Abstract
Evergreen broadleaved forests in subtropical China contain a complicated structure of diverse species. The impact of topographic and soil factors on the assembly of woody species in the forest has been poorly understood. We used Ripley’s K(t) function to analyze the spatial patterns and associations of dominant species and residual analysis (RDA) to quantify the contribution of topography and soil to species assembly. The 1 ha plot investigated had 4797 stems with a diameter at breast height (dbh) larger than 1 cm that belong to 73 species, 55 genera, and 38 families. All stems of the entire forest and four late successional species exhibited a reversed J shape for dbh distribution, while two early successional species showed a unimodal shape. Aggregation was the major spatial pattern for entire forests and dominant species across vertical layers. Spatial associations between inter- and intra-species were mostly independent. Topographic and soil factors explained 28.1% of species assembly. The forest was close to late succession and showed the characteristics of diverse woody species, high regeneration capacity, and aggregated spatial patterns. Topographic and soil factors affected species assembly, but together they could only explain a small part of total variance.
Highlights
Floristic composition, structure, and spatial patterns are the fundamental characteristics that reflect species assembly in forests
Another is a statistical approach where the factors are inferred from the existing stand structure and spatial pattern using the data collected in a plot [6]
Within the forest, basal area (BA) amounted to 22.9 m2 ha−1 for all stems with a dbh ≥ 1 cm and 21.6 m2 ha−1 for all stems with a dbh ≥ 4 cm
Summary
Structure, and spatial patterns are the fundamental characteristics that reflect species assembly in forests. Species assembly in a forest result from stand development processes [1,2]. One is a dynamic approach where the factors affecting changes in species richness are investigated using data collected from the forests at different successional stages [1]. Another is a statistical approach where the factors are inferred from the existing stand structure and spatial pattern using the data collected in a plot [6]. It is assumed that aggregation spatial patterns are a common phenomenon for conspecific trees in order to reduce competitive exclusion and promote a more diverse coexistence of species [9]. Many factors, including functional traits (e.g., growth form, shade tolerance, and dispersal modes), life history strategy [10], regeneration strategy [11], disturbances [12], and habitat heterogeneity [13], lead to aggregated distribution
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