Due to regional environmental heterogeneity (e.g., the four deserts in the arid northwestern part of China all have different climates), how can the characteristics of dominant species be compared between deserts, and what is the significance of such a comparison?
What kinds of species---plants, animals, insects, birds, rodents, fungi...?
What is the question you are trying to answer, exactly?
So you have different deserts and different rainfall gradients, and different kinds of plants--exactly what question are your trying to ask about these differences, and for what purpose?
For example my work is restoring native plants in deserts, so a comparison between deserts is not necessary...only need to learn the details about each individual plant in each separate desert. And also be able to measure the human-domesticated animal impacts on those plants, like the creation of "Zombies"
Like, do your grassland species contain "Zombie populations" (my own term)--those are ones that have stopped reproducing for some reason. You find the Zombies by measuring the basal diameters of 100 plants in a population, and then divide the results into age-classes, like 0-3 cm diameter, 3-5 cm, 5-8 cm, 8-10 cm, 10-15 cm, 15-20 cm, etc.
If you are missing young seedlings, you have a Zombie ecosystem, and that might be occurring with the shrubs and perennial herbaceous plants also.
Until you confirm the presence or absence of Zombies, that comparisons between desert is useless, because you could be comparing a heathy ecosystem with a Zombie ecosystem that is aging out towards eventual extinction.
It may be useful for you.
Article The influence of environmental factors on species compositio...
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