Current biogeographical roles of the Kunlun Mountains

Abstract

Large‐scale patterns of biodiversity and formation have garnered increasing attention in biogeography and macroecology. The Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau (QTP) is an ideal area for exploring these issues. However, the QTP consists of multiple geographic subunits, which are understudied. The Kunlun Mountains is a geographical subunit situated in the northern edge of the QTP, in northwest China. The diversity pattern, community phylogenetic structures, and biogeographical roles of the current flora of the Kunlun Mountains were analyzed by collecting and integrating plant distribution, regional geological evolution, and phylogeography. A total of 1911 species, 397 genera, and 75 families present on the Kunlun Mountains, of which 29.8% of the seed plants were endemic to China. The mean divergence time (MDT) of the Kunlun Mountains flora was in the early Miocene (19.40 Ma). Analysis of plant diversity and MDT indicated that the eastern regions of the Kunlun Mountains were the center of species richness, endemic taxa, and ancient taxa. Geographical origins analysis showed that the Kunlun Mountains flora was diverse and that numerous clades were from East Asia and Tethyan. Analysis of geographical origins and geological history together highlighted that the extant biodiversity on the Kunlun Mountains appeared through species recolonization after climatic fluctuations and glaciations during the Quaternary. The nearest taxon index speculated that habitat filtering was the most important driving force for biodiversity patterns. These results suggest that the biogeographical roles of the Kunlun Mountains are corridor and sink, and the corresponding key processes are species extinction and immigration. The Kunlun Mountains also form a barrier, representing a boundary among multiple floras, and convert the Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau into a relatively closed geographical unit.

Population structure and phylogeography of three closely related tree peonies

“…Mountain‐valley systems, a typical landscape of the Qinling–Hengduan Mountain region, are usually characterized by high mountains and deep valleys, and diverse local environments (Ding et al, 2020 ; Wang et al, 2022 ). If the orientation and morphology of mountain valleys are suitable, valleys and river drainages could serve as corridors for organisms around this area during glacial–interglacial cycles, promoting the occurrence of hybridization events and shaping the population structure of the plants here (Chen et al, 2018 ; Du et al, 2022 ; Yue, Chen, et al, 2012 ; Yue & Sun, 2014 ; Zhang et al, 2011 ). In contrast, lineage splitting could be the most important mode of speciation when a mountain‐valley acts as a natural geographic barrier (Yang et al, 2014 ; Zhang, Chen, & Sun, 2021 ).…”

Evaluation of the Carbon Sink Capacity of the Proposed Kunlun Mountain National Park

“…Kunlun Geopark and Mount Kunlun UNESCO Global Geopark. The proposed Kunlun Mountain National Park area has many geographical landforms, such as plateau meadows, glaciers and deserts, as well as rich natural landscape resources and wild animal and plant resources, such as the Tibetan antelope, Tibetan wild ass and angiosperm herbs unique to the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau [ 35 ]. The altitude rises gradually from east to west, ranging from 2800 m to 6200 m, with an average altitude of approximately 4500 m. The regional ranges of annual precipitation and annual average temperature are 100~5500 mm and below 0 °C, respectively.…”

Exploring the Species Richness Pattern and Areas of Endemism of Tenebrionidae (Coleoptera) in Xinjiang, China

“…The complex terrain and diverse environments in montane areas hinder the exchange of species, but they also provide the basis for the emergence of new species [98,99]. In addition, the complex terrain increases the number of ecological niches, which also promotes the formation of new species [99][100][101].…”