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Drivers of desert plant beta diversity on the Qinghai–Tibet plateau

Drivers of desert plant beta diversity on the Qinghai–Tibet plateau

Authors :
Lu Wen
Kexuan Zhao
Haoyu Sun
Gang Feng
Qiang Sun
Cunzhu Liang
Zhiyong Li
Lixin Wang
Jens‐Christian Svenning
Source :
Ecology and Evolution, Vol 14, Iss 2, Pp n/a-n/a (2024)
Publication Year :
2024
Publisher :
Wiley, 2024.

Abstract

Abstract The desert ecosystem of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau (QTP) is an important component of China's desert ecosystem. Studying the mechanisms shaping the taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional beta diversity of plant communities in the QTP desert will help us to promote scientific conservation and management of the region's biodiversity. This study investigated the effects of environmental (including altitude, climate factors, and soil factors) and geographic distances on three facets of beta diversity as well as their turnover and nestedness components based on field survey data. The results showed that turnover components dominate the three facets of beta diversity. However, the turnover contributions to phylogenetic and functional beta diversity were lower than for taxonomic beta diversity. Environmental distance had a greater influence than geographic distance, with the former uniquely explaining 15.2%–22.8% of beta diversity and the latter explaining only 1.7%–2.4%. Additionally, the explanatory power of different factors for beta diversity differed between herbs and shrubs, with environmental distance being more important for the latter. Distance‐based redundancy analysis suggested that soil total potassium content had a substantial impact on the beta diversity of three dimensions, with mean temperature of the coldest month and soil total phosphorus content having a substantial impact on taxonomic and functional beta diversity as well. Our results support that environmental sorting plays a predominant role in shaping plant community composition across QTP desert ecosystems. To maintain the plant diversity of this region, it is crucial to prioritize the conservation of its diverse environmental conditions and actively mitigate its degradation by anthropogenic pressures.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
20457758
Volume :
14
Issue :
2
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
Ecology and Evolution
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.596ff738c5054aaa8446706f5dfab28c
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10993