BACKGROUND Livestock grazing is the most prevalent land use of grasslands worldwide. The effects of grazing on plant C, N, P contents and stoichiometry across hierarchical levels, however, have rarely been studied; particularly whether the effects are mediated by resource availability and the underpinning mechanisms remain largely unclear. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Using a multi-organiza...

Since Renaissance, the natural ecosystems have fallen into a complete state ofdisarray due to the rise in the amount of carbon dioxide. Soil, the unsparing stuff, is one of themajor sources of carbon storage, and plays a paramount role in the global equilibrium ofcarbon as well as carbon sequestration. Given that Iran is benefiting from vast steppes, therate of carbon sequestration in them dese...

The aim of the study. Analysis changes in productivity dwarf shrub-moss-lichen, pine-dwarf shrub-sphagnum and sedge-sphagnum grass ecosystems along latitudinal gradient. Methodology. For a number bog located gradient from 65 to 50° N range longitudes 63 95° E stocks live dead, aboveground belowground phytomass, as well values (ANP), (BNP) total production (NPP) were analyzed. data are given for...

PAOLA LAIOLO and JOSÉ L. TELLA Environmental Conservation / Volume 33 / Issue 03 / September 2006, pp 223 ­ 232 DOI: 10.1017/S0376892906003146, Published online: 08 August 2006 Link to this article: http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0376892906003146 How to cite this article: PAOLA LAIOLO and JOSÉ L. TELLA (2006). Fate of unproductive and unattractive habitats: recent changes in Ibe...

Satellite observations identify the Mongolian steppes as a hotspot of global biomass reduction, the extent of which is comparable with tropical rainforest deforestation. To conserve or restore these grasslands, the relative contributions of climate and human activities to degradation need to be understood. Here we use a recently developed 21-year (1988-2008) record of satellite based vegetation...