Mechanisms linking plant species richness to foraging of a large herbivore

Abstract

Summary 1. There is general concern that local loss of plant diversity will adversely impact net primary productivity and other ecosystem properties. However, mechanisms linking plant diversity with other trophic levels, especially for large herbivores, are poorly understood. 2. We examine the responses of foraging sheep to changes in plant species richness in an indoor cafeteria experiment involving six plant species richness levels (1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 11 species) and three plant functional group compositions within each level, and in a field experiment involving three plant species richness levels (1, 4–6 or >8 species). 3. Sheep preferred a diverse diet over a single diet even when palatable species were in the diet. Voluntary daily intake steadily rose with increases in plant species richness in both cafeteria and field experiments. The overall nutrient intake (i.e. daily energy and protein intakes) of sheep in the cafeteria also rose significantly with increased plant species richness until it reached a plateau at eight species. The quality of the diet selected by sheep was also significantly affected by plant species richness, but the variation of dietary quality was small and variable. 4. High nutrient acquisition by the sheep depended on selecting those palatable species with high nutrient content from the plant forage on offer together with the complementary effects of plant species richness, especially for plant functional group richness. 5. Synthesis and applications. Our experiments demonstrate an asymptotic relationship between plant species richness and voluntary intake by sheep. Increases in plant species richness from a low level led to increased daily nutrient intake, and presumably performance of the sheep. Natural grasslands are generally low in nutritional quality and so plant species richness will critically influence herbivore food intake and nutrition. The asymptotic relationship indicates that the maintenance of plant species richness in rangelands will benefit both domestic herbivore production and the conservation of biodiversity.