State and transition models (STMs) are used to organize and communicate information
regarding ecosystem change, especially the implications for management. The fundamental …

Identified as essential mechanisms promoting alternative stable states, positive feedbacks
have been the focus of most former studies on the potential for catastrophic shifts in …

There is strong empirical evidence on the importance of the spatial pattern of vegetation in
dryland hydrologic and geomorphologic dynamics. However, changes in vegetation cover …

Anthropogenic desertification is a problem that plagues drylands globally; however, the
factors which maintain degraded states are often unclear. In Canyonlands National Park on …

Background and aims Desert mosses, which are important stabilizers in desert ecosystems,
are distributed patchily as biological soil crusts in arid lands. Patch size and microhabitats of …

Mineral dust aerosols are a key component of the Earth system and a growing public health
concern under climate change, as levels of dustiness increase. The Great Plains in the USA …

Desert ecosystems are primarily limited by water availability. Within a climatic regime,
topography, soil characteristics, and vegetation are expected to determine how the …

We studied neglected island plant communities on rock outcrops (vegetation islands or
patches) that harbor many endemic species. We assessed how the post-fire habitat …

In drylands, the underlying vegetation structure is associated with ecosystem functioning
and ecosystem resilience. Although scale‐dependent patterns are also predicted, empirical …

Transitions from grass to woody plant dominance, widely reported in arid systems, are
typically attributed to changes in disturbance regimes in combination with abiotic feedbacks …