Environmental Heterogeneity Affecting Community Assembly Patterns and Phylogenetic Diversity of Three Forest Communities at Mt. Huangshan, China

Environmental heterogeneity plays a pivotal role in shaping community assembly patterns and phylogenetic diversity in forest communities at Mount Huangshan, China. The study reveals that spatial variables, rather than climatic factors, are the primary drivers of biodiversity mechanisms and species coexistence. Three distinct vegetation communities exhibited varying phylogenetic structures: Community I showed weak overdispersion, while Community II displayed clustered patterns for total plants and shrubs but overdispersion for trees. Community III, on the other hand, had a clustered structure for total plants but overdispersed for trees and shrubs. These patterns were linked to spatial and climatic factors, with phylogenetic α-diversity positively correlated with species richness and phylogenetic β-diversity peaking at intermediate elevations. The findings suggest that deterministic processes may control community assembly across different vegetation regions.

Lv, T., Wang, N., Xie, L., Chen, S., Zhao, R., Feng, Y., Li, Y., Ding, H., & Fang, Y. (2022). Environmental Heterogeneity Affecting Community Assembly Patterns and Phylogenetic Diversity of Three Forest Communities at Mt. Huangshan, China. Forests, 13(1), 133. https://doi.org/10.3390/f13010133