Biodiversity
Taxonomic diversity data were collected for 21 above and belowground
taxa. Aboveground diversity was measured for vascular plants, lichens,
bryophytes, arthropods (divided into herbivores, omnivores, predators,
detritivores and pollinators) and vertebrates (granivores and
insectivores). Belowground diversity included arthropods (divided in
predators and detritivores), bacteria, fungi (divided into decomposers,
pathogens, symbionts and others) and protists (divided into
bacterivores, eukaryvores, omnivores and parasites). Species diversity
for vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens was collected in a 4 m x 4 m
subplot located in the middle of each plot. Arthropod species diversity
was collected aboveground, using sweep netting along 150-m transects,
and belowground, using soil core extractions. Bird species diversity was
collected using standardized 5-minute point-counts, recording all
individuals seen and heard from the center of the plot. Bat species
diversity was measured using standardized acoustic monitoring. Diversity
of bacteria, fungi and protists was assessed as the number of
operational taxonomic units (OTU), based on metabarcoding approaches
using DNA extracted from plants and soil. We defined grassland taxonomic
diversity for each group as the number of species/OTUs identified.
Detailed information about the collection of diversity data can be found
in Supplementary Table S2.