# Extreme drought impacts have been underestimated in grasslands and shrublands globally

*PRI Rank #6 · Topics and Trends in Most Cited Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies Papers, Class of 2026*

*Canonical URL: https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/ecology-and-vegetation-dynamics-studies/2026/rank-6*

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Rank | #6 |
| 18m citations | 72 |
| Journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |
| Year | 2024 |
| DOI | 10.1073/pnas.2309881120 |
| Corresponding authors | Melinda D. Smith, Kate Wilkins |
| Institution | Colorado State University, United States |

**Ranking page:** [Topics and Trends in Most Cited Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies Papers, Class of 2026](https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/ecology-and-vegetation-dynamics-studies/2026)

**Paper link:** [10.1073/pnas.2309881120](https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2309881120)

## Topics

Extreme drought · short-term drought · Grasslands · Shrubland · aboveground net primary production (ANPP) · coordinated distributed experiment · 100 sites on six continents · Extreme drought · Carbon cycle · Ecosystem functioning · drought severity · Plant diversity · Dryland ecosystems · drought response variability · climate change intensification · standardized drought manipulation

## Cite this ranking

```
Pepkio Research Index (PRI). Topics and Trends in Most Cited Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies Papers, Class of 2026. https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/ecology-and-vegetation-dynamics-studies/2026. Accessed 2026-07-21.

Zheng Su, Tinsley Li, Thematic Shifts in Early-High-Impact Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics Research: A Bibliometric and Semantic Analysis. bioRxiv 2026.07.04.736459; doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.04.736459
```