The contribution of plateau pika disturbance and erosion on patchy alpine grassland soil on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau: Implications for grassland restoration
The contribution of plateau pika disturbance and erosion on patchy alpine grassland soil on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau: Implications for grassland restoration
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DOI：
10.1016/j.geoderma.2017.03.001
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发表时间：
2017-07-01
期刊：
影响因子：
6.1
通讯作者：
Qin, Yu
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Chen, Jianjun;Yi, Shuhua;Qin, Yu
这可能会通过改变土壤性质对高寒草地的恢复产生重大影响。本研究通过将斑块状高寒草地表面划分为新鼠兔桩、旧鼠兔桩和秃斑4种植被斑块，并比较不同气候条件、海拔高度、土壤湿度、土壤硬度、土壤有机碳（SOC）和土壤全氮（TN），考察高原鼠兔干扰和侵蚀对斑块状高寒草地土壤的贡献。草地类型对QTP的影响。利用航拍资料分析了土壤表面砾石含量与植被覆盖度的关系。结果表明：(1)秃斑和鼠兔桩的砾石含量显著高于植被斑块（p < 0.05）；(2)土壤水分、硬度、有机碳和全氮以植被斑块最高，鼠兔桩显著低于植被斑块（p < 0.05）；(3)植被覆盖度与地表砂砾量呈线性负相关，非植被斑块地表砂砾量显著大于植被斑块（p < 0.001）。结果表明，鼠兔的挖洞活动增加了土壤表层砾石含量，降低了土壤水分、硬度、有机碳和全氮，增加了土壤侵蚀，阻碍了植被恢复。(C) 2017 Elsevier B.V.版权所有
Patchy alpine grassland with soil excavated by plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) and with bald patches is common on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) where desertification has developed rapidly over the last few decades. This may have significant effects on alpine grassland restoration, by changing soil properties. In this study, the contribution of plateau pika disturbance and erosion on patchy alpine grassland soil, were examined by classifying the surface of the patchy grassland into 4 types vegetation patch, new pika pile, old pika pile and bald patch and comparing (t)he gravel content of the top layer of soil, soil moisture, soil hardness, soil organic carbon (SOC), and soil total nitrogen (TN) among them in the four study areas with different climatic conditions, altitudes, and grassland types on the QTP. We also analyzed the relationship between the amount of soil surface gravel and the Green Fractional Vegetation Cover (GFVC) using aerial photos. The results showed that (1) gravel content was significantly greater in bald patches and pika piles than in vegetation patches (p < 0.05); (2) soil moisture, hardness, SOC and TN were the highest in vegetation patches, and significantly lower in pika piles than in vegetation patches (p < 0.05); (3) GFVC was negatively and linearly correlated with the amount of soil surface gravel, with the amount of soil surface gravel in non-vegetation patches significantly greater than in vegetation patches (p < 0.001). Our results suggested that pika burrowing activity may increase the gravel content of the top layer of soil and decrease soil moisture, hardness, SOC and TN, which can increase soil erosion and hinder vegetation restoration. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.