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Dryad

Nitrogen inputs suppress plant diversity by overriding consumer control

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Mar 21, 2025 version files 69.74 KB

Abstract

Anthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition presents a global threat with significant ramifications for ecosystem functions. In terrestrial ecosystems, N-deposition is predicted to increase plant productivity but reduce diversity by bolstering dominant plants that suppress subordinate species. However, herbivores are predicted to offset these effects by consuming excess biomass produced by N-deposition. This archive contains data from a multifactorial field experiment in a grassland ecosystem showing that N-addition can actually eliminate rather than enhance top-down control by herbivores to impact plant biomass and diversity.