祁连山中部亚高山草地土壤呼吸及其组分研究

草地碳通量组分的区分及其与环境因子的关系是了解生态系统碳循环的重要环节。于2013年6-8月在祁连山中部亚高山草地开展了土壤呼吸及其组分研究,利用根去除法区分根系自养呼吸和土壤微生物异养呼吸。采用LI-8100土壤碳通量系统测定生态系统呼吸、土壤呼吸及土壤微生物呼吸速率,同时测定10cm处土壤温度和5cm处土壤湿度。分析呼吸速率和环境因子的昼夜变化动态,自养呼吸和异养呼吸速率占土壤呼吸速率的比例,呼吸速率与土壤温湿度及与生物量的关系。结果表明：生态系统呼吸、土壤呼吸和土壤微生物呼吸速率的日变化趋势均呈单峰型曲线,具体表现为生态系统呼吸（11.07μmol · m^-2 ·s^-1）>土壤呼吸（6.31μmol·m^-2·s^-1）>异养呼吸（4.92μmol·m^-2 ·s^-1）>自养呼吸（1.39μmol·m^-2·s^-1）;自养和异养呼吸速率分别占土壤呼吸速率的22.03%和77.97%;呼吸速率与10cm处土壤温度呈指数相关,Q₁₀值排序为：土壤微生物呼吸（Q₁₀=3.74）>土壤呼吸（Q₁₀=2.76）>生态系统呼吸（Q₁₀=2.49）,呼吸速率与5cm处土壤湿度呈显著线性负相关关系,双因素模型明显提高了呼吸速率与温湿度的相关性,能够分别解释土壤微生物呼吸,土壤呼吸和生态系统呼吸速率变异的89%,79%和62%;地上生物量和呼吸速率之间存在显著线性正相关关系,地下生物量与呼吸速率之间呈二次回归关系（P=0.01）,未刈割草地呼吸速率大于刈割草地土壤呼吸速率,刈割一年的土壤呼吸速率大于刈割两年的土壤呼吸速率。     

Dynamics in land-surface conditions on the Tibetan Plateau observed by Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR)

Abstract

A time series analysis of 152 VV-polarized Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) Wide Swath Mode (WSM) images collected over the central part of the Tibetan Plateau is presented for the period from April 2005 to September 2007. The signatures of a grassland and a wetland are studied to identify the impact of three land-surface states on the backscatter (σ°). The considered land-surface states are soil moisture, soil temperature and vegetation biomass represented by Système Pour l'Observation de la Terre (SPOT) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Comparison of the σ° time series with these land-surface states via a multivariate regression shows that the grassland σ° are well represented by the soil moisture dynamics, while the wetland σ° also has a strong correlation with soil temperature. Further, we found that the contribution of the NDVI to the explanation of the temporal σ° variability is limited for both the grassland and wetland.     

祁连山南麓退耕地主要植物群落植冠层的截留性能

退耕地人工群落植冠层的截留能力,是群落生态效益的重要组成部分,这一研究不仅可以掌握退耕还林还草工程作用的机理,还可以更好地指导工程实践,促进工程建设步伐。通过“简易吸水法”,可以快速掌握退耕地植冠层的最大截留潜力。青海省大通县退耕较早、平均年龄约10a以上的青海云杉、华北落叶松等几种人工群落,它们的林冠截留量较高,平均达1．93mm,为当地3种截留量最高、林龄50a之上天然群落的61％。青海云杉、华北落叶松、白桦、青杨、中国沙棘等退耕地人工群落的截留量,基本上显示出与林龄之间呈线性或Cubic、Quadratic正相关关系。在植物群落分层截留、消化吸收降雨的这一空间垂直序列中,植冠层截留量虽然较低,平均仅1．29mm(0．25～2．38mm),但植冠层的主要作用还在于减轻、缓冲雨水直接打击地面,改变降水的侵蚀性危害,而这些作用要远远高于截留量自身的区区数量。     

MODIS NDVI和AVHRR NDVI 对草原植被变化监测差异

以草地作为研究载体,对比分析草原植被AVHRR NDVI和MODIS NDVI两种NDVI序列的年内、年际变化特征,讨论两种NDVI序列对降水量、平均气温和水汽压3种气候因子的响应差异,为合理选择NDVI序列对植被进行监测研究提供参考。结果表明：(1)两种NDVI序列所反映的草原植被年内变化趋势相似,但MODIS NDVI对各类草原的区分度优于AVHRR NDVI;(2)两种NDVI序列所反映的2000年—2003年草原植被年际变化差异明显。较之于MODIS NDVI,AVHRR NDVI变化趋势分类图表现出更强的植被改善趋势,植被改善面积在AVHRR NDVI变化趋势分类图中占94.25%,在MODIS NDVI中为83.33%;两种NDVI变化趋势分类图反映的植被变化趋势吻合度为52.88%。(3)两种NDVI序列与水汽压、降水量相关性差异显著。MODIS NDVI与各站点平均气温的相关系数均大于GIMMS NDVI;而MODIS NDVI与水汽压的相关系数83%(10个站点)小于GIMMS NDVI,与降水量的相关系数67%(8个站点)小于GIMMS NDVI。     

高寒山区退耕地不同植被恢复方式下群落稳定性

稳定的群落结构是退耕地生态系统恢复的主要标志之一.以祁连山东段旱泉沟流域退耕区为例,采用野外调查和室内分析相结合的方法,研究了建植6 a的人工草地群落稳定性,结果表明:人工草地在短期内形成了不同于撂荒地的植被格局,草地群落盖度、高度和地上生物量特性明显优于撂荒地和天然草地,部分人工草地物种丰富度和多样性高于撂荒地,功能群结构仍以多年生禾草占优势,无芒雀麦+紫花苜蓿混播草地多样性指数低,处于高产和稳定阶段;各草地根系主要分布在0～10 cm土层,不同草地类型0～20 cm土壤含水量变化最大,4种人工草地对土壤水分的影响表现为提高30～50 cm土层的水分含量,在水分涵蓄方面优于撂荒地.但与天然草地相比未形成密丛型禾草,群落稳定性差,草地群落的演替方向具有不确定性.     

CO2 processes in an alpine grassland ecosystem on the Tibetan Plateau

In this paper, the CO2 concentrations profile from 1.5 m depth in soil to 32 m height in atmosphere were measured from July 2000 to July 2001 in an alpine grassland ecosystem located in the permafrost area on the Tibetan Plateau, which revealed that CO2 concentrations varied greatly during this study period. Mean concentrations during the whole experiment in the atmosphere were absolutely lower than the CO2 concentrations in soil, which resulted in CO2 emissions from the alpine steppe soil to the atmosphere. The highest CO2 concentration was found at a depth of 1.5 m in soil while the lowest CO2 concentration occurred in the atmosphere. Mean CO2 concentrations in soil generally increased with depth. This was the compositive influence of the increasing soil moistures and decreasing soil pH, which induced the increasing biological activities with depth. Temporally, the CO2 concentrations at different layers in air remained a more steady state because of the atmospheric turbulent milking. During the seasonal variations, CO2 concentrations at surface soil interface showed symmetrical patterns, with the lowest accumulation of CO2 occurring in the late winter and the highest CO2 concentration in the growing seasons.     

Response of the shortgrass steppe plant community to fire

Fire is an important driver of ecological pattern and process in grasslands worldwide, although its role in semi-arid systems is less well known. We used published studies and new experimental research to 1) provide a synthesis of existing knowledge of fire in the semi-arid grasslands of the North American Great Plains, and 2) assess the degree of similarity in semi-arid and mesic grassland responses to fire in this region. Based on published studies, burning has neutral to negative effects on aboveground productivity in semi-arid grasslands and variable effects on plant communities. To more rigorously assess fire effects, replicated experimental plots were established in ungrazed shortgrass steppe in northern Colorado and prescribed spring fire was applied in 2006 and 2007, 2006 only, or not at all. Aboveground net primary productivity decreased or remained unchanged with burning. Plant community changes included increases in perennial forbs, decreases in annual grasses and a positive response in annual forbs to the combination of fire and a wet spring in 2007. Combined, these results indicate that post-fire changes in productivity in semi-arid grasslands are neutral to negative, in contrast to positive responses in mesic grasslands, and not strongly negative as previously assumed.     

Effects of grazing and climate change on species diversity in sandy grassland, Inner Mongolia, China

To understand the effects of animal grazing activities and climate change on sandy grassland vegetation in northern China, a field grazing and protected enclosure experiment was conducted from 1992 through 2006 in Horqin Sand Land, Inner Mongolia. The results showed that (1) the grazing was primary responsible for changes of the vegetation richness and diversity in the grazing grassland and that changing climate was the main reason for changes in the species richness and diversity in the grassland protected from grazing; (2) light and moderate grazing can promote restoration of the richness and the diversity in the degraded grassland, and heavy grazing could result in a decrease of the richness and diversity; (3) heavy grazing can result in significant decrease of the perennial diversity, and moderate and light grazing promotes increase of the perennial diversity; the grazing, whether heavy or moderate and light grazing, was beneficial to increase of the annual diversity; (4) heavy grazing was not beneficial to diversity of Graminean and Chenopodiaceae, and moderate and light grazing was favorable the diversity of Compositae and Chenopodiaceae; (5) the warm-humid climate was favorable to increase of the richness and the diversity, and the warm-drought climate could result in decease of the richness and the diversity; (6) increased precipitation was favorable to perennial diversity and the diversity of Graminean, Leguminosae, and Compositae, and decreased precipitation had few effects on the annual diversity and Chenopodiaceae diversity.     

Impact of human activities on soil respiration: A review

Soil respiration is one of the primary fluxes of carbon between soils and the atmosphere.It is produced by rhizosphere respiration and soil microbial respiration.Soil respiration is not only affected by environmental factors,but also changes with the hu-man-induced disturbances of ecosystems.Land-use,the measures of land management,the pollution of soil,and so on can affect soil respiration and change the soil efflux.According to some research,the authors summed up their impacts on soil respiration by human activities through land-use changes and land-management measures among agroecosystem,grassland ecosystem,and for-est ecosystem.The results showed that (1) when adding fertilization to farmland,the soil respiration will increase;(2) fenced land can decrease soil respiration,while soil respiration in the grazed land at a grassland ecosystem will decline with the increasing of grazing intensity;(3) with grassland fertilization;farmland cultivation;fire,fertilization,and cutting of forest,conflicting results were found in the changes of soil respiration.Perhaps plant species,site condition,and measurement season can lead to different results on soil respiration.     

Estimating leaf area index by inversion of reflectance model for semiarid natural grasslands

The study developed an integrated reflectance model combining radiative transfer and geometric optical properties in order to inverse leaf area index (LAI) of semiarid natural grasslands. In order to better link remote sensing information with land plants, and facilitate regional and global climate change studies, the model introduced a simple but important geometrical similarity parameter related to plant crown shapes. The model revealed the influences of different plant crown shapes (such as spherical, cylindrical/cuboidal and conic crowns) on leaf/branch angle distribution frequencies, shadow ground coverage, shadowed or sunlit background fractions, canopy reflectance, and scene reflectance. The modeled reflectance data agreed with the measured ones in the three Leymus chinensis steppes with different degradation degrees, which validated the reflectance model. The lower the degradation degree was, the better the modeled data agreed with the measured data. After this reflectance model was coupled with the optimization inversion method, LAI over the entire study region was estimated once every eight days using the eight-day products of surface reflectance obtained by multi-spectral Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) during the growing seasons in 2002. The temporal and spatial patterns of inversed LAI for the steppes with different cover degrees, swamps, flood plains, and croplands agreed with the general laws and measurements very well. But for unused land cover types (sands, saline, and barren lands) and forestlands, totally accounting for about 10% of the study region, the reasonable LAI values were not derived by inversing, requiring further revising of the model or the development of a new model for them. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 30500076), the National Basic Research Program of China (Grant No. 2007CB714407), and the President Foundation of Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Grant No. YZJJ200205)