Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals

We assess whether the knowledge of livestock diet helps to link grazing effects with changes in plant cover and soil seed bank size, aiming at inferring the consequences of grazing on seed-eating animals. Specifically, we test whether continuous and heavy grazing reduce the cover, number of reproduc...

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Autores principales: Pol, R.G., Sagario, M.C., Marone, L.
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Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_1146609X_v55_n_p58_Pol
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spelling todo:paper_1146609X_v55_n_p58_Pol2023-10-03T16:08:06Z Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals Pol, R.G. Sagario, M.C. Marone, L. Cascade causality Disturbance ecology Livestock diet Seed-eating animals' diet desert ecological impact environmental disturbance food availability granivory grass grazing livestock plant community seed bank seed predation vegetation dynamics Argentina Mendoza Monte Desert We assess whether the knowledge of livestock diet helps to link grazing effects with changes in plant cover and soil seed bank size, aiming at inferring the consequences of grazing on seed-eating animals. Specifically, we test whether continuous and heavy grazing reduce the cover, number of reproductive structures and seed reserves of the same grass species whose seeds are selected and preferred by granivorous animals in the central Monte desert, Argentina. Grass cover and the number of grass spikes usually diminished under grazing conditions in the two localities studied (Telteca and Ñacuñán), and soil seed bank was consistently reduced in all three years evaluated owing to a decline of perennial grass and forb seeds. In particular, the abundance of those seeds selected and preferred by birds and ants (in all cases grass species) declined 70-92% in Ñacuñán, and 52-72% in Telteca. Reduction of perennial grass cover and spike number in grazed sites reinforced the causal link between livestock grazing and the decline of grass soil seed reserves throughout failed plant reproduction. Grass seed bank depletion suggests that grazing may trigger a "cascade" of mechanisms that affect the abundance and persistence of valuable fodder species as well as the availability of seed resources for granivorous animals. © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. Fil:Sagario, M.C. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Argentina. JOUR info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_1146609X_v55_n_p58_Pol
institution Universidad de Buenos Aires
institution_str I-28
repository_str R-134
collection Biblioteca Digital - Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (UBA)
topic Cascade causality
Disturbance ecology
Livestock diet
Seed-eating animals' diet
desert
ecological impact
environmental disturbance
food availability
granivory
grass
grazing
livestock
plant community
seed bank
seed predation
vegetation dynamics
Argentina
Mendoza
Monte Desert
spellingShingle Cascade causality
Disturbance ecology
Livestock diet
Seed-eating animals' diet
desert
ecological impact
environmental disturbance
food availability
granivory
grass
grazing
livestock
plant community
seed bank
seed predation
vegetation dynamics
Argentina
Mendoza
Monte Desert
Pol, R.G.
Sagario, M.C.
Marone, L.
Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
topic_facet Cascade causality
Disturbance ecology
Livestock diet
Seed-eating animals' diet
desert
ecological impact
environmental disturbance
food availability
granivory
grass
grazing
livestock
plant community
seed bank
seed predation
vegetation dynamics
Argentina
Mendoza
Monte Desert
description We assess whether the knowledge of livestock diet helps to link grazing effects with changes in plant cover and soil seed bank size, aiming at inferring the consequences of grazing on seed-eating animals. Specifically, we test whether continuous and heavy grazing reduce the cover, number of reproductive structures and seed reserves of the same grass species whose seeds are selected and preferred by granivorous animals in the central Monte desert, Argentina. Grass cover and the number of grass spikes usually diminished under grazing conditions in the two localities studied (Telteca and Ñacuñán), and soil seed bank was consistently reduced in all three years evaluated owing to a decline of perennial grass and forb seeds. In particular, the abundance of those seeds selected and preferred by birds and ants (in all cases grass species) declined 70-92% in Ñacuñán, and 52-72% in Telteca. Reduction of perennial grass cover and spike number in grazed sites reinforced the causal link between livestock grazing and the decline of grass soil seed reserves throughout failed plant reproduction. Grass seed bank depletion suggests that grazing may trigger a "cascade" of mechanisms that affect the abundance and persistence of valuable fodder species as well as the availability of seed resources for granivorous animals. © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS.
format JOUR
author Pol, R.G.
Sagario, M.C.
Marone, L.
author_facet Pol, R.G.
Sagario, M.C.
Marone, L.
author_sort Pol, R.G.
title Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
title_short Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
title_full Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
title_fullStr Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
title_full_unstemmed Grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: Implications for seed-eating animals
title_sort grazing impact on desert plants and soil seed banks: implications for seed-eating animals
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_1146609X_v55_n_p58_Pol
work_keys_str_mv AT polrg grazingimpactondesertplantsandsoilseedbanksimplicationsforseedeatinganimals
AT sagariomc grazingimpactondesertplantsandsoilseedbanksimplicationsforseedeatinganimals
AT maronel grazingimpactondesertplantsandsoilseedbanksimplicationsforseedeatinganimals
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