The diversification of floral traits is the outcome of evolution by natural selection, and the variation in floral traits between species has a certain correlation with the plant habitats. The northern tropical karst seasonal rain forests have a great habitat heterogeneity, a complex structure of plant community, and abundant endemic components. Analyzing the relationship between the variation of plant traits and their habitats in those forests is helpful to understand species coexistence, coevolution and their adaptations to habitats, and to provide clues for revealing the ecological adaptability of plants and the maintenance mechanisms of biodiversity in karst forests. We conducted a preliminary study at a 15 ha plot of the northern tropical karst seasonal rain forest in Nonggang to examine the differences in floral traits among species and how these traits varied with habitats, when a relatively large number of woody plants bloomed synchronously, with a total of 21 species being found flowering. We divided the 21 species into three preferred habitat types (peak, slope and valley) according to the spatial distribution of species and their habitat associations, and analysed
Aims Diversity of climbing seed plants and their reproductive habits and characteristics are central for the understanding of community structure and dynamics of forests and hence are important for forest protection. However, little is known about the climbing seed plants in northern tropical karst seasonal rain forests. Here, using the data of the species diversity and reproductive habits of climbing seed plants in Nonggang, Guangxi, China, we aim to 1) explore the species diversity and distribution of climbing seed plants in northern tropical karst seasonal rain forests, 2) study the flowering and fruiting phenology and 3) the associations of reproductive characteristics to the environment.Methods Species composition, preferred habitat, flowering time, fruiting time and fruit types of climbing seed plants were surveyed. The seasonality of flowering and fruiting were analyzed by concentration ratio and circular distribution. Climbing seed plants were divided into three groups according to their growth forms and places in spatial forest structure: bush ropes, herbaceous vines and lianas. Monthly flowering ratios, fruiting ratios, fruit types and their ratios in different groups were determined. These relationships of flowering ratio, fruiting ratio, fruit type and its ratio to meteorological factors were investigated using Pearson correlation analysis.Important findings There were a total of 333 species of climbing seed plants in Nonggang karst seasonal rain forest, belonging to 145 genera and 56 families. Bush ropes, herbaceous vines and lianas contained 119, 88 and 126 species, respectively. At species level, herbaceous vines were more abundance in valleys, while bush ropes
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