Topography and soil content contribute to plant community composition and structure in subtropical evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forests

• Published in: Plant diversity 2021-08, Vol.43 (4), p.264-274
• Main Authors: Yang, Qichi, Zhang, Hehe, Wang, Lihui, Ling, Feng, Wang, Zhengxiang, Li, Tingting, Huang, Jinliang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Detrended correspondence analysis; Environmental factors; Evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forests; Northwestern of Hubei; Plant community; Research Paper; Two-way indicator species analysis
• ISSN: 2468-2659; 2096-2703; 2468-2659
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2021.03.003

Topography and soil factors are known to play crucial roles in the species composition of plant communities in subtropical evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forests. In this study, we used a systematic quantitative approach to classify plant community types in the subtropical forests of Hubei Province (central China), and then quantified the relative contribution of drivers responsible for variation in species composition and diversity. We classified the subtropical forests in the study area into 12 community types. Of these, species diversity indices of three communities were significantly higher than those of others. In each community type, species richness, abundance, basal area and importance values of evergreen and deciduous species were different. In most community types, deciduous species richness was higher than that of evergreen species. Linear regression analysis showed that the dominant factors that affect species composition in each community type are elevation, slope, aspect, soil nitrogen content, and soil phosphorus content. Furthermore, structural equation modeling analysis showed that the majority of variance in species composition of plant communities can be explained by elevation, aspect, soil water content, litterfall, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus. Thus, the major factors that affect evergreen and deciduous species distribution across the 12 community types in subtropical evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forests include elevation, slope and aspect, soil total nitrogen content, soil total phosphorus content, soil available nitrogen content and soil available phosphorus content. •Plant community structure and species composition were studied in evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forests in northwestern Hubei Province (central China).•We identified environmental factors, including topography and soil content, that drive plant community structure and species composition.•The major factors that affect species distribution in subtropical forests include elevation and soil available phosphorus content.