Inter‐annual fluctuations in rainfall shift the functional structure of Mediterranean grasslands across gradients of productivity and disturbance

Abstract

AbstractQuestionsHow do inter‐annual fluctuations in water availability affect the functional trait patterns along spatial gradients of resource availability and disturbance?LocationMediterranean grasslands in central Spain, near Madrid.MethodsWe surveyed plant communities from 66 sites under different grazing regimes (from heavy grazing to grazing abandonment) in productive and unproductive habitats (corresponding to upper and lower topographic zones) in 2 yr with contrasting rainfall conditions. Community weighted mean (CWM) and Rao quadratic entropy for three key plant ecological strategy traits (specific leaf area, height and seed mass) were calculated for each community. We used null models to estimate functional richness (FR) and functional divergence (FD), the two components of functional diversity with the highest power to detect changes in community assembly processes across environmental gradients.ResultsThe patterns of CWM remained rather constant across years, with the only exception being seed mass, which experienced considerable temporal changes that suggested that heavy‐seeded species are favoured under stressful conditions. Patterns for FR were consistent across years. They revealed both trait convergence and divergence depending on the niche axis and context. Convergence was observed for vegetative traits in unproductive habitats and seed mass in productive ones, and divergence for seed mass in unproductive habitats and vegetative traits in productive ones. In contrast, the patterns of FD of the vegetative traits changed considerably between years, as shown by increased divergence during the wet year in unproductive habitats and decreased divergence in grazing‐abandoned productive habitats.ConclusionsTemporal changes in Mediterranean grassland composition depend on complex interactions between species traits, resource availability and disturbance. Increased rainfall appeared to have contrasting effects on assembly processes in stressful and productive habitats. In stressful habitats we found evidence that increased rainfall promoted niche complementarity, while in productive habitats, especially in the absence of disturbance, it increased trait convergence.