The response of genetic diversity in desert steppe plants to simulated warming in Inner Mongolia, China

Climate is the most important factor that determines vegetation types and the distribution of species, and, accordingly, these features are two of the most prominent indicators of climate change. Existing research shows that simulated warming causes an increase in biomass in Deschampsia caespitosa, Carex alrofusca, and Leymus chinensis; as climates change, these constructive species and their main companion species within a Kobresia humilis meadow have experienced an advancement in their spring phenology and a delay in their autumn phenophase. The present study explores the effects of global warming on the genetics of wild forage plant populations with different life forms in desert steppe habitat, in an effort to elucidate their potential to adapt to environmental change. This study shows that a short period of simulated warming was not sufficient to create a significant change in genetic diversity and structure for the four life form populations studied here; however, compared with the three types of perennials studied, the annual plant S. collina, is more susceptible to the effects of warming.