Status of Stipa breviflora as the constructive species will be lost under climate change in the temperate desert steppe in the future

Abstract Climate change affects the structure and composition of a plant community and the stability and service functions of grassland ecosystems. However, the influence of warming, increased precipitation and their interaction on plant functional traits in the desert steppe are unclear. Therefore, after simulating warming (ambient temperature, warming 2℃ and warming 4℃) and increasing precipitation (natural precipitation, precipitation increased by 25% and 50%) for 6 years, we measured the morphological characteristics, photosynthesis parameters, carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) contents of leaves of Stipa breviflora Griseb. (S. breviflora), a constructive species in the desert steppe. Results showed that both warming and increased precipitation reduced the importance value (IV) of S. breviflora, while the IV of annual herbs significantly increased (P