Species and phylogenetic diversity of woody plants along a subtropical elevational gradient on Daming Mountain, South China

not-yet-known not-yet-known not-yet-known unknown The distribution of biodiversity along elevational gradients, and the drivers of these patterns, are research hotspots in community ecology; nonetheless, these aspects remain insufficiently understood. To address this, we established 24 plots along an elevational gradient from 300–1400 m on Daming Mountain, Guangxi, China, and examined the patterns and drivers of species and phylogenetic diversity along this gradient, via polynomial regression, correlation analysis, and redundancy analyses. With increasing elevation, species and phylogenetic diversity showed a hump-shaped trend, and the phylogenetic structure shifted from clustering to dispersion (or reduced clustering). Elevation was the primary environmental driver of variation in species diversity, soil available phosphorus and soil pH were the primary factors influencing both species and phylogenetic diversity, and nitrate nitrogen content was the most significant factor affecting species diversity. These findings, which reveal the patterns of diversity of woody plant communities along an elevational gradient on Daming Mountain, will contribute to the development of biodiversity conservation strategies for the region