A comprehensive impact analysis of mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) mining requires an understanding of landform alterations since ecological impacts are so intricately linked. In this study we investigate...A comprehensive impact analysis of mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) mining requires an understanding of landform alterations since ecological impacts are so intricately linked. In this study we investigated mining in the Coal River Watershed, West Virginia, USA, using landform terrain analysis. Previous studies have relied on elevation differencing of pre- and post-mining surfaces to assess absolute elevation and volumetric change. Our landscape analysis, utilizing light detection and ranging (LiDAR)-derived elevation data, indicated specific landform types and distributions that were significantly altered after MTR/VF mining and reclamation. The use of categorical landform data provides insights to assessing and understanding the extent of topographically altered mountaintops. Our study provides an opportunity to further examine the impact of MTR/VF on forest communities, terrestrial habitat, ecosystem health, and biodiversity.展开更多
Elucidating how multiple factors affect biodiversity and plant community assembly is a central issue in ecology,especially in vulnerable ecosystems such as tropical mountains.These studies are more relevant in global ...Elucidating how multiple factors affect biodiversity and plant community assembly is a central issue in ecology,especially in vulnerable ecosystems such as tropical mountains.These studies are more relevant in global warming scenarios that induce the upward displacement of plant species towards reduced habitats and hostile environments in tropical mountains.This study aimed to analyze how altitude affects taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity in plant communities of tropical mountains.Thus,we tested if(i)increased altitude works as an environmental filtering promoting decreased species richness,decreased phylogenetic diversity,and increased phylogenetic clustering in these tropical mountains;and if(ii)plant communities of high altitude in tropical mountains are also result of recent diversification with plant species recently split shortening phylogenetic distances between closest related species.We tested effects of altitude on species richness and phylogenetic metrics using linear mixed-effects models.Mount Haleakala presented 114 species,Mount Kilimanjaro presented 231 species and Mount Purace presented 280 species.We found an environmental filtering effect with increasing altitude causing phylogenetic clustering,decreased phylogenetic diversity and decreased species richness.The decreasing phylogenetic distances between closest relatives are congruent with neo-endemics,suggesting recent plant diversification in high altitudes of tropical mountains,possibly driven by geographic isolation and environmental heterogeneity.Consequences of global warming should be monitored in tropical mountains focusing on distribution shifts.展开更多
Global climate change has been widely recognized as important factors that threaten biodiversity.Rhododendron species are not only famous woody ornamental plants worldwide but are also indispensable components in alpi...Global climate change has been widely recognized as important factors that threaten biodiversity.Rhododendron species are not only famous woody ornamental plants worldwide but are also indispensable components in alpine and subalpine vegetation in southwest China.However,the geographical distribution ranges response of this broad taxonomic group to future climate change remains not be fully understood.Herein,we studied the impact of climate change on the distribution of Rhododendron species in China by predicting the changes in their suitable habitats,centroid,and species richness under three climate change scenarios(SSP1-2.6,SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5)in the 2090s.The species richness changes of Rhododendrons along altitude were also evaluated.In addition,we calculated the phylogenetic signals of distribution response to climate change.We found that the distribution responses of Rhododendron to climate change have weak phylogenetic signals.In the 2090s,the suitable habitats of about 87%of Rhododendron species will be reduced,77%of Rhododendron species are manifested as northward migration.The high species richness of Rhododendrons tends to migrate to transboundary areas with high altitudes in China.Some Rhododendron species with no concern previously should be taken seriously for their high risk of habitat loss under climate change.Thus,the urgent protection of Rhododendron species under climate change need to be paid more attention than previous acknowledged.We recommend carrying out the reintroduction of endangered species in future suitable habitat,strengthening the protection of transboundary areas with high species richness,and focusing on species with few concerns previously.展开更多
文摘A comprehensive impact analysis of mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) mining requires an understanding of landform alterations since ecological impacts are so intricately linked. In this study we investigated mining in the Coal River Watershed, West Virginia, USA, using landform terrain analysis. Previous studies have relied on elevation differencing of pre- and post-mining surfaces to assess absolute elevation and volumetric change. Our landscape analysis, utilizing light detection and ranging (LiDAR)-derived elevation data, indicated specific landform types and distributions that were significantly altered after MTR/VF mining and reclamation. The use of categorical landform data provides insights to assessing and understanding the extent of topographically altered mountaintops. Our study provides an opportunity to further examine the impact of MTR/VF on forest communities, terrestrial habitat, ecosystem health, and biodiversity.
基金provided by FAPEMIG(FORTIS/PPGBot-UFV,PPM-00584-16,APQ‐01309‐16)CAPES(PROAP and PrInt/PPGBot-UFV),CNPq(307591/2016‐6,306335/2020-4).
文摘Elucidating how multiple factors affect biodiversity and plant community assembly is a central issue in ecology,especially in vulnerable ecosystems such as tropical mountains.These studies are more relevant in global warming scenarios that induce the upward displacement of plant species towards reduced habitats and hostile environments in tropical mountains.This study aimed to analyze how altitude affects taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity in plant communities of tropical mountains.Thus,we tested if(i)increased altitude works as an environmental filtering promoting decreased species richness,decreased phylogenetic diversity,and increased phylogenetic clustering in these tropical mountains;and if(ii)plant communities of high altitude in tropical mountains are also result of recent diversification with plant species recently split shortening phylogenetic distances between closest related species.We tested effects of altitude on species richness and phylogenetic metrics using linear mixed-effects models.Mount Haleakala presented 114 species,Mount Kilimanjaro presented 231 species and Mount Purace presented 280 species.We found an environmental filtering effect with increasing altitude causing phylogenetic clustering,decreased phylogenetic diversity and decreased species richness.The decreasing phylogenetic distances between closest relatives are congruent with neo-endemics,suggesting recent plant diversification in high altitudes of tropical mountains,possibly driven by geographic isolation and environmental heterogeneity.Consequences of global warming should be monitored in tropical mountains focusing on distribution shifts.
基金This study was supported by the Science and Technology Development Fund of Guidance from the Central Government to Locals in Yunnan Province,China(No.202207AB110016)the Science and Technology Basic Resources Investigation Program of China(No.2022FY100205)+2 种基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.31870529)Major Program for Basic Research Project of Yunnan Province,China(No.202101BC070002)the Program for Excellent Young Talents,Yunnan University,China.
文摘Global climate change has been widely recognized as important factors that threaten biodiversity.Rhododendron species are not only famous woody ornamental plants worldwide but are also indispensable components in alpine and subalpine vegetation in southwest China.However,the geographical distribution ranges response of this broad taxonomic group to future climate change remains not be fully understood.Herein,we studied the impact of climate change on the distribution of Rhododendron species in China by predicting the changes in their suitable habitats,centroid,and species richness under three climate change scenarios(SSP1-2.6,SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5)in the 2090s.The species richness changes of Rhododendrons along altitude were also evaluated.In addition,we calculated the phylogenetic signals of distribution response to climate change.We found that the distribution responses of Rhododendron to climate change have weak phylogenetic signals.In the 2090s,the suitable habitats of about 87%of Rhododendron species will be reduced,77%of Rhododendron species are manifested as northward migration.The high species richness of Rhododendrons tends to migrate to transboundary areas with high altitudes in China.Some Rhododendron species with no concern previously should be taken seriously for their high risk of habitat loss under climate change.Thus,the urgent protection of Rhododendron species under climate change need to be paid more attention than previous acknowledged.We recommend carrying out the reintroduction of endangered species in future suitable habitat,strengthening the protection of transboundary areas with high species richness,and focusing on species with few concerns previously.
