Abstract
Background: The study evaluates how rainfall change and temperature increase affect microbial communities in the desert grassland of Ningxia Autonomous Region, China to explore the soil microbial community and the relationships among the soil microbial community, chemical properties, soil respiration (SR) and plant biomass under the climate change. We established the field experiment with five levels of rainfall by rainout shelters and two levels of temperature by Open-Top Chamber (OTC). Results: The effect of temperature to soil microbial communities is not significant, but with the continuous increase of rainfall, the microbial community gradually increases. Soil microbial diversity negatively correlated with soil CO2 flux. The α-diversity of microbial communities positively correlated with above-living biomass (ALB) and soil temperature (ST), but negatively correlated with root biomass (RB). Conclusions: Both rainfall and temperature’s rising do not promote the soil community α-diversity, but it can promote soil microbial community β-diversity. Soil microbial communities show resistance to rainfall changing. Soil respiration (SR) will limit soil microbial diversity. Soil organic carbon (SOC), soil total nitrogen (STN), and soil total phosphorus (STP) will promote soil microbial abundance and diversity. ALB and ST will promote the soil α-diversity, but the effect of RB to soil microbial is opposite. These findings maybe provide a reliable theoretical basis for formulating a reasonable response strategy in desert steppe ecosystems.
The Responses of Soil Microbial to Changed Rainfall and Increased Temperature in Desert Grassland in Northern China
