Research Progress on the Response of Soil and Vegetation to Extreme Drought in Grassland Ecosystems
In the context of global climate change,extreme drought has been proven to pose significant impacts on the structure and function of ecosystems,especially on soil and vegetation characteristics.However,the impact level of extreme drought on ecosystems largely varied due to the ecosystem types.The grassland ecosystem is the largest terrestrial ecosystem in China,undertaking the prominent responsibility of economic and ecological sustainable development in pastoral areas.It is highly vulnerable to changes in precipitation patterns.Therefore,assessing the response of grassland soil and vegetation characteristics to extreme drought is of great significance for understanding the evolution laws of natural ecosystems,as well as preventing and reducing the losses resulting from future extreme climate events in the ecological environment and economic development.This paper reviews the research progress on the response of grassland ecosystems to extreme drought in the aspects of soil moisture,temperature,nutrients,mineralization and microorganisms,as well as vegetation community characteristics,vegetation phenology and functional traits,in hoping to provide references for investigating the selection and adaptation of grassland ecosystems to extreme drought climate under global climate change conditions.