Spatial distribution characteristics of an evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Wuyi Mountains, Fujian Province, southeastern China

A study of the evergreen broad-leaved forest in Mount Wuyi, Fujian Province, reveals that the tree species distribution is primarily random with some clustering, and exhibits high mixing intensity among species. This spatial structure contributes to significant species heterogeneity and diversity, with shade-tolerant species like Pteroceltis tatarinowii thriving in lower layers as light conditions change, while sun-loving species such as Schima superba dominate the upper canopy. The forest appears to be in a mid-to-late successional stage, lacking dominant species and showing no signs of climax community formation. The research used spatial structure parameters like angle scale, size ratio, and mixing degree to analyze 9.6-hectare dynamic monitoring plots, finding that higher species mixing correlates with denser spatial distribution and greater diversity.

CHEN Tingting, 陈婷婷, XU Hui, 徐辉, YANG Qing, 杨青, CHEN Shuifei, 陈水飞, GE Xiaomin, 葛晓敏, WU Jun, 吴军, CUI Peng, 崔鹏, FANG Yanming, 方炎明, & DING Hui, 丁晖. (2018). Spatial distribution characteristics of an evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Wuyi Mountains, Fujian Province, southeastern China. Acta Ecologica Sinica, 38(5). https://doi.org/10.5846/stxb201702040212