Effects of Simulated Litter Inputs on Ecological Niches and Interspecific Connectivity of Alpine Meadow Plants

Weishan Lin Kejia De ^* Xuemei Xiang Feng Tingxu Fei Li Xijie Wei

• Qinghai University, Xining, Qinghai Province, China

The ecological niche width, ecological niche overlap and interspecific associations of alpine meadow species in the Sanjiangyuan area of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau were investigated using ecological statistical methods, and the competitive linkages between species and limited resources within the community and the stable coexistence among populations under different levels of plant litter inputs were explored. The results of the study proved the following: (1) Litter inputs could significantly increase the plant diversity and aboveground biomass of alpine meadows, and the species with the highest importance value was Kobresia humilis Clarke. ( 2) compared with the control, with the increase of litter inputs, the ecological niche widths of the major plant species and ecological niche overlap values were significantly increased. And the F2 treatment had 15 major species totaling 105 pairs, and there were 82 pairs of ecological niche overlap values ≥ 0.950, accounting for 78.1%. (3) The correlation analysis between species showed that the negative correlation between species decreased and then increased with the increase of litter input. There were 3 pairs with Ac ≥ 0.25 under F2. This study lays a foundation for the conservation of vegetation diversity and long-term use of grassland resources in degraded alpine meadows on the Tibetan Plateau.