Plant community patterns of piosphere in the Mu Us Sandland of China

: Piosphere is ubiquitous in drylands. Plant communities of ten paddocks were investigated along transects starting from watering points in the Mu Us Sandland. By using the method of regression and indirect gradient ordination, the richness of plant community and plant functional types were analyzed. The results showed that with the increase of distance from the watering points, the traits of the plant communities varied significantly. The coverage of the community, shrubs and grasses gradually increased and the coverage of forbs decreased with the distance increasing from the watering points. The patterns of the community richness and coverage suggested the grazing gradient surrounding the watering points. The piosphere is a breakthrough point to reveal the degradation pattern of rangeland and its driving forces in northern China.