Different elevational patterns of rodent species richness between the southern and northern slopes of a mountain.

ABSTRACT: Studies on elevational gradients in biodiversity have accumulated in recent decades. However, few studies have compared the elevational patterns of diversity between the different slopes of a single mountain. We investigated the elevational distribution of rodent diversity (alpha and beta diversity) and its underlying mechanisms along the southern and northern slopes of Mt. Taibai, the highest mountain in the Qinling Mountains, China. The species richness of rodents on the two slopes showed distinct distribution patterns, with a monotonically decreasing pattern found along the southern slope and a hump-shaped elevational pattern evident along the northern slope. Multi-model inference suggested that temperature was an important explanatory factor for the richness pattern along the southern

SUBMITTER: Shuai LY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5562761 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature