IAI-Data-CRN_012_FLOMBAUM_DRF: Testing the biodiversity-productivity hypothesis in the Patagonian steepe

We tested the biodiversity-productivity hypothesis that states that
increasing species richness results in increasing ecosystem
functioning. We created a richness gradient by removing species in the
Patagonian steppe. The Patagonian steppe is an ideal model ecosystem
because of the low natural diversity with 6 dominant species that
account for 960f aboveground net primary production (shrubs: Mulinum
spinosum, Senecio filaginoides, and Adesmia campestris; grasses: Poa
ligularis, Stipa speciosa, and Stipa humilis). In 84 (5x5m) plots that
initially all contained the 6 dominant species, we removed target
individuals and left 1, 2, 4 and 6 species with all possible
assemblages replicated. We ensured at the starting point, that all
plots had the same vegetation cover but different species number by
removing portions of each individual. The information was collected
between January 2002 and April 2004 in 16 field expeditions to Rio
Mayo, Chubut Province, Argentina. These data were obtained for project
CRN12 (The Role of Biodiversity and Climate in the Functioning of
Ecosystems: A Comparative Study or Grasslands, Savannas, and Forests),
which has Dr. Osvaldo E. Sala as PI.