The effects of elevated CO{sub 2} and manipulations of plant diversity on ecosystem processes and community composition in a species-rich, calcareous meadow

Journal Article · Thu Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1995 · Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America

OSTI ID:95834

Leadley, P W; Koerner, C; Schmid, B ^[1]

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1. Universitaet Basel (Switzerland)

We report the results from the first year of an interdisciplinary biodiversity/CO{sub 2} experiment in a calcareous meadow near Basel, Switzerland. The goals of this experiment are to determine the effects of: (1) elevated CO{sub 2} on ecosystem function, (2) elevated CO{sub 2} on diversity, and (3) manipulations of plant diversity on ecosystem function. Undisturbed meadow communities and communities that were planted in homogenized field soil with 5, 12, or 31 locally important species were exposed to ambient or elevated (600 ul 1{sup -1}) CO{sub 2} using open-top chambers. Above- and belowground plant biomass have not yet delectably increased at elevated CO{sub 2} in the undisturbed community. However, fine root and aboveground biomass increased in response to elevated CO{sub 2} in the diversity treatments with the largest response at the highest diversity. Variation in the response of individual species to elevated CO{sub 2} was large; e.g., biomass increased in Carex sp. but did not change or declined for legume species. We speculate that this species by CO{sub 2} interaction will lead to changes in species dominance. We also found that aboveground biomass increased with increasing diversity, but show that the results of this and other recently published biodiversity experiments must be interpreted with considerable caution.

• OSTI ID: 95834
• Report Number(s): CONF-9507129--
• Journal Information: Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America, Journal Name: Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 76; ISSN BECLAG; ISSN 0012-9623
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
56 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
APPLIED STUDIES
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
CARBON DIOXIDE
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RANGELANDS
SPECIES DIVERSITY