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Daytime warming lowers community temporal stability by reducing the abundance of dominant, stable species
Author(s) -
Yang Zhongling,
Zhang Qian,
Su Fanglong,
Zhang Chunhui,
Pu Zhichao,
Xia Jianyang,
Wan Shiqiang,
Jiang Lin
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
global change biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.146
H-Index - 255
eISSN - 1365-2486
pISSN - 1354-1013
DOI - 10.1111/gcb.13391
Subject(s) - daytime , abundance (ecology) , ecology , environmental science , global warming , temperate climate , climate change , ecological stability , ecosystem , steppe , atmospheric sciences , biology , geology
Daytime warming and nighttime warming have the potential to influence plant community structure and ecosystem functions. However, their impacts on ecological stability remain largely unexplored. We conducted an eight‐year field experiment to compare the effects of daytime and nighttime warming on the temporal stability of a temperate steppe in northern China. Our results showed that the cover and stability of dominant species, stability of subordinate species, and compensatory dynamics among species strongly influenced community‐level stability. However, daytime, but not nighttime, warming significantly reduced community temporal stability mainly through the reduction in the abundance of dominant, stable species. These findings demonstrate the differential effects of daytime and nighttime warming on community stability and emphasize the importance of understanding the changes of dominant species for accurately predicting community dynamics under climate warming.