Community assembly mechanisms of Pinus massoniana plantations under different climatic conditions: Functional traits and phylogenetic structure perspective

Hui Zhang; Yiting Li; Yanhua Mo; Liuxin Huang; Rui Jian; Xiaomei Pan; Jiangming Ma

doi:10.53661/1806-9088202549263930

Authors

Hui Zhang Guangxi Key Laboratory of Superior Timber Trees Resource Cultivation, Guangxi Forestry Research Institute, Nanning, Guangxi, China; Guangxi Normal University, Master’s Degree in Ecology, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0736-4391
Yiting Li Guangxi Normal University, Master’s Program in Ecology, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China. https://orcid.org/0009-0005-3317-4175
Yanhua Mo Guangxi Normal University, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China; Guangxi Normal University, Institute of Sustainable Development and Innovation, Guilin, Guangxi, China https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9613-7354
Liuxin Huang Guangxi Normal University, Master’s Degree in Ecology, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2531-2225
Rui Jian Guangxi Normal University, Master’s Degree in Ecology, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China. https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0439-7438
Xiaomei Pan Guangxi Normal University, Master’s Degree in Ecology, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China. https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7990-5968
Jiangming Ma Guangxi Key Laboratory of Superior Timber Trees Resource Cultivation, Guangxi Forestry Research Institute, Nanning, Guangxi, China; Guangxi Normal University, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Landscape Resources Conservation and Sustainable Utilization in Lijiang River Basin, Guilin, Guangxi, China; Guangxi Normal University, Institute of Sustainable Development and Innovation, Guilin, Guangxi, China https://orcid.org/0009-0007-2068-0516

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53661/1806-9088202549263930

Keywords:

Functional traits, Community assembly, Pinus massoniana plantations

Abstract

Community assembly elucidates mechanisms of species coexistence and diversity maintenance in plant communities, providing a basis for sustainable forest management. However, studies on understory community assembly mechanisms in plantation forests across climatic zones are scarce. This study selected nine leaf functional traits, using methods based on functional traits and phylogenetic structure to investigate the community structure and assembly mechanisms of woody plant communities in Pinus massoniana plantations under varying climatic conditions in Guangxi, China. Key findings include: 1) Among the plant functional traits, LT, LTD, SLA, LDMC, LNC_mass, and LKC_mass are phylogenetically conserved. 2) Community structure based on functional traits was consistent with community phylogenetic structure in the woody plant communities of young P. massoniana plantation in southern and central subtropical Guangxi, middle-aged P. massoniana plantation in northern tropics and central subtropics, and overripe P. massoniana plantation in northern tropics, where the main driving force affecting community construction was habitat filtering. In contrast, in the middle-aged and overripe woody plant communities of P. massoniana plantations in southern subtropical Guangxi, functional traits tended to aggregate while phylogeny shifted from aggregation to dispersion, revealing a mismatch between them. Habitat filtering and similarity limitation were common driving forces in community assembly. 3) Community structure based on functional traits showed increased clustering with latitude in young and overripe forests, but decreased in middle-aged forests, reflecting climate-driven assembly shifts. Phylogenetic patterns across latitudes further indicate combined effects of habitat filtering and competition. Overall, understory woody community structure responds dynamically to climate, with functional and phylogenetic structures largely consistent. Community assembly is primarily shaped by habitat filtering, alongside a moderate influence of limiting similarity.

Keywords: Functional traits; Community assembly; Pinus massoniana plantations