Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia
Abstract Background Plant water use efficiency (WUE) is a key indicator of coupling between the carbon and water cycles in grassland ecosystems and is influenced by both grazing and nutrient availability. However, the regulatory effects of grazing intensity on plant WUE under nitrogen (N) and phosph...
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SpringerOpen
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Ecological Processes |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13717-025-00621-0 |
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| author | Xuebao Xu Shiming Tang Yanlong Li Guangyi Lv Tongrui Zhang Bin Zhang Zhaokai Sun Zhenpeng Liu Xinning Wang Hongyun Yao Cuiping Gao Xinya Wang Chongzhi Sun Fengqin Yuan Lei Zhang Chengjie Wang |
| author_facet | Xuebao Xu Shiming Tang Yanlong Li Guangyi Lv Tongrui Zhang Bin Zhang Zhaokai Sun Zhenpeng Liu Xinning Wang Hongyun Yao Cuiping Gao Xinya Wang Chongzhi Sun Fengqin Yuan Lei Zhang Chengjie Wang |
| author_sort | Xuebao Xu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Plant water use efficiency (WUE) is a key indicator of coupling between the carbon and water cycles in grassland ecosystems and is influenced by both grazing and nutrient availability. However, the regulatory effects of grazing intensity on plant WUE under nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) addition remain unclear. Methods This study employed stable carbon isotope techniques in a typical steppe ecosystem in Inner Mongolia, China, to investigate the effects of grazing, N and P addition, and their interactions on the foliar δ13C values of four dominant plant species. This research aims to assess the dynamics and underlying mechanisms of grassland WUE under grazing management in the context of global change. Results Grazing intensity and nutrient addition significantly affected the δ13Cleaf values. Heavy grazing increased the δ13Cleaf values of Cleistogenes squarrosa and Carex korshinskyi but decreased those of Leymus chinensis and Stipa grandis. N addition increased δ13Cleaf across all species, whereas P addition significantly increased δ13Cleaf in Cleistogenes squarrosa but decreased it in the other species. A significant antagonistic interaction between N and P addition was observed, where P inhibited the positive effects of N. This antagonistic effect was amplified under heavy grazing, leading to reduced plant WUE. Structural equation modeling analysis further identified soil temperature and leaf total N as the dominant factors governing plant WUE dynamics, with both factors contributing to an increase in plant WUE. Conclusions This study highlights that grazing can modulate the effects of N and P addition on WUE in grasslands. Specifically, heavy grazing exacerbated the antagonistic effects of N and P addition on plant WUE, suggesting that overgrazed grasslands under N and P enrichment could face increased water limitation. In light of concurrent environmental changes, future grassland management should consider the interactive effects between grazing intensity and nutrient dynamics on plant water relations, growth and plant community composition. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d12fb5d6f6db4ce48c3d85fdbfd49293 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2192-1709 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | SpringerOpen |
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| series | Ecological Processes |
| spelling | doaj-art-d12fb5d6f6db4ce48c3d85fdbfd492932025-08-20T03:45:11ZengSpringerOpenEcological Processes2192-17092025-06-0114111410.1186/s13717-025-00621-0Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner MongoliaXuebao Xu0Shiming Tang1Yanlong Li2Guangyi Lv3Tongrui Zhang4Bin Zhang5Zhaokai Sun6Zhenpeng Liu7Xinning Wang8Hongyun Yao9Cuiping Gao10Xinya Wang11Chongzhi Sun12Fengqin Yuan13Lei Zhang14Chengjie Wang15College of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesSchool of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia UniversityCollege of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesSchool of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia UniversityKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesSchool of Resource and Environmental Economics, Inner Mongolia University of Finance and EconomicsCollege of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityCollege of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityKey Laboratory for Model Innovation in Forage Production Efficiency, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affuirs, Institute of Grassland Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural SciencesSchool of Ecology and Environment, Inner Mongolia UniversityCollege of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityCollege of Grassland Science, Inner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityAbstract Background Plant water use efficiency (WUE) is a key indicator of coupling between the carbon and water cycles in grassland ecosystems and is influenced by both grazing and nutrient availability. However, the regulatory effects of grazing intensity on plant WUE under nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) addition remain unclear. Methods This study employed stable carbon isotope techniques in a typical steppe ecosystem in Inner Mongolia, China, to investigate the effects of grazing, N and P addition, and their interactions on the foliar δ13C values of four dominant plant species. This research aims to assess the dynamics and underlying mechanisms of grassland WUE under grazing management in the context of global change. Results Grazing intensity and nutrient addition significantly affected the δ13Cleaf values. Heavy grazing increased the δ13Cleaf values of Cleistogenes squarrosa and Carex korshinskyi but decreased those of Leymus chinensis and Stipa grandis. N addition increased δ13Cleaf across all species, whereas P addition significantly increased δ13Cleaf in Cleistogenes squarrosa but decreased it in the other species. A significant antagonistic interaction between N and P addition was observed, where P inhibited the positive effects of N. This antagonistic effect was amplified under heavy grazing, leading to reduced plant WUE. Structural equation modeling analysis further identified soil temperature and leaf total N as the dominant factors governing plant WUE dynamics, with both factors contributing to an increase in plant WUE. Conclusions This study highlights that grazing can modulate the effects of N and P addition on WUE in grasslands. Specifically, heavy grazing exacerbated the antagonistic effects of N and P addition on plant WUE, suggesting that overgrazed grasslands under N and P enrichment could face increased water limitation. In light of concurrent environmental changes, future grassland management should consider the interactive effects between grazing intensity and nutrient dynamics on plant water relations, growth and plant community composition.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13717-025-00621-0Water use efficiencyStable carbon isotopeGrazingN additionP addition |
| spellingShingle | Xuebao Xu Shiming Tang Yanlong Li Guangyi Lv Tongrui Zhang Bin Zhang Zhaokai Sun Zhenpeng Liu Xinning Wang Hongyun Yao Cuiping Gao Xinya Wang Chongzhi Sun Fengqin Yuan Lei Zhang Chengjie Wang Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia Ecological Processes Water use efficiency Stable carbon isotope Grazing N addition P addition |
| title | Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia |
| title_full | Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia |
| title_fullStr | Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia |
| title_short | Heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in Inner Mongolia |
| title_sort | heavy grazing intensifies antagonistic effects of nitrogen and phosphorus addition on the water use efficiency of grasslands in inner mongolia |
| topic | Water use efficiency Stable carbon isotope Grazing N addition P addition |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13717-025-00621-0 |
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