{
  "abstract": "Plant hydraulic traits are fundamental to ecosystem drought responses, yet their integrated roles in mediating community-level functions remain unclear, especially for widespread herbaceous plants in drylands. Through a systematic investigation of herbaceous communities at 306 sites along a precipitation gradient of 152–411 mm across the Mongolian Plateau. We reveal that a community-wide trade-off between plant hydraulic efficiency and safety fundamentally organizes ecosystem function. Increasing aridity drives a strategic shift from efficiency- to safety-oriented traits. This governs a core functional trade-off: hydraulic efficiency enhances aboveground biomass by supporting greater photosynthetic carbon assimilation but reduces water-use efficiency and ecosystem stability, whereas safety traits exhibit the opposite pattern. Our quantified trait-based framework explains substantial variance in biomass (43%), water-use efficiency (40%), and ecosystem stability (60%). These findings establish a predictive mechanism for vegetation dynamics and provide essential insights for resilience-focused ecosystem management.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 11,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Xinlei Guo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Xu Wang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Chengzhen Jia"
    },
    {
      "name": "Tao Liu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Zhiyong Li"
    },
    {
      "name": "Huamin Liu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Lixin Wang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Yang Wang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Lei Dong"
    },
    {
      "name": "Cunzhu Liang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jinghui Zhang",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6217-7376"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bj43ayvdx449a.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s43247-026-04121-7",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "bj43ayvdx449a",
  "issns": [
    "2662-4435"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-026-04121-7",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2306|Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220462463",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-026-04121-7_reference.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-05",
  "publisher": "Springer Science and Business Media LLC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bj43ayvdx449a.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:54Z",
      "native_id": "10.1038/s43247-026-04121-7",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-026-04121-7"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "earth",
      "origin": "openalex:2306|Plant Water Relations and Carbon Dynamics",
      "subfield": "climate"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Herbaceous leaf hydraulic trade-offs shape ecosystem function across the Mongolian Plateau",
  "title_text": "Herbaceous leaf hydraulic trade-offs shape ecosystem function across the Mongolian Plateau",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:54Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/bj43ayvdx449a",
  "venue": "Communications Earth & Environment",
  "versions": []
}