Abstract
Background
With increased grazing disturbance of wetlands, soil moisture decreases, which could have an effect on the seed bank. The seed bank is a crucial resource for vegetation restoration; however, the effects of grazing disturbance on density and richness of seed banks and consequences on restoration of degraded wetlands are unclear.
Methods
We selected six alpine wetlands along a degradation gradient on the Tibetan Plateau for study. The structural equation model was used to explore the direct and indirect effects of soil moisture on transient and persistent seed banks through soil physicochemical factors and vegetation. Non-metric multidimensional scaling was used to explore the role of seed banks in alpine wetland vegetation regeneration.
Results
A decrease in soil moisture directly increased richness and density of the transient seed bank. However, decreased soil moisture indirectly decreased density of transient and increased richness and density of the persistent seed bank though soil pH and richness and abundance of vegetation. The similarity between the seed bank and vegetation increased with wetland degradation. Slope of the Bray-Curtis dissimilarity between transient seed bank and vegetation was higher than that for the persistent seed bank and vegetation.
Conclusions
Transient seed banks remained almost constant under grazing disturbance, which favours persistent seed bank formation. Transient and persistent seed banks were determined by aboveground vegetation and soil environment, respectively. Seed banks provide strong resistance and resilience to degradation of wetland ecosystems, while persistent seed banks play a more important role than transient seed banks in restoration of degraded alpine wetlands.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams VM, Marsh DM, Knox JS (2005) Importance of the seed bank for population viability and population monitoring in a threatened wetland herb. Biol Conserv 124:425–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2005.02.001
Bakker JP, Poschlod P, Strykstra RJ, Bekker RM, Thompson K (1996) Seed banks and seed dispersal: important topics in restoration ecology. Acta Bot Neerl 45:461–490
Bao F, Pott A, Ferreira FA, Arruda R (2014) Soil seed bank of floodable native and cultivated grassland in the Pantanal wetland: effects of flood gradient, season and species invasion. Braz J Bot 37:239–250. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40415-014-0076-z
Basto S, Thompson K, Rees M (2015) The effect of soil pH on persistence of seeds of grassland species in soil. Plant Ecol 216:1163–1175. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-015-0499-z
Beas BJ, Smith LM, Hickman KR, LaGrange TG, Stutheit R (2013) Seed bank responses to wetland restoration: Do restored wetlands resemble reference conditions following sediment removal? Aquat Bot 108:7–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquabot.2013.02.002
Bekker RM, Verweij GL, Bakker JP, Fresco LFM (2000) Soil seed bank dynamics in hayfield succession. J Ecol 88:594–607. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2745.2000.00485.x
Benson EJ, Hartnett DC (2006) The role of seed and vegetative reproduction in plant recruitment and demography in tallgrass prairie. Plant Ecol 187:163–177. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-005-0975-y
Blomqvist MM, Bekker RM, Vos P (2003) Restoration of ditch bank plant species richness: the potential of the soil seed bank. Appl Veg Sci 6:179–188 https://doi.org/10.1658/1402-2001(2003)006[0179:Rodbps]2.0.Co;2
Bossuyt B, Honnay O (2008) Can the seed bank be used for ecological restoration? An overview of seed bank characteristics in European communities. J Veg Sci 19:875–884. https://doi.org/10.3170/2008-8-18462
Brock MA, Nielsen DL, Shiel RJ, Green JD, Langley JD (2003) Drought and aquatic community resilience: the role of eggs and seeds in sediments of temporary wetlands. Freshw Biol 48:1207–1218. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2427.2003.01083.x
Chang ER, Jefferies RL, Carleton TJ (2001) Relationship between vegetation and soil seed banks in an arctic coastal marsh. J Ecol 89:367–384. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2745.2001.00549.x
Chu H, Zhang CP, Dong QM, Shang ZH, Degen AA, Yang XX, Yu Y, Yang ZZ, Zhang YF (2019) The effect of grazing intensity and season on the soil seed bank and its relation with above-ground vegetation on the alpine steppe. Agric Ecosyst Environ 285. doi:10.1016/j.agee.2019.106622
Cui NX, Wu J, Xiang DF, Cheng SP, Zhou Q (2013) A field study on seed bank and its potential applications in vegetation restoration of a polluted urban river in China. Ecol Eng 60:37–44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2013.07.048
Dong QM, Zhao XQ, Wu GL, Shi JJ, Wang YL, Sheng L (2012) Response of soil properties to yak grazing intensity in a Kobresia parva-meadow on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. J Soil Sci Plant Nut 12:535–546. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718-95162012005000014
Eldridge DJ, Lunt ID (2010) Resilience of soil seed banks to site degradation in intermittently flooded riverine woodlands. J Veg Sci 21:157–166. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.01130.x
Folke C, Carpenter S, Walker B, Scheffer M, Elmqvist T, Gunderson L, Holling CS (2004) Regime shifts, resilience, and biodiversity in ecosystem management. Annu Rev Ecol Evol S 35:557–581. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.35.021103.105711
Grewel BJ, Gillard MB, Futrell CJ, Castillo JM (2019) Seedling emergence from seed banks in Ludwigia hexapetala-invaded wetlands: implications for restoration. Plants-Basel 8(11):451. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants8110451
Grime JP (1973) Competitive exclusion in herbaceous vegetation. Nature 242:344–347. https://doi.org/10.1038/242344a0
Grime JP (1979) Plant strategies and vegetation processes. John Wiley & Sons, New York, p. 222
Hodgson D, McDonald JL, Hosken DJ (2015) What do you mean, ‘resilient’? Trends Ecol Evol 30:503–506. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2015.06.010
Hopfensperger KN (2007) A review of similarity between seed bank and standing vegetation across ecosystems. Oikos 116:1438–1448. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2007.0030-1299.15818.x
Hopfensperger KN, Engelhardt KAM, Lookingbill TR (2009) Vegetation and seed bank dynamics in a tidal freshwater marsh. J Veg Sci 20:767–778. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-1103.2009.01083.x
Horswill P, O’Sullivan O, Phoenix GK, Lee JA, Leake JR (2008) Base cation depletion, eutrophication and acidification of species-rich grasslands in response to long-term simulated nitrogen deposition. Environ Pollut 155:336–349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2007.11.006
Huang C, Bai J, Shao H, Gao H, Xiao R, Huang L, Liu P (2012) Changes in soil properties before and after wetland degradation in the Yellow River Delta, China. Clean-Soil Air Water 40:1125–1130. https://doi.org/10.1002/clen.201200030
Johnstone JF, Allen CD, Franklin JF, Frelich LE, Harvey BJ, Higuera PE, Mack MC, Meentemeyer RK, Metz MR, Perry G, Schoennagel L W, Turner T (2016) Changing disturbance regimes, ecological memory, and forest resilience. Front Ecol Environ 14(7):369–378. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.1311
Kalamees R, Pussa K, Zobel K, Zobel M (2012) Restoration potential of the persistent soil seed bank in successional calcareous (alvar) grasslands in Estonia. Appl Veg Sci 15:208–218. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-109X.2011.01169.x
Kalembasa SJ, Jenkinson DS (1973) A comparative study of titrimetric and gravimetric methods for the determination of organic carbon in soil. J Sci Food Agric 24:1085–1090. https://doi.org/10.1002/jsfa.2740240910
Kar D (2013) Wetland Biogeochemistry. Springer, Delhi
Kiss R, Valkó O, Tóthmérész B, Török P (2016) Seed bank research in Central-European grasslands - An overview. In: Murphy J (ed) Seed Banks: Types, roles and research. Nova Science Publishers, Hauppauge
Kiss R, Deak B, Torok P, Tothmeresz B, Valko O (2018) Grassland seed bank and community resilience in a changing climate. Restor Ecol 26:S141–S150. https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12694
Koncz NK, Beri B, Deak B, Kelemen A, Toth K, Kiss R, Radocz S, Miglecz T, Tothmeresz B, Valko O (2020) Meat production and maintaining biodiversity: grazing by traditional breeds and crossbred beef cattle in marshes and grasslands. Appl Veg Sci 23:139–148. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12475
Kotowski W, Beauchard O, Opdekamp W, Meire P, van Diggelen R (2010) Waterlogging and canopy interact to control species recruitment in floodplains. Funct Ecol 24:918–926. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2435.2009.01682.x
Lee H, Alday JG, Cho KH, Lee EJ, Marrs RH (2014) Effects of flooding on the seed bank and soil properties in a conservation area on the Han River, South Korea. Ecol Eng 70:102–113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2014.04.014
Legendre P, Legendre L (1998) Numerical ecology. Elsevier, Amsterdam
Li H, Parent LE, Karam A, Tremblay C (2004) Potential of Sphagnum peat for improving soil organic matter, water holding capacity, bulk density and potato yield in a sandy soil. Plant Soil 265:355–365. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-005-0753-6
Loydi A (2019) Effects of grazing exclusion on vegetation and seed bank composition in a mesic mountain grassland in Argentina. Plant Ecol Divers 12:127–138. https://doi.org/10.1080/17550874.2019.1593544
Ma M, Zhou X, Du G (2011) Soil seed bank dynamics in alpine wetland succession on the Tibetan Plateau. Plant Soil 346(1-2):19–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-011-0790-2
Ma MJ, Zhou XH, Ma Z, Du GZ (2012) Composition of the soil seed bank and vegetation changes after wetland drying and soil salinization on the Tibetan Plateau. Ecol Eng 44:18–24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2012.03.017
Ma M, Zhou X, Du G (2013) Effects of disturbance intensity on dynamics of alpine meadow soil seed banks on the Tibetan Plateau. Plant Soil 369:283–295. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-012-1560-5
Ma M, Baskin CC, Yu K, Ma Z, Du G (2017) Wetland drying indirectly influences plant community and seed bank diversity through soil pH. Ecol Indic 80:186–195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.05.027
Ma M, Walck JL, Ma Z, Wang L, Du G (2018) Grazing disturbance increases transient but decreases persistent soil seed bank. Ecol Appl 28:1020–1031. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1706
Ma M, Baskin CC, Li W, Zhao Y, Zhao Y, Zhao L, Chen N, Du G (2019) Seed banks trigger ecological resilience in subalpine meadows abandoned after arable farming on the Tibetan Plateau. Ecol Appl 29(7). https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.1959
Ma M, Collins S, Du G (2020) Direct and indirect effects of temperature and precipitation on alpine seed banks in the Tibetan Plateau. Ecol Appl. https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.2096
Magnano AL, Krug P, Casa V, Quintana RD (2019) Changes in vegetation composition and structure following livestock exclusion in a temperate fluvial wetland. Appl Veg Sci 22:484–493. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12453
Matus G, Papp M, Tothmeresz B (2005) Impact of management on vegetation dynamics and seed bank formation of inland dune grassland in Hungary. Flora 200:296–306. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.flora.2004.12.002
Mazer SJ (1999) Seeds - Ecology, biogeography, and evolution of dormancy and germination. Science 283:334–334. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.283.5400.334
McDonald AW, Bakker JP, Vegelin K (1996) Seed bank classification and its importance for the restoration of species-rich flood-meadows. J Veg Sci 7:157–164. https://doi.org/10.2307/3236315
Metsoja JA, Neuenkamp L, Zobel M (2014) Seed bank and its restoration potential in Estonian flooded meadows. Appl Veg Sci 17:262–273. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12057
Morimoto J, Shibata M, Shida Y, Nakamura F (2017) Wetland restoration by natural succession in abandoned pastures with a degraded soil seed bank. Restor Ecol 25:1005–1014. https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12516
Nilsson C, Brown RL, Jansson R, Merritt DM (2010) The role of hydrochory in structuring riparian and wetland vegetation. Biol Rev 85:837–858. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-185X.2010.00129.x
Noble A, Palmer SM, Glaves DJ, Crowle A, Brown LE, Holden J (2018) Prescribed burning, atmospheric pollution and grazing effects on peatland vegetation composition. J Appl Ecol 55:559–569. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12994
Osland MJ, Gonzalez E, Richardson CJ (2011) Restoring diversity after cattail expansion: disturbance, resilience, and seasonality in a tropical dry wetland. Ecol Appl 21:715–728. https://doi.org/10.1890/09-0981.1
Peng S, Ren H, Zhang Q (2003) Theories and techniques of degraded wetland ecosystem restoration. China Journal of Appl Ecol 14(11):2026–2030 (in Chinese)
Pellissier V, Roze F, Aguejdad R, Quenol H (2008) Relationships between soil seed bank, vegetation and soil fertility along an urbanisation gradient. Appl Veg Sci 11:325–334. https://doi.org/10.3170/2008-7-18448
Qiu J (2008) The third pole. Nature 454:393–396. https://doi.org/10.1038/454393a
Ren G, Deng B, Shang Z, Hou Y, Long R (2013) Plant communities and soil variations along a successional gradient in an alpine wetland on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. Ecol Eng 61:110–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2013.09.017
Rolls RJ, Heino J, Ryder DS, Chessman BC, Growns IO, Thompson RM, Gido KB (2018) Scaling biodiversity responses to hydrological regimes. Biol Rev 93:971–995. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12381
Sarneel JM, Janssen RH, Rip WJ, Bender IMA, Bakker ES (2014) Windows of opportunity for germination of riparian species after restoring water level fluctuations: a field experiment with controlled seed banks. J Appl Ecol 51:1006–1014. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2664.12288
Schnyder H, Locher F, Auerswald K (2010) Nutrient redistribution by grazing cattle drives patterns of topsoil N and P stocks in a low-input pasture ecosystem. Nutr Cycl Agroecosyst 88:183–195. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10705-009-9334-z
Shang Z, Deng B, Ding L, Ren G, Xin G, Liu Z, Wang Y, Long R (2013) The effects of three years of fencing enclosure on soil seed banks and the relationship with above-ground vegetation of degraded alpine grasslands of the Tibetan plateau. Plant Soil 364(1-2):229–244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-012-1362-9
Standish RJ, Cramer VA, Wild SL, Hobbs RJ (2007) Seed dispersal and recruitment limitation are barriers to native recolonization of old-fields in western Australia. J Appl Ecol 44:435–445. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2006.01262.x
Stevens CJ, Dise NB, Mountford JO, Gowing DJ (2004) Impact of nitrogen deposition on the species richness of grasslands. Science 303:1876–1879. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1094678
Suding KN, Gross KL, Houseman GR (2004) Alternative states and positive feedbacks in restoration ecology. Trends Ecol Evol 19:46–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2003.10.005
Sun J, Ma B, Lu X (2018) Grazing enhances soil nutrient effects: trade-offs between aboveground and belowground biomass in alpine grasslands of the Tibetan Plateau. Land Degrad Dev 29:337–348. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.2822
Thompson K, Band SR (1997) Survival of a lowland heathland seed bank after a 33-year burial. Seed Sci Res 7:409–411
Touzard B, Amiaud B, Langlois E, Lemauviel S, Clement B (2002) The relationships between soil seed bank, aboveground vegetation and disturbances in an eutrophic alluvial wetland of Western France. Flora 197:175–185. https://doi.org/10.1078/0367-2530-00029
Valkó O, Tothmeresz B, Kelemen A, Simon E, Miglecz T, Lukacs BA, Torok P (2014) Environmental factors driving seed bank diversity in alkali grasslands. Agric Ecosyst Environ 182:80–87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2013.06.012
van der Valk AG, Davis CB (1978) The role of seed banks in the vegetation dynamics of prairie glacial marshes. Ecology. https://doi.org/10.2307/1936377
Van Geest GJ, Coops H, Roijackers RMM, Buijse AD, Scheffer M (2005) Succession of aquatic vegetation driven by reduced water-level fluctuations in floodplain lakes. J Appl Ecol 42:251–260. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2005.00995.x
Vecrin MP, Grevilliot F, Muller S (2007) The contribution of persistent soil seed banks and flooding to the restoration of alluvial meadows. J Nat Conserv 15:59–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnc.2006.10.001
Webb JA, Wallis EM, Stewardson MJ (2012) A systematic review of published evidence linking wetland plants to water regime components. Aquat Bot 103:1–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquabot.2012.06.003
Willems JH, Bik LPM (1998) Restoration of high species density in calcareous grassland: the role of seed rain and soil seed bank. Appl Veg Sci 1:91–100. https://doi.org/10.2307/1479088
Xu X, Zhao T, Lu C, Guo Y, Chen B, Liu R, Li Y, Shi X (2014) An important mechanism sustaining the atmospheric “water tower” over the Tibetan Plateau. Atmos Chem Phys 14:11287–11295. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-14-11287-2014
Zedler JB (2000) Progress in wetland restoration ecology. Trends Ecol Evol 15:402–407. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(00)01959-5
Zedler JB, Kercher S (2005) Wetland resources: Status, trends, ecosystem services, and restorability. Annu Rev Env Resour 30:39–74. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.energy.30.050504.144248
Zhang L, Wang M, Hu J, Hou Y (2010) A review of published wetland research, 1991–2008: Ecological engineering and ecosystem restoration. Ecol Eng 36:973–980. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2010.04.029
Zobel M, Kalamees R, Pussa K, Roosaluste E, Moora M (2007) Soil seed bank and vegetation in mixed coniferous forest stands with different disturbance regimes. For Ecol Manag 250:71–76. doi: 10.1016/j.foreco.2007.03.011
Zhao Z, Zhang Y, Liu L, Liu F, Zhang H (2015) Recent changes in wetlands on the Tibetan Plateau: A review. J Geogr Sci 25(7):879–896. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11442-015-1208-5
Acknowledgements
The study was funded by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFC0504802), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31922062, 41671246), Natural Science Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars of Gansu Province (18JR3RA261).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible Editor: Hans Lambers
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
He, M., Xin, C., Baskin, C.C. et al. Different response of transient and persistent seed bank of alpine wetland to grazing disturbance on the Tibetan Plateau. Plant Soil 459, 93–107 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04632-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04632-y