NDLI: Integrating the effects of latitude and altitude on the spatial differentiation of plant community diversity in a mountainous ecosystem in China.

Content Provider	Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)
Author	Manhou Xu Li Ma Yanyan Jia Min Liu
Abstract	Varying patterns of plant community diversity along geographical gradients are a significant topic in biodiversity research. Here, to explore the integrated effects of latitude and altitude on the plant community diversity in a mountainous ecosystem, we set Guancen Mountain in the northern section, Guandi Mountain in the middle section, and Wulu Mountain in the southern section of the Lvliang Mountains as study areas, and the plant community diversity (basal diameter and height of tree and species diversity indices of shrub and herb) was measured horizontally at different latitude gradients and vertically at different altitude gradients in late July 2015. The results showed that (1) the trees were taller and wider at the middle latitude and higher altitude with a stronger spatial heterogeneity in the structures along the latitudinal and altitudinal gradients. The evergreen tree growth preceded that of the deciduous trees in the higher latitude and lower altitude regions, whereas the deciduous tree growth preceded that of the evergreen trees in the middle latitude and higher altitude regions. (2) Shrubs and herbs tended to grow well in the lower latitude and middle-lower altitude regions. The shrubs had a larger species diversity at lower latitude and lower altitude, but the species diversity of the herbs was not sensitive to the influences of the latitudinal and altitudinal gradients. With the latitude and altitude increasing, perennial herbs tended to grow well at higher latitude and higher altitude, while annual herbs tended to thrive at the middle latitude and lower altitude. In conclusion, environmental deviations caused by latitudinal and altitudinal gradients had great influences on the spatial distributions of the plant community diversity in the Lvliang Mountains.
e-ISSN	19326203
DOI	10.1371/journal.pone.0174231
Journal	PLoS ONE
Issue Number	3
Volume Number	12
Language	English
Publisher	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Publisher Date	2017-01-01
Publisher Place	United States
Access Restriction	Open
Subject Keyword	Medicine Science
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article

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