Which plant traits determine abundance under long‐term shifts in soil resource availability and grazing intensity?

摘要: Summary 1. Soil resource availability and disturbance are widely recognized as key drivers of plant community structure. However, the relative importance different traits in determining species abundance following shifts soil remains little studied, particularly long-term experiments. 2. We studied trait-based assembly a 27-year grassland experiment where 25 were sown into resident vegetation, after which annual manipulations (five levels superphosphate fertilizer; highest level was also irrigated) (three ‘mob-grazed’ sheep grazing intensity levels: lax, moderate, hard) applied. We used through trait selection (CATS) models based on entropy maximization to predict abundances quantify each abundance. 3. Plant primarily differentiated along trade-off axis corresponding promoting rapid growth (e.g. high leaf [N] specific area [SLA]) vs. those long life span. Using 12 traits, CATS model predicted >80% variation 51 species, suggesting that filtering important. 4. Species with attributes reduce nutrient losses held advantage under lowest availability, whereas associated rate became dominant addition. Species thinner leaves favoured greater may reflect strategy maximize SLA without sacrificing density thus maintain structural defences disturbance. Greater [S] ability symbiotically fix atmospheric N availability. height, higher lower intensity. 5. Synthesis. Our results highlight functional differences understand how communities react increases disturbance, two important inseparable components land-use change grasslands world-wide.