Reprint of: Disentangling drivers of plant endemism and diversification in the European Alps - a phylogenetic and spatially explicit approach

Abstract

Plant endemism in the European Alps is clustered into particular geographic areas. Two contrasted and non exclusive hypotheses have been suggested to explain these hotspots of endemism: (i) those areas were glacial refugia, where endemism reflects survival-recolonisation dynamics since the onset of Pleistocene glaciations, (ii) those are high elevation mountain areas, where endemism was fostered by local speciation events due to geographic isolation and harsh environmental niches, or by low dispersal ability of inhabiting species.Here, we quantitatively compared these two hypotheses using data of species distribution in the European Alps (IntraBioDiv database), species phylogenetic relationships, and species ecological and biological characteristics. We developed a spatially and phylogenetically explicit modeling framework to analyze spatial patterns of endemism and the phylogenetic structure of species assemblages. Moreover, we analyzed interrelations between species trait syndromes and endemism.We found that high endemism occurrs in potential glacial refugia, but only those on calcareous bedrock, and also in areas with high elevation. Plant assemblages in calcareous refugia showed phylogenetic overdispersion − a signature of non-selective conservation forces, whereas those located in high mountain areas showed phylogenetic clustering − a signature of recent diversification and environmental filtering. Endemic species were either stress-tolerant, poorly dispersing species, or high elevation specialists with a wide distribution within the European Alps.While both calcareous refugia and high-elevation hotspots harbour a large portion of plant endemism in the European Alps, the species they host have substantially different characteristics. Our results suggest that hotspots of endemism in calcareous refugia are more important for nature conservation planning, as they host many range restricted endemic species and rather isolated evolutionary lineages.