Grazing Exclusion Changed the Complexity and Keystone Species of Alpine Meadows on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Grazing exclusion is an effective approach to restore degraded grasslands. However, the effects of grazing on keystone species and complexity plant community were poorly investigated. Here, we conducted a field survey among different durations, i.e., Grazing, below 5 years, with 7 over in alpine meadows central Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP). The analyzed by network analysis. results showed following: (1) richness did not change, but aboveground biomass coverage tended increase extension duration. (2) soil nutrients, total nitrogen, organic carbon, available potassium, remained stable, while bulk density decreased under conditions. (3) There was hump-shaped change (i.e., average connectivity clustering coefficient) along Moreover, treatments. Based changes species, optimum duration for should be between years. Our suggest that besides productivity, considered when adopted meadows.