IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/natcom/v16y2025i1d10.1038_s41467-025-59028-2.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Wild and domesticated animal abundance is associated with greater late-Holocene alpine plant diversity

Author

Listed:
  • Sandra Garcés-Pastor

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway
    University of Barcelona
    CSIC)

  • Peter D. Heintzman

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway
    Centre for Palaeogenetics
    Stockholm University)

  • Scarlett Zetter

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway)

  • Youri Lammers

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway)

  • Nigel G. Yoccoz

    (UiT The Arctic University of Norway)

  • Jean-Paul Theurillat

    (Foundation Aubert
    University of Geneva)

  • Christoph Schwörer

    (University of Bern)

  • Andreas Tribsch

    (University of Salzburg)

  • Kevin Walsh

    (University of York)

  • Boris Vannière

    (University of Bern
    Université de Franche-Comté)

  • Owen S. Wangensteen

    (University of Barcelona)

  • Oliver Heiri

    (University of Basel)

  • Eric Coissac

    (LECA)

  • Sébastien Lavergne

    (LECA)

  • Lieveke Vugt

    (University of Bern)

  • Fabian Rey

    (University of Basel)

  • Charline Giguet-Covex

    (Université Savoie Mont Blanc)

  • Gentile Francesco Ficetola

    (Università degli Studi di Milano)

  • Dirk N. Karger

    (Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape Research (WSL))

  • Loïc Pellissier

    (ETH Zurich)

  • Robert Schabetsberger

    (University of Salzburg)

  • Jean Nicolas Haas

    (University of Innsbruck)

  • Michael Strasser

    (University of Innsbruck)

  • Karin A. Koinig

    (University of Innsbruck)

  • Tomasz Goslar

    (Adam Mickiewicz University)

  • Sönke Szidat

    (University of Bern)

  • Antony G. Brown

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway)

  • Willy Tinner

    (University of Bern)

  • Inger Greve Alsos

    (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway)

Abstract

In the face of human land use and climate dynamics, it is essential to know the key drivers of plant species diversity in montane regions. However, the relative roles of climate and ungulates in alpine ecosystem change is an open question. Neither observational data nor traditional palaeoecological data have the power to resolve this issue over decadal to centennial timescales, but sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA) does. Here we record 603 plant taxa, as well as 5 wild, and 6 domesticated mammals from 14 lake sediment records over the last 14,000 years in the European Alps. Sheep were the first domesticated animals detected (at 5.8 ka), with cattle appearing at the early Bronze Age (4.2 ka) and goats arriving later (3.5 ka). While sheep had an impact similar to wild ungulates, cattle have been associated with increased plant diversity over the last 2 ka by promoting the diversity of forbs and graminoids. Modelling of the sedaDNA data revealed a significantly larger effect of cattle and wild ungulates than temperature on plant diversity. Our findings highlight the significant alteration of alpine vegetation and the entire ecosystem in the Alps by wild and domesticated herbivores. This study has immediate implications for the maintenance and management of high plant species diversity in the face of ongoing anthropogenic changes in the land use of montane regions.

Suggested Citation

  • Sandra Garcés-Pastor & Peter D. Heintzman & Scarlett Zetter & Youri Lammers & Nigel G. Yoccoz & Jean-Paul Theurillat & Christoph Schwörer & Andreas Tribsch & Kevin Walsh & Boris Vannière & Owen S. Wan, 2025. "Wild and domesticated animal abundance is associated with greater late-Holocene alpine plant diversity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-11, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-59028-2
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-59028-2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-59028-2
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/s41467-025-59028-2?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jake M. Alexander & Jeffrey M. Diez & Jonathan M. Levine, 2015. "Novel competitors shape species’ responses to climate change," Nature, Nature, vol. 525(7570), pages 515-518, September.
    2. Charline Giguet-Covex & Johan Pansu & Fabien Arnaud & Pierre-Jérôme Rey & Christophe Griggo & Ludovic Gielly & Isabelle Domaizon & Eric Coissac & Fernand David & Philippe Choler & Jérôme Poulenard & P, 2014. "Long livestock farming history and human landscape shaping revealed by lake sediment DNA," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-7, May.
    3. Sisi Liu & Stefan Kruse & Dirk Scherler & Richard H. Ree & Heike H. Zimmermann & Kathleen R. Stoof-Leichsenring & Laura S. Epp & Steffen Mischke & Ulrike Herzschuh, 2021. "Sedimentary ancient DNA reveals a threat of warming-induced alpine habitat loss to Tibetan Plateau plant diversity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. Eske Willerslev & John Davison & Mari Moora & Martin Zobel & Eric Coissac & Mary E. Edwards & Eline D. Lorenzen & Mette Vestergård & Galina Gussarova & James Haile & Joseph Craine & Ludovic Gielly & S, 2014. "Fifty thousand years of Arctic vegetation and megafaunal diet," Nature, Nature, vol. 506(7486), pages 47-51, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sandra Garcés-Pastor & Eric Coissac & Sébastien Lavergne & Christoph Schwörer & Jean-Paul Theurillat & Peter D. Heintzman & Owen S. Wangensteen & Willy Tinner & Fabian Rey & Martina Heer & Astrid Rutz, 2022. "High resolution ancient sedimentary DNA shows that alpine plant diversity is associated with human land use and climate change," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-16, December.
    2. Jérémy Courtin & Kathleen R. Stoof-Leichsenring & Simeon Lisovski & Ying Liu & Inger Greve Alsos & Boris K. Biskaborn & Bernhard Diekmann & Martin Melles & Bernd Wagner & Luidmila Pestryakova & James , 2025. "Potential plant extinctions with the loss of the Pleistocene mammoth steppe," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-16, December.
    3. Ilaria Bernabò & Viviana Cittadino & Sandro Tripepi & Vittoria Marchianò & Sandro Piazzini & Maurizio Biondi & Mattia Iannella, 2022. "Updating Distribution, Ecology, and Hotspots for Three Amphibian Species to Set Conservation Priorities in a European Glacial Refugium," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-19, August.
    4. Shahnawaz Hassan & Zulaykha Khurshid & Sabreena & Bikram Singh Bali & Bashir Ah Ganai & R. Z. Sayyed & Peter Poczai & Muzafar Zaman, 2022. "A Critical Assessment of the Congruency between Environmental DNA and Palaeoecology for the Biodiversity Monitoring and Palaeoenvironmental Reconstruction," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(15), pages 1-25, August.
    5. Avery P. Hill & Christopher B. Field, 2021. "Forest fires and climate-induced tree range shifts in the western US," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-10, December.
    6. Ivan Krivokorin & Anneli Poska & Jüri Vassiljev & Siim Veski & Leeli Amon, 2025. "Environment of European Last Mammoths: Reconstructing the Landcover of the Eastern Baltic Area at the Pleistocene/Holocene Transition," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-23, January.
    7. Duncan D. Smith & Mark A. Adams & Amanda M. Salvi & Christopher P. Krieg & Cécile Ané & Katherine A. McCulloh & Thomas J. Givnish, 2023. "Ecophysiological adaptations shape distributions of closely related trees along a climatic moisture gradient," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-13, December.
    8. Mariana García Criado & Isla H. Myers-Smith & Anne D. Bjorkman & Signe Normand & Anne Blach-Overgaard & Haydn J. D. Thomas & Anu Eskelinen & Konsta Happonen & Juha M. Alatalo & Alba Anadon-Rosell & Is, 2023. "Plant traits poorly predict winner and loser shrub species in a warming tundra biome," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-17, December.
    9. Shengman Lyu & Jake M. Alexander, 2022. "Competition contributes to both warm and cool range edges," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    10. Ying Liu & Simeon Lisovski & Jérémy Courtin & Kathleen R. Stoof-Leichsenring & Ulrike Herzschuh, 2025. "Plant interactions associated with a directional shift in the richness range size relationship during the Glacial-Holocene transition in the Arctic," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-12, December.
    11. Bérangère Leys & Christopher Carcaillet, 2016. "Subalpine fires: the roles of vegetation, climate and, ultimately, land uses," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 135(3), pages 683-697, April.
    12. Fatih Fazlioglu & Justin S. H. Wan, 2021. "Warming matters: alpine plant responses to experimental warming," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 164(3), pages 1-17, February.
    13. Clinton Carbutt & Dave I. Thompson, 2021. "Mountain Watch: How LT(S)ER Is Safeguarding Southern Africa’s People and Biodiversity for a Sustainable Mountain Future," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-27, September.
    14. William Rapuc & Charline Giguet-Covex & Julien Bouchez & Pierre Sabatier & Jérôme Gaillardet & Kévin Jacq & Kim Genuite & Jérôme Poulenard & Erwan Messager & Fabien Arnaud, 2024. "Human-triggered magnification of erosion rates in European Alps since the Bronze Age," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-10, December.
    15. Thomas Dorey & Léa Frachon & Loren H. Rieseberg & Julia M. Kreiner & Florian P. Schiestl, 2024. "Biotic interactions promote local adaptation to soil in plants," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    16. Tyler J. Murchie & Alistair J. Monteath & Matthew E. Mahony & George S. Long & Scott Cocker & Tara Sadoway & Emil Karpinski & Grant Zazula & Ross D. E. MacPhee & Duane Froese & Hendrik N. Poinar, 2021. "Collapse of the mammoth-steppe in central Yukon as revealed by ancient environmental DNA," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-18, December.
    17. Sabine S. Nooten & Lesley Hughes, 2017. "The power of the transplant: direct assessment of climate change impacts," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 144(2), pages 237-255, September.
    18. Jinfeng Xu & Tao Wang & Xiaoyi Wang & Christian Körner & Xianyong Cao & Eryuan Liang & Yongping Yang & Shilong Piao, 2025. "Late Quaternary fluctuation in upper range limit of trees shapes endemic flora diversity on the Tibetan Plateau," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 16(1), pages 1-12, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-59028-2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.