Understanding the patterns of forage quantity and quality and investigating the factors influencing these patterns are essential for the development of animal husbandry.However,there is very little field evidence focused on these issues at a large spatial scale.In the current study,we analyzed forage quantity and quality at 177 sites distributed in all the major grassland types across China,and explored the relationship between forage quantity and quality based on consistent sampling protocols.We also investigated potential factors influencing forage quality patterns across China.Our study indicates the Tibetan grasslands had both higher quantity and quality forage than the Inner Mongolian grasslands,and alpine meadow had the best quantity and quality forage because of the meadow's high productivity and the crude protein and nitrogen free extract content of the meadow forage.For the main vegetation formations,Kobresia tibetica meadows and Achnatherum splendens steppes had the highest quantity,while Kobresia pygmaea meadows and Kobresia humilis meadows had the best quality.We also found that although environmental factors,such as temperature and soil fertility,could affect physiological processes and so influence forage quality,the large scale patterns of change were mainly a result of the differences in vegetation types.Finally,we reported a negative relationship between forage quantity and quality:higher forage quantity means more crude fiber but less ether extract and crude protein.These findings improve our understanding on the spatial patterns of forage quantity and quality,and provide solid evidence related to the future development of animal husbandry.
SHI YueMA YinLeiMA WenHongLIANG CunZhuZHAO XinQuanFANG JingYunHE JinSheng
Aims Clear-cutting is a common forest management practice,especially in subtropical China.However,the potential ecological consequences of clear-cutting remain unclear.In particular,the effect of clear-cutting on soil processes,such as the carbon cycle,has not been quantified in subtropical forests.Here,we investigated the response of soil respiration(Rs)to clear-cutting during a 12-month period in a subtropical forest in eastern China.Methods We randomly selected four clear-cut(CC)plots and four corresponding undisturbed forest(UF)plots.Measurements of Rs were made at monthly time points and were combined with continuous climatic measurements in both CC and UF.Daily Rs was estimated by interpolating data with an exponential model dependent on soil temperature.Daily Rs was cumulated to annual Rs estimates.Important Findings In the first year after clear-cutting,annual estimates of Rs in CC(508±23g C m^(−2) yr^(−1))showed no significant difference to UF plots(480±12g C m^(−2) yr^(−1)).During the summer,soil temperatures were usually higher,whereas the soil volumetric water content was lower in CC than in UF plots.The long-term effects of clear-cutting on Rs are not significant,although there might be effects during the first several months after clear-cutting.Compared with previous work,this pattern was more pronounced in our subtropical forest than in the temperate and boreal forests that have been studied by others.With aboveground residuals off-site after clear-cutting,our results indicate that the stimulation of increasing root debris,as well as environmental changes,will not lead to a significant increase in Rs.In addition,long-term Rs will not show a significant decrease from the termination of root respiration,and this observation might be because of the influence of fast-growing vegetation after clear-cutting in situ.
Yinlei MaYan GengYuanyuan HuangYue ShiPascal A.NiklausBernhard SchmidJin-Sheng He
