27 May 2024 | Cai Cheng, Zekang Liu, Wei Song, Xue Chen, Zhijie Zhang, Bo Li, Mark van Kleunen, Jihua Wu
This study investigates the relationship between biodiversity and plant invasion resistance under multiple environmental changes. A meta-analysis of 1010 observations from 25 grassland studies manipulated plant species richness along with various environmental change factors (such as warming, drought, elevated atmospheric CO2, eutrophication, pesticide use, grazing, and physical disturbance) to measure invasibility. The results show that biodiversity generally increases resistance to plant invasions across different environmental conditions. Specifically, the positive effect of biodiversity on invasion resistance is strengthened under experimental warming but weakened under drought. When multiple factors are imposed simultaneously, the positive biodiversity effect is further enhanced. The study concludes that biodiversity helps grassland communities resist plant invasions under multiple environmental changes, emphasizing the importance of protecting and restoring native biodiversity to mitigate the impacts of global environmental changes.This study investigates the relationship between biodiversity and plant invasion resistance under multiple environmental changes. A meta-analysis of 1010 observations from 25 grassland studies manipulated plant species richness along with various environmental change factors (such as warming, drought, elevated atmospheric CO2, eutrophication, pesticide use, grazing, and physical disturbance) to measure invasibility. The results show that biodiversity generally increases resistance to plant invasions across different environmental conditions. Specifically, the positive effect of biodiversity on invasion resistance is strengthened under experimental warming but weakened under drought. When multiple factors are imposed simultaneously, the positive biodiversity effect is further enhanced. The study concludes that biodiversity helps grassland communities resist plant invasions under multiple environmental changes, emphasizing the importance of protecting and restoring native biodiversity to mitigate the impacts of global environmental changes.