soil chemistry are weak drivers of early vegetation succession following a boreal mega-fire in a production forest landscape

Data used in the analyses of the study. Data set on soil chemistry (pH, organic content, nutrient content), plots distance to the fire perimeter, and plant communities (vascular plants and bryophytes) recorded in permanent plots on clearcuts in a burn-severity gradient two and five years following a wildfire. Data collected from a 13000 hectare wildfire that occurred in 2014, in boreal southern Sweden. Calculated trait means from data bases, and plant community data from unburned plots from another study, are are also included here.

opencc-zeroJan 2021View details →

Data from: Changes in levels of enzymes and osmotic adjustment compounds in key species and their relevance to vegetation succession in abandoned croplands of a semiarid sandy region

Reclamation of cropland from grassland is regarded as a main reason for grassland degradation; understanding succession from abandoned cropland to grassland is thus crucial for vegetation restoration in arid and semiarid areas. Soil becomes dry when cropland is reverted to grassland, and enzyme and osmotic adjustment compounds may help plants to adapt to a drying environment. Croplands that were abandoned in various years on the Ordos Plateau in China, were selected for the analysis of the dynamics of enzymes and osmotic adjustment compounds in plant species during vegetation succession. With increasing number of years since abandonment, levels of superoxide dismutase increased in Stipa bungeana, first decreased and then increased in Lespedeza davurica and Artemisia frigida, and fluctuated in Heteropappus altaicus. Levels of peroxidase and catalase in the four species fluctuated; levels of proline, soluble sugar and soluble protein either decreased or first increased and then generally decreased. According to a drought resistance index, the drought resistance of the four species was ranked in descending order as follows: S. bungeana > A. frigida > H. altaicus > L. davurica. The drought resistance ability of the different species was closely linked with vegetation succession from communities dominated by annual and biennial species (with main accompanying species of L. davurica and H. altaicus) to communities dominated by perennial species (S. bungeana and A. frigida) when soil became dry owing to increasing evapotranspiration after cropland abandonment. The restoration of S. bungeana steppe after cropland abandonment on the Ordos Plateau is recommended both as high-quality forage and for environmental sustainability.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2014View details →

Supplementary material 2 from: Niemi M, Pöyry J, Heiskanen I, Uotinen V, Nieminen M, Erkomaa K, Wallenius K (2014) Variability of soil enzyme activities and vegetation succession following boreal forest surface soil transfer to an artificial hill. Nature Conservation 8: 1-25. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.8.6369

Figure S1: Explanation note: The studied sites at the onset of the study in June 2003: a) Top b) Grove c) Middle d) North e) Alder f) Spruce.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2014View details →

Supplementary material 5 from: Niemi M, Pöyry J, Heiskanen I, Uotinen V, Nieminen M, Erkomaa K, Wallenius K (2014) Variability of soil enzyme activities and vegetation succession following boreal forest surface soil transfer to an artificial hill. Nature Conservation 8: 1-25. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.8.6369

Figure S4: Explanation note: The studied s ites after a decade in June 2013: a) Top, b) Grove c) Middle d) North.

opennotspecifiedFeb 2023View details →

FIGURE 2 in Kalanchoe ×sampsonii [K. ×hankeyi × K. sexangularis] (Crassulaceae subfam. Kalanchooideae), a horticulturally successful nothospecies from South Africa with enhanced vegetative and reproductive characters

FIGURE 2. Kalanchoe ×sampsonii. A. At flowering maturity plants of this shrubby nothospecies reach a height of about 0.5 m. B. Through heterosis, inflorescences are more branched and have a wider spread than in either of the parents. C. Peduncles are more intensely reddish-infused than in K. ×hankeyi, but less than in K. sexangularis. D. Flowers (corolla tube and corolla lobes) are more intensely yellow than those of either of the parents. E. Flowers, here in lateral view, of K. ×sampsonii (centre) are often intermediate between those of K. longiflora (left, one of the parents of K. ×hankeyi) and K. sexangularis (right), but the corolla tube is more intensely yellow. F. Corolla lobes of K. ×sampsonii (centre) are more intensely yellow than those of K. longiflora (left, one of the parents of K. ×hankeyi) and K. sexangularis (right, the other parent of K. ×hankeyi). G. A White-bellied sunbird, Cinnyris talatala, feeding on the copiously nectariferous flowers of K. ×sampsonii. H. Jason D.S. Sampson (1979–), after whom K. ×sampsonii is named, next to a very large specimen of K. ×estrelae on the Hatfield campus of the University of Pretoria; photograph taken on 10 June 2022. All photographs taken by Gideon F. Smith.

opennotspecifiedFeb 2023View details →

FIGURE 1 in Kalanchoe ×sampsonii [K. ×hankeyi × K. sexangularis] (Crassulaceae subfam. Kalanchooideae), a horticulturally successful nothospecies from South Africa with enhanced vegetative and reproductive characters

FIGURE 1. Kalanchoe ×hankeyi (A–B) and K. sexangularis (C–D). A. Leaves of K. ×hankeyi are light green to strongly red-infused, especially when grown in full sun. The marginal leaf crenations of K. ×hankeyi are situated more towards the upper parts of the leaf margins, as in one of its parents, K. longiflora, rather than virtually along the whole margin, as is found in the other parent, K. sexangularis. B. Flowers of K. ×hankeyi have yellow corolla lobes and a greenish yellow tube. C. Leaves of K. sexangularis turn a bright crimson red when exposed to high levels of solar irradiation. D. As in the case of K. ×hankeyi, flowers of K. sexangularis have a greenish yellow corolla tube and yellow corolla lobes. All photographs taken by Gideon F. Smith.

publicJan 2021View details →

Data from: Changes in levels of enzymes and osmotic adjustment compounds in key species and their relevance to vegetation succession in abandoned croplands of a semiarid sandy region

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