Resilience of grassland plant communities as influenced by root herbivores under different land use intensities

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Ecosystem resilience is an essential factor underlying the sustained production of natural resources and ecosystem services in complex systems faced with uncertainty and surprise. Root herbivory can have a significant impact on grassland productivity and biodiversity under constant conditions. However, there are yet no studies focusing on non-equilibrium conditions such as disturbances, short-term stresses or nutrient pulses. Our study aims at assessing the role of root herbivory in plant community resilience after various disturbances and stresses under different land use intensities. We expect the strength and direction of the root herbivore impact on plant community resilience to depend on land use type and intensity. We will determine the root herbivore impact on plant community recovery in controlled greenhouse experiments and monitor plant and root herbivore abundance and community composition after disturbance/stress in field surveys. In addition, we will develop and apply process-based simulation models of both, root herbivores and plant communities. These models will be coupled to systematically investigate the role of plant-herbivore interactions for the resilience of grassland systems. The land use gradient of the Biodiversity Exploratories provides excellent conditions for investigating the role of plant-herbivore interactions for the resilience of relevant types of managed grasslands in Europe under a wide range of abiotic and biotic conditions. We believe that the combination of empirical field work, controlled greenhouse experiments, and ecological modeling provides the most suitable approach to elucidate how the impact of root herbivory on plant community resilience changes under different land use scenarios.