Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China
ABSTRACT The distribution of biodiversity along elevational gradients and the drivers of these patterns are research hotspots in community ecology; nonetheless, these aspects remain insufficiently understood. To address this, we established 24 plots along an elevational gradient from 300 to 1400 m o...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71761 |
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| author | Jing Li Yinghua Luo Feng Chen Cong Hu Chaohao Xu Zhonghua Zhang Gang Hu |
| author_facet | Jing Li Yinghua Luo Feng Chen Cong Hu Chaohao Xu Zhonghua Zhang Gang Hu |
| author_sort | Jing Li |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT The distribution of biodiversity along elevational gradients and the drivers of these patterns are research hotspots in community ecology; nonetheless, these aspects remain insufficiently understood. To address this, we established 24 plots along an elevational gradient from 300 to 1400 m on Daming Mountain, Guangxi, China, and examined the patterns and drivers of species and phylogenetic diversity along this gradient via polynomial regression, generalized linear mixed model, correlation analysis, and redundancy analyses. With increasing elevation, species and phylogenetic diversity showed a hump‐shaped trend, and the phylogenetic structures exhibited clustering at both low and high elevations, whereas at mid‐elevations, a coexistence of clustered and overdispersed structures was observed. Elevation, soil nitrate nitrogen content, and slope collectively constituted the key environmental factors driving the spatial patterns of species diversity. Meanwhile, soil nitrate nitrogen and ammonium nitrogen contents had a decisive influence on phylogenetic diversity. These findings, which reveal the patterns of diversity of woody plant communities along an elevational gradient on Daming Mountain, will contribute to the development of biodiversity conservation strategies for the region. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-86d1e9906ec1412ca61b5e69e9fe4ae5 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-86d1e9906ec1412ca61b5e69e9fe4ae52025-08-20T03:35:01ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582025-07-01157n/an/a10.1002/ece3.71761Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South ChinaJing Li0Yinghua Luo1Feng Chen2Cong Hu3Chaohao Xu4Zhonghua Zhang5Gang Hu6Key Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaGuangxi Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Conservation, College of Forestry Guangxi University Nanning ChinaKey Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaKey Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaKey Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaKey Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaKey Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education Nanning Normal University Nanning ChinaABSTRACT The distribution of biodiversity along elevational gradients and the drivers of these patterns are research hotspots in community ecology; nonetheless, these aspects remain insufficiently understood. To address this, we established 24 plots along an elevational gradient from 300 to 1400 m on Daming Mountain, Guangxi, China, and examined the patterns and drivers of species and phylogenetic diversity along this gradient via polynomial regression, generalized linear mixed model, correlation analysis, and redundancy analyses. With increasing elevation, species and phylogenetic diversity showed a hump‐shaped trend, and the phylogenetic structures exhibited clustering at both low and high elevations, whereas at mid‐elevations, a coexistence of clustered and overdispersed structures was observed. Elevation, soil nitrate nitrogen content, and slope collectively constituted the key environmental factors driving the spatial patterns of species diversity. Meanwhile, soil nitrate nitrogen and ammonium nitrogen contents had a decisive influence on phylogenetic diversity. These findings, which reveal the patterns of diversity of woody plant communities along an elevational gradient on Daming Mountain, will contribute to the development of biodiversity conservation strategies for the region.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71761elevational gradientsphylogenetic diversityphylogenetic structurespecies diversitywoody plants |
| spellingShingle | Jing Li Yinghua Luo Feng Chen Cong Hu Chaohao Xu Zhonghua Zhang Gang Hu Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China Ecology and Evolution elevational gradients phylogenetic diversity phylogenetic structure species diversity woody plants |
| title | Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China |
| title_full | Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China |
| title_fullStr | Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China |
| title_short | Species and Phylogenetic Diversity of Woody Plants Shift With the Elevational Gradient in Subtropical Forests in South China |
| title_sort | species and phylogenetic diversity of woody plants shift with the elevational gradient in subtropical forests in south china |
| topic | elevational gradients phylogenetic diversity phylogenetic structure species diversity woody plants |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.71761 |
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