Data from: Reducing soil erosion by improving community functional diversity in semi-arid grasslands

1. Great efforts have been made to control soil erosion by restoring plant
communities in degraded ecosystems world-wide. However, soil erosion has
not been substantially reduced mainly because current restoration
strategies lead to large areas of mono-specific vegetation, which are
inefficient in reducing soil erosion because of their simple canopy and
root structure. Therefore, an advanced understanding of how community
functional composition affects soil erosion processes, as well as an
improved restoration scheme to reduce soil erosion, is urgently needed. 2.
We investigated the effect of community functional composition on soil
erosion in restored semi-arid grasslands on the Loess Plateau of China.
Community functional composition of 16 restored grasslands was quantified
by community-weighted mean (CWM) and functional diversity (FD) trait
values, which were calculated from nine plant functional traits of
thirteen locally dominant plant species. Species richness and evenness
were also measured. Soil erosion rates were measured using standard
erosion plots. The multimodel inference approach was used to estimate the
direction and the relative importance of these biodiversity indices in
reducing soil erosion. 3. A robust and strong negative effect of
functional divergence (FDiv) on soil erosion was found. The prevalence of
particular trait combinations can also decrease soil erosion. The greatest
control over soil erosion was exerted when the community mean root
diameter was small and the root tensile strength was great. 4. Synthesis
and applications: These findings imply that community functional diversity
plays an important role in reducing soil erosion in semi-arid restored
grasslands. This means that current restoration strategies can be greatly
improved by incorporating community functional diversity into restoration
design. We propose a trait-based restoration framework for reducing soil
erosion, termed ‘SSM’ (Screening–Simulating–Maintaining). SSM aims to
translate the target of community functional diversity into community
assemblages that can be manipulated by practitioners. Based on this
framework, a comprehensive procedure, highlighting functional diversity as
the primary concern in determining optimal community assemblages, was
developed to meet the pressing need for more effective restoration
strategies to reduce soil erosion.