Soil respiration is an important process in the global carbon cycle, one that plays a crucial role in altering carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. However, the effects of grazing on soil respiration at the global scale remain unclear. Here, we analyzed 688 paired observations from 69 studies worldwide and found that grazing substantially suppresses soil respiration (including autotrophic respiration and heterotrophic respiration). Moreover, these negative effects on soil respiration were amplified at higher grazing intensity, longer grazing duration (> 10 years) and higher temperature (> 5 °C). Importantly, changes in belowground biomass drive soil respiration in response to grazing in grassland ecosystems worldwide. Overall, accurately predicting the soil respiration pattern in grazed grasslands allows us to minimize the impact of grazing on grassland functional structure and improve the sustainability of livestock production.

中文翻译：

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放牧对全球草地生态系统土壤呼吸的影响

土壤呼吸是全球碳循环中的一个重要过程，在改变大气中二氧化碳水平方面发挥着至关重要的作用。然而，放牧对全球范围土壤呼吸的影响仍不清楚。在这里，我们分析了全球 69 项研究的 688 项配对观察结果，发现放牧显着抑制土壤呼吸（包括自养呼吸和异养呼吸）。此外，在较高的放牧强度、较长的放牧持续时间（> 10年）和较高的温度（> 5°C）下，这些对土壤呼吸的负面影响会放大。重要的是，地下生物量的变化驱动了土壤呼吸，以响应全球草原生态系统的放牧。总体而言，准确预测放牧草地的土壤呼吸模式可以使我们最大限度地减少放牧对草地功能结构的影响，提高畜牧业生产的可持续性。