Carbon storage of Mediterranean grasslands
Author(s)
Corona, Piermaria
Badalamenti, Emilio
Pasta, Salvatore
La Mantia, Tommaso
Date Issued
2016
Type
article
Abstract
Secondary grasslands are one of the most common vegetation types worldwide. In Europe, and in the Mediterranean basin, human activities have transformed many woodlands into secondary grasslands.
Despite their recognized role in the global carbon cycle, very few data are available for estimating the biomass of Mediterranean grasslands.
We developed linear regression models in order to predict the biomass of two native Mediterranean grasses (Ampelodesmos mauritanicus and Hyparrhenia hirta) and an invasive alien grass (Pennisetum setaceum).
Ampelodesmos mauritanicus is very common throughout the Mediterranean basin, mostly on north-facing slopes, H. hirta characterizes
thermo-xeric grasslands, while P. setaceum is an alien species that is rapidly spreading along coastal areas. The measured morphometric
attributes of individual plants as potential predictors were considered.
The validation results corroborate the ability of the established
models to predict above ground and total biomass of A. mauritanicus
and P. setaceum. We also evaluated the total biomass per hectare for each species. The highest biomass per hectare was found for A.
mauritanicus, whereas biomass was higher for H. hirta than for P. setaceum.
The replacement of H. hirta by P. setaceum may reduce the total carbon storage in the ecosystem; however, P. setaceum allocates more resources to the roots, thus increasing the more stable and durable pool of carbon in grasslands.
Citation
Corona, P. et al. 2016. Carbon storage of Mediterranean grasslands. "Anales del Jardín Botánico de Madrid" 73 (1): e029
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