000095651 001__ 95651
000095651 005__ 20240109134256.0
000095651 0247_ $$2doi$$a10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134483
000095651 0248_ $$2sideral$$a115972
000095651 037__ $$aART-2019-115972
000095651 041__ $$aeng
000095651 100__ $$0(orcid)0000-0001-6566-6944$$aArmas-Herrera, Cecilia M.$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza
000095651 245__ $$aPlant-topsoil relationships underlying subalpine grassland patchiness
000095651 260__ $$c2019
000095651 5060_ $$aAccess copy available to the general public$$fUnrestricted
000095651 5203_ $$aApproximately half of the area in the Spanish Central Pyrenees is dedicated to pastures. A decrease in stocking rate coupled with changes in livestock management in recent decades have favoured the expansion of Nardus grasslands, which are considered undesirable for grazing use and for diversity conservation. The objective of this study was to analyse how topsoil properties are related to grassland plant composition occurring in erosion-disturbed (chalk grasslands) and undisturbed (Nardus mat-grasslands) soils in a subalpine area of the Spanish Central Pyrenees. We selected six paired sampling points for a side-by-side comparison of both communities. At each point, we 1) estimated the plant cover of each species through inventories and 2) analysed a set of physical–chemical topsoil properties (0–5 and 5–10 cm depth). Data were analysed through multivariate analysis. We found typical species of Nardus mat-grasslands in the undisturbed sites growing on non-eroded and well-structured soils that were low in calcium and acidic, with high contents of organic matter. In turn, we found earlier-successional grassland communities growing on slopes recently affected by soil erosion processes. The species composition was mainly species from stony slope grasslands and, to a lesser extent, from the long-term snow-covered environments of the high mountains. These soils were shallower and stonier and had a less-stable structure, higher pH, and lower organic matter and calcium content than undisturbed soils. Our results suggest that the differences between both communities emerge and are maintained by soil–plant feedback mechanisms mediated in Nardus mat-grasslands through soil stabilization and acidification and in chalk grasslands through soil erosion and basification. These findings suggest that the subalpine grassland mosaic results from a model of non-equilibrium plant coexistence due to soil disturbance and inexorable succession. Management should be focused on maintaining a disturbance regime, through grazing, sufficient to prevent the spreading of Nardus mat-grasslands.
000095651 536__ $$9info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/ES/MINECO/CGL2016-76620-R
000095651 540__ $$9info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess$$aby-nc-nd$$uhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/es/
000095651 590__ $$a6.551$$b2019
000095651 591__ $$aENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES$$b22 / 264 = 0.083$$c2019$$dQ1$$eT1
000095651 592__ $$a1.661$$b2019
000095651 593__ $$aEnvironmental Chemistry$$c2019$$dQ1
000095651 593__ $$aWaste Management and Disposal$$c2019$$dQ1
000095651 593__ $$aPollution$$c2019$$dQ1
000095651 593__ $$aEnvironmental Engineering$$c2019$$dQ1
000095651 655_4 $$ainfo:eu-repo/semantics/article$$vinfo:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion
000095651 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0002-1006-5030$$aBadía-Villas, David$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza
000095651 700__ $$0(orcid)0000-0001-8146-0364$$aMora, Juan Luis$$uUniversidad de Zaragoza
000095651 700__ $$aGómez, Daniel
000095651 7102_ $$15011$$2240$$aUniversidad de Zaragoza$$bDpto. CC.Agrar.y Medio Natural$$cÁrea Edafología y Quím.Agríco.
000095651 773__ $$g712 (2019), 134483 [10 pp.]$$pSci. total environ.$$tSCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT$$x0048-9697
000095651 8564_ $$s890159$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/95651/files/texto_completo.pdf$$yPostprint
000095651 8564_ $$s252037$$uhttps://zaguan.unizar.es/record/95651/files/texto_completo.jpg?subformat=icon$$xicon$$yPostprint
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000095651 951__ $$a2024-01-09-13:33:11
000095651 980__ $$aARTICLE