Forb diversity globally is harmed by nutrient enrichment but can be rescued by large mammalian herbivory
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In: Communications Biology, Vol. 8, No. 1, 444, 12.2025.
Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Forb diversity globally is harmed by nutrient enrichment but can be rescued by large mammalian herbivory
AU - Nelson, Rebecca A.
AU - Sullivan, Lauren L.
AU - Hersch-Green, Erika I.
AU - Seabloom, Eric W.
AU - Borer, Elizabeth T.
AU - Tognetti, Pedro M.
AU - Adler, Peter B.
AU - Biederman, Lori
AU - Bugalho, Miguel N.
AU - Caldeira, Maria C.
AU - Cancela, Juan P.
AU - Carvalheiro, Luísa G.
AU - Catford, Jane A.
AU - Dickman, Chris R.
AU - Dolezal, Aleksandra J.
AU - Donohue, Ian
AU - Ebeling, Anne
AU - Eisenhauer, Nico
AU - Elgersma, Kenneth J.
AU - Eskelinen, Anu
AU - Estrada, Catalina
AU - Garbowski, Magda
AU - Graff, Pamela
AU - Gruner, Daniel S.
AU - Hagenah, Nicole
AU - Haider, Sylvia
AU - Harpole, W. Stanley
AU - Hautier, Yann
AU - Jentsch, Anke
AU - Johanson, Nicolina
AU - Koerner, Sally E.
AU - Lannes, Lucíola S.
AU - MacDougall, Andrew S.
AU - Martinson, Holly
AU - Morgan, John W.
AU - Olde Venterink, Harry
AU - Orr, Devyn
AU - Osborne, Brooke B.
AU - Peri, Pablo L.
AU - Power, Sally A.
AU - Raynaud, Xavier
AU - Risch, Anita C.
AU - Shrestha, Mani
AU - Smith, Nicholas G.
AU - Stevens, Carly J.
AU - Veen, G. F.Ciska
AU - Virtanen, Risto
AU - Wardle, Glenda M.
AU - Wolf, Amelia A.
AU - Young, Alyssa L.
AU - Harrison, Susan P.
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2025.
PY - 2025/12
Y1 - 2025/12
N2 - Forbs (“wildflowers”) are important contributors to grassland biodiversity but are vulnerable to environmental changes. In a factorial experiment at 94 sites on 6 continents, we test the global generality of several broad predictions: (1) Forb cover and richness decline under nutrient enrichment, particularly nitrogen enrichment. (2) Forb cover and richness increase under herbivory by large mammals. (3) Forb richness and cover are less affected by nutrient enrichment and herbivory in more arid climates, because water limitation reduces the impacts of competition with grasses. (4) Forb families will respond differently to nutrient enrichment and mammalian herbivory due to differences in nutrient requirements. We find strong evidence for the first, partial support for the second, no support for the third, and support for the fourth prediction. Our results underscore that anthropogenic nitrogen addition is a major threat to grassland forbs, but grazing under high herbivore intensity can offset these nutrient effects.
AB - Forbs (“wildflowers”) are important contributors to grassland biodiversity but are vulnerable to environmental changes. In a factorial experiment at 94 sites on 6 continents, we test the global generality of several broad predictions: (1) Forb cover and richness decline under nutrient enrichment, particularly nitrogen enrichment. (2) Forb cover and richness increase under herbivory by large mammals. (3) Forb richness and cover are less affected by nutrient enrichment and herbivory in more arid climates, because water limitation reduces the impacts of competition with grasses. (4) Forb families will respond differently to nutrient enrichment and mammalian herbivory due to differences in nutrient requirements. We find strong evidence for the first, partial support for the second, no support for the third, and support for the fourth prediction. Our results underscore that anthropogenic nitrogen addition is a major threat to grassland forbs, but grazing under high herbivore intensity can offset these nutrient effects.
KW - Biology
KW - Ecosystems Research
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105000362524&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s42003-025-07882-7
DO - 10.1038/s42003-025-07882-7
M3 - Journal articles
C2 - 40089613
AN - SCOPUS:105000362524
VL - 8
JO - Communications Biology
JF - Communications Biology
SN - 2399-3642
IS - 1
M1 - 444
ER -