Alpine steppe is considered to be the largest grassland type on the Tibetan Plateau. This grassland contributes to the global carbon cycle and is sensitive to climate changes. The allocation of biomass in an ecosystem affects plant growth and the overall functioning of the ecosystem. However, the mechanism by which plant biomass is allocated on the alpine steppe remains unclear. In this study, ...

The potential of grazing lands to sequester carbon must be understood to develop effective soil conservation measures and sustain livestock production. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of grazing on soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), microbial biomass carbon (MBC) in Typical steppe and Desert steppe ecosystems, which are both important grassland resources for animal grazin...

Understanding the distribution pattern and maintenance mechanism of species diversity along environmental gradients is essential for developing biodiversity conservation strategies under environmental change. We have surveyed the species diversity at 192 vegetation sites across different steppe zones in Inner Mongolia, China. We analysed the total species diversity (γ diversity) and its composi...

Models that seek to guide decisions on policy in rangelands must address the close links between ecological, economic, and social processes, and the adaptation of participants through time. We used an agent-based modeling approach to implement a parsimonious conceptual model of rangelands that includes biophysical processes central to the functioning of rangelands, commercial enterprises, and i...

To reduce dependence on foreign oil reserves, there has been a push in North America to develop alternative domestic energy resources. Relatively undeveloped renewable energy resources include biofuels and wind and solar energy, many of which occur predominantly on rangelands. Rangelands are also key areas for natural gas development from shales and tight sand formations. Accordingly, policies ...

Biodiversity in rangelands is decreasing, due to intense utilization for livestock production and conversion of rangeland into cropland; yet the outlook of rangeland biodiversity has not been considered in view of future global demand for food. Here we assess the impact of future livestock production on the global rangelands area and their biodiversity. First we formalized existing knowledge ab...

Abstract Grassland birds have experienced some of the steepest population declines any guild in North America. The shortgrass steppe contains America’s most intact grasslands, which makes region particularly important for these species. It is well known that grassland differentially respond to variation vegetation structure generated by spatiotemporally varying disturbance like grazing manageme...