Herbivore species and patch heterogeneity modulate grazing-induced shifts in soil nematode trophic structure and energy flux

Grazing by large herbivores is a critical factor in shaping grassland biodiversity and ecosystem functioning worldwide; however, its consequences for soil communities remain poorly understood. This gap is important because soil food webs underpin ecosystem processes and may respond differently to grazing depending on herbivore identity and local heterogeneity (i.e., patchiness). Here, a four-year field experiment was conducted to investigate the influence of cattle and sheep grazing on soil nematode communities in a grassland featuring a mosaic of degraded high-salinity and undegraded low-salinity patches. We focus on nematode communities because nematode-based indices offer key insights into the structure of the soil food web and overall soil health. In the absence of grazing, degraded patches exhibited a more simplified soil food web structure, indicated by reduced nematode diversity, maturity index, and structure index, but higher nematode biomass and energy flux compared to undegrad..., , # Data from: Herbivore species and patch heterogeneity modulate grazing-induced shifts in soil nematode trophic structure and energy flux

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf6q](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf6q)

## Description of the data and file structure

Soil samples were collected at the end of the 2020 growing season from grazed grassland paddocks comprising high- and low-salinity patches, with two replicates in high-salinity patches and four in low-salinity patches, reflecting their proportional area coverage. Composite soil cores (0–10 cm depth) were obtained and divided for different analyses. Fresh subsamples were used to extract nematodes via modified Baermann funnels and to determine soil water content. Other subsamples were analyzed for microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen, available nitrogen, and soil physicochemical properties, including pH, electrical conductivity, total organic carbon, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus. Nematodes were identified to genus or ...,

大型草食动物的放牧是全球范围内塑造草原生物多样性与生态系统功能的关键驱动因子；然而其对土壤生物群落的影响迄今仍未得到充分阐释。这一认知空白具有重要意义，因为土壤食物网支撑着生态系统核心过程，且其对放牧的响应可能因草食动物种类以及局地异质性（即斑块镶嵌性）的差异而有所不同。本研究依托一项为期四年的野外原位实验，探究了牛、羊放牧对一片镶嵌有退化高盐斑块与未退化低盐斑块的草原土壤线虫群落的影响。我们选取线虫群落作为研究对象，是因为基于线虫的各类指数能够为解析土壤食物网结构与整体土壤健康状况提供关键视角。在无放牧处理的情况下，退化斑块的土壤食物网结构更为简化，表现为线虫多样性、成熟度指数以及结构指数均有所降低，但线虫生物量与能流显著高于未退化斑块……
# 数据源自：《草食动物种类与斑块异质性调控放牧诱导的土壤线虫营养结构与能流变化》
数据集DOI：[10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf6q](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7pvmcvf6q)

## 数据与文件结构说明
本研究于2020年生长季末期，从包含高盐与低盐斑块的放牧草原样地中采集土壤样本：其中高盐斑块设置2个重复，低盐斑块设置4个重复，以匹配二者的面积占比。采集0–10 cm深度的混合土柱，并将其分装以开展不同类型的分析。取新鲜子样本，通过改良贝尔曼漏斗法提取线虫，并测定土壤含水量。其余子样本则用于测定微生物量碳氮、有效氮以及土壤理化性质，包括pH值、电导率、总有机碳、总氮与总磷。线虫已鉴定至属级水平……