Shifts in plant and soil C, N, and P concentrations and C:N:P stoichiometry associated with environmental factors in alpine marshy wetlands in West China

Abstract

Ecological stoichiometry, a novel method for predicting nutrient cycling rates in different habitats, represents the demands of an organism for natural resources and links different levels of biogeochemical cycling. In this study, plant and soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) concentrations, their stoichiometric characteristics (C:N, C:P, and N:P ratios), and other physicochemical properties of soil were characterized using 243 soil and 81 plant samples collected from three habitats—hummocks, depressions, and meadows—in the marshy wetlands of West China. The results showed that leaf N and P concentrations, soil C, N, and P storage and concentrations, and C:N, C:P, and N:P ratios differed significantly among the three habitats (p < 0.05). Kobresia humilis leaves had the highest N and P content, followed by the leaves of Kobresia tibetica, while Carex mullis leaves had the lowest N and P content. The surface soil of depressions exhibited the highest C, N, C:P, and N:P ratios, hummocks exhibited the highest C:N ratio, whereas meadows exhibited the lowest C and N contents and C:N, and C:P ratios. A structural equation model (SEM) verified that leaf C, N, and P contents and C:P and N:P ratios were positively correlated with soil moisture (SM) and soil organic C contents, whereas the leaf C:N ratio was significantly and negatively correlated with SM content and bulk density. Our findings highlight the ability of alpine marshy wetlands to maintain and even increase the current C, N, and P storage capacities of the ecosystem under increased flooding in the study area.