Grazing intensity shifts biodiversity drivers of ecosystem multifunctionality in a desert steppe

This dataset supports the research presented in the publication titled: *"Grazing intensity shifts biodiversity drivers of ecosystem multifunctionality in a desert steppe."* Data were collected from a long-term grazing experimental site established in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia, northern China, during the years 2020 to 2023. For full details on experimental design and data interpretation, please refer to the associated publication.<br>The dataset includes:<br>- Grassland **productivity functions** under different grazing intensities, including aboveground biomass (AGB), belowground biomass (BGB), litter biomass (LB), and sheep weight gain (SWG). **Carbon cycling functions**, including net ecosystem CO₂ exchange (NEE), soil respiration (SR), soil organic carbon (SOC), total carbon (TC), β-glucosidase activity (βGC), and microbial biomass carbon (MBC). **Nutrient supply functions**, including total nitrogen (TN), ammonium nitrogen (AN), nitrate nitrogen (NN), available phosphorus (AP), microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN), urease (UE), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP). Biodiversity data of **plants, grasshoppers, soil nematodes, and soil bacteria** under different grazing intensities- Ecosystem multifunctionality metrics calculated using the **Z-score averaging method** - Ecosystem multifunctionality metrics calculated using the **threshold approach**For any questions regarding this dataset, please contact: **[e-mail]**