Evidence that spatial scale and environment factors explain grassland community assembly in woodland-grassland ecotones.

ABSTRACT: How communities of living organisms assemble has long been a central question in ecology. The impact of habitat filtering and limiting similarity on plant community structures is well known, as both processes are influenced by individual responses to environmental fluctuations. Yet, the precise identifications and quantifications of the potential abiotic and biotic factors that shape community structures at a fine scale remains a challenge. Here, we applied null model approaches to assess the importance of habitat filtering and limiting similarity at two spatial scales. We used 63 natural vegetation plots, each measuring 5 × 5 m, with three nested subplots measuring 1 × 1 m, from the 2021 field survey, to examine the alpha diversity as well as beta diversity of plots and subplots. Linear m

SUBMITTER: Zheng C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11221066 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature