Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes
Abstract High alpine regions are threatened but understudied ecosystems that harbor diverse endemic species, making them an important biome for testing the role of environmental factors in driving functional trait‐mediated community assembly processes. We tested the hypothesis that plant community a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10888 |
| _version_ | 1827572801242923008 |
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| author | Lucy Schroeder Valeria Robles Paola Jara‐Arancio Cathleen Lapadat Sarah E. Hobbie Mary T. K. Arroyo Jeannine Cavender‐Bares |
| author_facet | Lucy Schroeder Valeria Robles Paola Jara‐Arancio Cathleen Lapadat Sarah E. Hobbie Mary T. K. Arroyo Jeannine Cavender‐Bares |
| author_sort | Lucy Schroeder |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract High alpine regions are threatened but understudied ecosystems that harbor diverse endemic species, making them an important biome for testing the role of environmental factors in driving functional trait‐mediated community assembly processes. We tested the hypothesis that plant community assembly along a climatic and elevation gradient is influenced by shifts in habitat suitability, which drive plant functional, phylogenetic, and spectral diversity. In a high mountain system (2400–3500 m) Región Metropolitana in the central Chilean Andes (33°S, 70°W). We surveyed vegetation and spectroscopic reflectance (400–2400 nm) to quantify taxonomic, phylogenetic, functional, and spectral diversity at five sites from 2400 to 3500 m elevation. We characterized soil attributes and processes by measuring water content, carbon and nitrogen, and net nitrogen mineralization rates. At high elevation, colder temperatures reduced available soil nitrogen, while at warmer, lower elevations, soil moisture was lower. Metrics of taxonomic, functional, and spectral alpha diversity peaked at mid‐elevations, while phylogenetic species richness was highest at low elevation. Leaf nitrogen increased with elevation at the community level and within individual species, consistent with global patterns of increasing leaf nitrogen with colder temperatures. The increase in leaf nitrogen, coupled with shifts in taxonomic and functional diversity associated with turnover in lineages, indicate that the ability to acquire and retain nitrogen in colder temperatures may be important in plant community assembly in this range. Such environmental filters have important implications for forecasting shifts in alpine plant communities under a warming climate. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:28:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3dcffe5929924dab9b44069086d43948 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T19:28:47Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-3dcffe5929924dab9b44069086d439482024-02-29T08:56:40ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582024-02-01142n/an/a10.1002/ece3.10888Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean AndesLucy Schroeder0Valeria Robles1Paola Jara‐Arancio2Cathleen Lapadat3Sarah E. Hobbie4Mary T. K. Arroyo5Jeannine Cavender‐Bares6Department of Plant and Microbial Biology University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USAInstitute of Ecology and Biodiversity (IEB) Concepción ChileInstitute of Ecology and Biodiversity (IEB) Concepción ChileDepartment of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USADepartment of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USAInstitute of Ecology and Biodiversity (IEB) Concepción ChileDepartment of Plant and Microbial Biology University of Minnesota St. Paul Minnesota USAAbstract High alpine regions are threatened but understudied ecosystems that harbor diverse endemic species, making them an important biome for testing the role of environmental factors in driving functional trait‐mediated community assembly processes. We tested the hypothesis that plant community assembly along a climatic and elevation gradient is influenced by shifts in habitat suitability, which drive plant functional, phylogenetic, and spectral diversity. In a high mountain system (2400–3500 m) Región Metropolitana in the central Chilean Andes (33°S, 70°W). We surveyed vegetation and spectroscopic reflectance (400–2400 nm) to quantify taxonomic, phylogenetic, functional, and spectral diversity at five sites from 2400 to 3500 m elevation. We characterized soil attributes and processes by measuring water content, carbon and nitrogen, and net nitrogen mineralization rates. At high elevation, colder temperatures reduced available soil nitrogen, while at warmer, lower elevations, soil moisture was lower. Metrics of taxonomic, functional, and spectral alpha diversity peaked at mid‐elevations, while phylogenetic species richness was highest at low elevation. Leaf nitrogen increased with elevation at the community level and within individual species, consistent with global patterns of increasing leaf nitrogen with colder temperatures. The increase in leaf nitrogen, coupled with shifts in taxonomic and functional diversity associated with turnover in lineages, indicate that the ability to acquire and retain nitrogen in colder temperatures may be important in plant community assembly in this range. Such environmental filters have important implications for forecasting shifts in alpine plant communities under a warming climate.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10888alpine ecologyclimatic and elevation gradientscommunity assemblyenvironmental filtersinter‐ and intraspecific trait variationnitrogen |
| spellingShingle | Lucy Schroeder Valeria Robles Paola Jara‐Arancio Cathleen Lapadat Sarah E. Hobbie Mary T. K. Arroyo Jeannine Cavender‐Bares Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes Ecology and Evolution alpine ecology climatic and elevation gradients community assembly environmental filters inter‐ and intraspecific trait variation nitrogen |
| title | Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes |
| title_full | Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes |
| title_fullStr | Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes |
| title_short | Drivers of plant diversity, community composition, functional traits, and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central Chilean Andes |
| title_sort | drivers of plant diversity community composition functional traits and soil processes along an alpine gradient in the central chilean andes |
| topic | alpine ecology climatic and elevation gradients community assembly environmental filters inter‐ and intraspecific trait variation nitrogen |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.10888 |
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