No abstract

The mechanisms underlying elevation patterns in species and phylogenetic diversity remain a central issue in ecology and are vital for effective biodiversity conservation in the mountains. Gongga Mountain, located in the southeastern Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, represents one of the longest elevational gradients (ca. 6,500 m, from ca. 1,000 to 7,556 m) in the world for studying species diversity patterns. However, the elevational gradient and conservation of plant species diversity and phylogenetic diversity in this mountain remain poorly studied. Here, we compiled the elevational distributions of 2,667 native seed plant species occurring in Gongga Mountain, and estimated the species diversity, phylogenetic diversity, species density, and phylogenetic relatedness across ten elevation belts and five vegetation zones. The results indicated that species diversity and phylogenetic diversity of all seed plants showed a hump‐shaped pattern, peaking at 1,800–2,200 m. Species diversity was significantly correlated with phylogenetic diversity and species density. The floras in temperate coniferous broad‐leaved mixed forests, subalpine coniferous forests, and alpine shrublands and meadows were significantly phylogenetically clustered, whereas the floras in evergreen broad‐leaved forests had phylogenetically random structure. Both climate and human pressure had strong correlation with species diversity, phylogenetic diversity, and phylogenetic structure of seed plants. Our results suggest that the evergreen broad‐leaved forests and coniferous broad‐leaved mixed forests at low to mid elevations deserve more conservation efforts. This study improves our understanding on the elevational gradients of species and phylogenetic diversity and their determinants and provides support for improvement of seed plant conservation in Gongga Mountain.

No abstract

Aim: Significant changes in species elevational ranges in mountains have been repeatedly documented, yet the direction, magnitude and drivers of these shifts remain controversial. Presently, there is still lacking evidence about the general nature of species elevational range shifts in eastern Eurasia in response to anthropogenic climate change. By using historical specimen records and recent field observations for 735 seed plant species across 29 China's mountains, we assessed changes in species' elevational centroids and their drivers.Location: China.

No abstract

Background & Aim: Over the past century, the global climate has changed dramatically and has become a major threat to global biodiversity. How to limit use of resources and power in order to protect biodiversity effectively has become one of the most significant issues concerning researchers. Mountain regions play an important role in biodiversity protection and have high ecological service value. They have become one of the most important biodiversity refuges due to its high habitat heterogeneity, climate diversity, and low human disturbance. However, mountain regions are more vulnerable to climate change, and severe climate change in mountain regions will pose a serious threat to the stability and diversity of mountain species ecosystems. Therefore, understanding the potential mechanisms of climate change and how they affect the elevational distributions of mountain species, and the negative effects of the elevational distribution changes induced by climate change, will provide a direct reference for the future conservation of mountain biodiversity under global climate change. In this paper, we review the research progress of climate change and the •综述•

No abstract

No abstract