Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation

Autores
Nasta, Lautaro L.; Aguiar, Martín Roberto; Graff, Barbara Pamela
Año de publicación
2026
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
The functional consequences of life form coexistence in mixed woody-herbaceous communities remain a key question within the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) framework. Our aim was to test three models proposed for the relationship between vegetation physiognomy and ecosystem functioning in drylands. Furthermore, these natural systems provide an opportunity to disentangle the ecological mechanisms driving biomass production, which have often been oversimplified by using species richness as a proxy for diversity in randomly assembled artificial communities. We conducted a field-based removal experiment in a Patagonian shrub-grass steppe, creating experimental communities dominated by a single life form (i.e. grasses or shrubs) and comparing them to mixed communities. We estimated green biomass at the peak of the growing season as a proxy for above-ground net primary production (ANPP; g·m−2·year−1) in three censuses conducted during the first 5 years after removals. Furthermore, we applied an ecological adaptation of the Price equation to decompose ANPP differences into components that reveal the mechanisms driving the response. We found that (i) ANPP of shrubs decreased when coexisting with grasses; (ii) ANPP of grasses increased when coexisting with shrubs; (iii) total ANPP was maximized at intermediate densities of life forms. Our analysis revealed that life form coexistence maximizes ANPP through a positive effect exerted by shrubs on grasses, rather than through a more exhaustive use of the limiting resource (i.e. water). Synthesis. The relationship between life form dominance and ANPP remains an unresolved question in woody-herbaceous communities. More than 20 years ago, three alternative models were proposed, yet they remain unchallenged. Here, we provide evidence supporting the optimum model, which predicts higher ANPP when herbaceous and woody species co-dominate the community. Although BEF studies have identified niche complementarity as the main mechanism explaining this pattern, our results suggest that facilitation plays a more important role in the functioning of the Patagonian shrub-grass steppe. By incorporating community assembly processes into ecosystem functioning research, we provide empirical evidence that positive interactions are crucial for ecosystem functioning in mixed woody-herbaceous communities.
EEA Cesáreo Naredo
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín Roberto. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín R. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín R. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Cesáreo Naredo. Agencia de Extensión Rural Coronel Suárez; Argentina
Fuente
Journal of Ecology 114 (1) : e70240. (January 2026)
Materia
Biodiversidad
Ecosistema
Plantas Herbáceas
Plantas Leñosas
Tierra Seca
Biodiversity
Ecosystems
Herbaceous Plants
Woody Plants
Drylands
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso restringido
Condiciones de uso
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Repositorio
INTA Digital (INTA)
Institución
Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
OAI Identificador
oai:localhost:20.500.12123/25171
Acceder
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oai_identifier_str oai:localhost:20.500.12123/25171
network_acronym_str INTADig
repository_id_str l
network_name_str INTA Digital (INTA)
spelling Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitationNasta, Lautaro L.Aguiar, Martín RobertoGraff, Barbara PamelaBiodiversidadEcosistemaPlantas HerbáceasPlantas LeñosasTierra SecaBiodiversityEcosystemsHerbaceous PlantsWoody PlantsDrylandsThe functional consequences of life form coexistence in mixed woody-herbaceous communities remain a key question within the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) framework. Our aim was to test three models proposed for the relationship between vegetation physiognomy and ecosystem functioning in drylands. Furthermore, these natural systems provide an opportunity to disentangle the ecological mechanisms driving biomass production, which have often been oversimplified by using species richness as a proxy for diversity in randomly assembled artificial communities. We conducted a field-based removal experiment in a Patagonian shrub-grass steppe, creating experimental communities dominated by a single life form (i.e. grasses or shrubs) and comparing them to mixed communities. We estimated green biomass at the peak of the growing season as a proxy for above-ground net primary production (ANPP; g·m−2·year−1) in three censuses conducted during the first 5 years after removals. Furthermore, we applied an ecological adaptation of the Price equation to decompose ANPP differences into components that reveal the mechanisms driving the response. We found that (i) ANPP of shrubs decreased when coexisting with grasses; (ii) ANPP of grasses increased when coexisting with shrubs; (iii) total ANPP was maximized at intermediate densities of life forms. Our analysis revealed that life form coexistence maximizes ANPP through a positive effect exerted by shrubs on grasses, rather than through a more exhaustive use of the limiting resource (i.e. water). Synthesis. The relationship between life form dominance and ANPP remains an unresolved question in woody-herbaceous communities. More than 20 years ago, three alternative models were proposed, yet they remain unchallenged. Here, we provide evidence supporting the optimum model, which predicts higher ANPP when herbaceous and woody species co-dominate the community. Although BEF studies have identified niche complementarity as the main mechanism explaining this pattern, our results suggest that facilitation plays a more important role in the functioning of the Patagonian shrub-grass steppe. By incorporating community assembly processes into ecosystem functioning research, we provide empirical evidence that positive interactions are crucial for ecosystem functioning in mixed woody-herbaceous communities.EEA Cesáreo NaredoFil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; ArgentinaFil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Aguiar, Martín Roberto. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; ArgentinaFil: Aguiar, Martín R. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Aguiar, Martín R. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; ArgentinaFil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; ArgentinaFil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Cesáreo Naredo. Agencia de Extensión Rural Coronel Suárez; ArgentinaWiley2026-02-11T14:07:54Z2026-02-11T14:07:54Z2026-01info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25171https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.702400022-04771365-2745https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.70240Journal of Ecology 114 (1) : e70240. (January 2026)reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariaenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccesshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)2026-02-12T12:18:41Zoai:localhost:20.500.12123/25171instacron:INTAInstitucionalhttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/oai/requesttripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:l2026-02-12 12:18:41.93INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariafalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
title Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
spellingShingle Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
Nasta, Lautaro L.
Biodiversidad
Ecosistema
Plantas Herbáceas
Plantas Leñosas
Tierra Seca
Biodiversity
Ecosystems
Herbaceous Plants
Woody Plants
Drylands
title_short Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
title_full Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
title_fullStr Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
title_full_unstemmed Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
title_sort Disentangling biodiversity–ecosystem functioning relationship mechanisms in woody-herbaceous communities: The importance of facilitation
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Nasta, Lautaro L.
Aguiar, Martín Roberto
Graff, Barbara Pamela
author Nasta, Lautaro L.
author_facet Nasta, Lautaro L.
Aguiar, Martín Roberto
Graff, Barbara Pamela
author_role author
author2 Aguiar, Martín Roberto
Graff, Barbara Pamela
author2_role author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Biodiversidad
Ecosistema
Plantas Herbáceas
Plantas Leñosas
Tierra Seca
Biodiversity
Ecosystems
Herbaceous Plants
Woody Plants
Drylands
topic Biodiversidad
Ecosistema
Plantas Herbáceas
Plantas Leñosas
Tierra Seca
Biodiversity
Ecosystems
Herbaceous Plants
Woody Plants
Drylands
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv The functional consequences of life form coexistence in mixed woody-herbaceous communities remain a key question within the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) framework. Our aim was to test three models proposed for the relationship between vegetation physiognomy and ecosystem functioning in drylands. Furthermore, these natural systems provide an opportunity to disentangle the ecological mechanisms driving biomass production, which have often been oversimplified by using species richness as a proxy for diversity in randomly assembled artificial communities. We conducted a field-based removal experiment in a Patagonian shrub-grass steppe, creating experimental communities dominated by a single life form (i.e. grasses or shrubs) and comparing them to mixed communities. We estimated green biomass at the peak of the growing season as a proxy for above-ground net primary production (ANPP; g·m−2·year−1) in three censuses conducted during the first 5 years after removals. Furthermore, we applied an ecological adaptation of the Price equation to decompose ANPP differences into components that reveal the mechanisms driving the response. We found that (i) ANPP of shrubs decreased when coexisting with grasses; (ii) ANPP of grasses increased when coexisting with shrubs; (iii) total ANPP was maximized at intermediate densities of life forms. Our analysis revealed that life form coexistence maximizes ANPP through a positive effect exerted by shrubs on grasses, rather than through a more exhaustive use of the limiting resource (i.e. water). Synthesis. The relationship between life form dominance and ANPP remains an unresolved question in woody-herbaceous communities. More than 20 years ago, three alternative models were proposed, yet they remain unchallenged. Here, we provide evidence supporting the optimum model, which predicts higher ANPP when herbaceous and woody species co-dominate the community. Although BEF studies have identified niche complementarity as the main mechanism explaining this pattern, our results suggest that facilitation plays a more important role in the functioning of the Patagonian shrub-grass steppe. By incorporating community assembly processes into ecosystem functioning research, we provide empirical evidence that positive interactions are crucial for ecosystem functioning in mixed woody-herbaceous communities.
EEA Cesáreo Naredo
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Nasta, Lautaro L. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín Roberto. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín R. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Aguiar, Martín R. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura; Argentina
Fil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Recursos Naturales y Ambiente. Cátedra de Ecología; Argentina
Fil: Graff, Barbara Pamela. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Cesáreo Naredo. Agencia de Extensión Rural Coronel Suárez; Argentina
description The functional consequences of life form coexistence in mixed woody-herbaceous communities remain a key question within the biodiversity–ecosystem functioning (BEF) framework. Our aim was to test three models proposed for the relationship between vegetation physiognomy and ecosystem functioning in drylands. Furthermore, these natural systems provide an opportunity to disentangle the ecological mechanisms driving biomass production, which have often been oversimplified by using species richness as a proxy for diversity in randomly assembled artificial communities. We conducted a field-based removal experiment in a Patagonian shrub-grass steppe, creating experimental communities dominated by a single life form (i.e. grasses or shrubs) and comparing them to mixed communities. We estimated green biomass at the peak of the growing season as a proxy for above-ground net primary production (ANPP; g·m−2·year−1) in three censuses conducted during the first 5 years after removals. Furthermore, we applied an ecological adaptation of the Price equation to decompose ANPP differences into components that reveal the mechanisms driving the response. We found that (i) ANPP of shrubs decreased when coexisting with grasses; (ii) ANPP of grasses increased when coexisting with shrubs; (iii) total ANPP was maximized at intermediate densities of life forms. Our analysis revealed that life form coexistence maximizes ANPP through a positive effect exerted by shrubs on grasses, rather than through a more exhaustive use of the limiting resource (i.e. water). Synthesis. The relationship between life form dominance and ANPP remains an unresolved question in woody-herbaceous communities. More than 20 years ago, three alternative models were proposed, yet they remain unchallenged. Here, we provide evidence supporting the optimum model, which predicts higher ANPP when herbaceous and woody species co-dominate the community. Although BEF studies have identified niche complementarity as the main mechanism explaining this pattern, our results suggest that facilitation plays a more important role in the functioning of the Patagonian shrub-grass steppe. By incorporating community assembly processes into ecosystem functioning research, we provide empirical evidence that positive interactions are crucial for ecosystem functioning in mixed woody-herbaceous communities.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026-02-11T14:07:54Z
2026-02-11T14:07:54Z
2026-01
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
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info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
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status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25171
https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.70240
0022-0477
1365-2745
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.70240
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25171
https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.70240
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.70240
identifier_str_mv 0022-0477
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language eng
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eu_rights_str_mv restrictedAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Wiley
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Wiley
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Journal of Ecology 114 (1) : e70240. (January 2026)
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instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
reponame_str INTA Digital (INTA)
collection INTA Digital (INTA)
instname_str Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.name.fl_str_mv INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
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