Long-term effects of rotational prescribed burning and low-intensity sheep grazing on blanket-bog plant communities
Long-term effects of rotational prescribed burning and low-intensity sheep grazing on blanket-bog plant communities
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DOI：
10.1111/1365-2664.12078
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发表时间：
2013-06-01
影响因子：
5.7
通讯作者：
Marrs, Rob H.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Lee, Hyohyemi;Alday, Josu G.;Marrs, Rob H.
泥炭地在保护生物多样性和提供生态系统服务方面的重要性在国际上日益得到承认；全世界正在制定战略，以帮助维持泥炭地的完整性。规定的焚烧被强调为一种威胁，对其使用存在相当大的争议，因为它被认为会导致普通木瓜的单一养殖和首选泥炭形成物种的减少。我们在英格兰北部的沼泽屋NNR进行了一项长期实验，调查了规定的焚烧对植被组成和多样性的影响。这项研究包括1924年左右最后一次焚烧的参考样地和1954/5年所有样地都被焚烧的试验地之间的比较。在试验中，测试了极轻放牧和不放牧和三次焚烧(1954/5年以来不放牧，每10年和20年重复燃烧一次)的效果。在干扰最小的非焚烧参考地中，马蹄莲和金莲花的盖度和苔藓物种丰富度增加，而苔藓盖度没有增加。地衣多样性下降。在正式实验中，低强度放牧对绵羊的影响不大，但不同的焚烧轮作产生了实质性的变化。火烧轮作处理与干扰最小的非焚烧处理之间存在差异，而干扰最严重的10年轮作处理的Eriophorum和Sphagnum spp的丰度要高得多。合成与应用。我们的发现表明，泥炭上的毯状沼泽植被以一种复杂的方式对规定的燃烧做出反应。在燃烧重现间隔较长的地方(>；20年)，普通草本植物成为优势种，没有证据表明偏爱形成泥炭的物种(Eriophorum/Sphagnum)增加。当烧伤复发间隔短(10年)时，阴道棘球绦虫/泥炭疽丰度增加。我们没有发现任何证据表明规定的焚烧对形成泥炭的物种的丰度有害；事实上，它被发现有利于它们。这些结果为英国的毛毯沼泽保护管理政策提供了参考，更广泛地说，为其他地方以矮灌木为主的泥炭地未来的野火缓解战略提供了参考。文中还讨论了对长期实验研究管理的一些启示。
The importance of peatlands is being increasingly recognized internationally for both the conservation of biodiversity and the provision of ecosystem services; strategies are being developed world-wide to help maintain their integrity. Prescribed burning has been highlighted as a threat with considerable debate over its use as it is perceived to produce a Calluna vulgaris monoculture and a decline in preferred peat-forming species. We investigated the impact of prescribed burning on vegetation composition and diversity in a long-term experiment at Moor House NNR in northern England. The study comprised a comparison between no-burn reference plots last burned in ca. 1924 and an experiment where all plots were burned in 1954/5. Within the experiment, the effects of very light sheep grazing vs. no grazing and three burning rotations (no-burn since 1954/5, repeat-burning at 10- and 20-year intervals) were tested. Calluna vulgaris and Hypnum jutlandicum cover and bryophyte species richness increased in the least-disturbed, no-burn reference plots, but bryophyte cover did not. Lichen diversity declined. Within the formal experiment, low-intensity sheep grazing had little impact but there were substantive changes produced by the different burning rotations. There was divergence between the burning rotation treatments with the least-disturbed, no-burn treatment changing towards a C.vulgarisH.jutlandicum community, whereas the most-disturbed 10-year rotation had a much greater abundance of both Eriophorum and Sphagnum spp. Synthesis and applications. Our findings suggest that blanket-bog vegetation on peat responds to prescribed burning in a complex manner. Where burn return interval is long (>20years), C.vulgaris becomes dominant and there was no evidence that preferred peat-forming species (Eriophorum/Sphagnum) increased. Where burn return interval is short (10years), E.vaginatum/Sphagnum abundance increased. We found no evidence to suggest that prescribed burning was deleterious to the abundance of peat-forming species; indeed, it was found to favour them. These results inform conservation management policy for blanket bogs in the UK and more generally for future wildfire-mitigation strategies on dwarf-shrub-dominated peatlands elsewhere. Some lessons for the management of long-term experimental studies are also discussed.