Causes and consequences of dominant and subdominant plant species effects on ecosystem function: using above-and belowground traits in an alpine meadow system

Abstract

While there has been extensive studies done on how dominant affect community dynamics and ecosystem function, fewer studies address the relative influence of dominant vs. subdominant species to affect systems. Further, not enough studies have been done addressing the role of dominant vs. subdominant species effects on above- and belowground functional traits that influence ecosystem function (Mariotte 2014). Our study addressed how functional traits of dominant and subdominant species mediated ecosystem processes such as the input and output of carbon. In an alpine meadow system, we conducted removals of dominant and subdominant species to see how above- and belowground functional traits—specific leaf area (SLA) and specific root length (SRL) respectively—and ecosystem functions (leaf area index (LAI) and soil respiration) were affected by the loss of either species. We established a randomized plot design plant removal experiment and measured carbon input (via LAI) and carbon output (via soil respiration) over a span of three years from 2013 to 2015 and above (SLA) and belowground traits (SRL) of dominant and subdominant species in 2015. We found that only aboveground functional traits (SLA) and ecosystem carbon input (LAI) responded to plant removals with carbon input increasing linearly with higher SLA in control than removal plots. On the other hand, the belowground traits (SRL) did not respond to our removal treatments and ecosystem carbon output initially increased with the loss of dominant species, but treatments converged in their responses overtime. Our results indicate that the loss of either a dominant or subdominant species would further affect climate change because carbon input decreased with the loss of either species, while the carbon output remained the same.

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