Journal Home > Volume 11 , Issue 1
Forest Ecosystems 2024, 11(1): 100169 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fecs.2024.100169
Research Article | Open Access | Issue | Published: 02 February 2024

How topography and neighbor shape the fate of trees in subtropical forest restoration: Environmental filtering and resource competition drive natural regeneration

Show Author's Information Haonan Zhanga,  Xingshuo Zhanga,  Yingying Lva,  Yanyan Nia,  Baokun Xua,  Xiangnan Hana,  Xiao Caoa,  Qingpei Yangb,  Wanggu Xua( ),  Zhedong Qiana( )
Innovative Research Team for Forest Restoration Mechanisms, Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), Nanjing 210042, China
College of Forestry, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China
Keywords:
Natural regeneration, Microtopography, Neighborhood effects, Mortality and recruitment
Cite this article:
Zhang H, Zhang X, Lv Y, et al. How topography and neighbor shape the fate of trees in subtropical forest restoration: Environmental filtering and resource competition drive natural regeneration. Forest Ecosystems, 2024, 11(1): 100169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fecs.2024.100169
Download citation
EndNote(RIS)
BibTeX

57

Views

1

Downloads

Citations

0

Crossref

0

WoS

0

Scopus

0

CSCD

Abstract Full text About this article

The structure of plant communities at local scales depends on both the spatial heterogeneity of abiotic environmental factors and the biotic interactions within the community. However, although environmental filtering due to microtopographic heterogeneity and resource competition among plants caused by spatial variation in tree density and size are considered to be very important in explaining the mechanisms of community assembly, their effects on the processes of individual mortality and recruitment in natural forest regeneration, as well as their relative contributions, are still poorly understood. To address this, we established a 12-ha permanent plot in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest area and measured microtopographic variables such as elevation, slope, aspect, and terrain position index (TPI) using a total station. We monitored the individual mortality and recruitment in forest natural regeneration through repeated surveys at 5-year intervals. We fitted spatial covariance models to jointly use multiple factors from three groups of variables (microtopographic effect, neighborhood density effects, neighborhood size effects) as explanatory variables to analyze their roles in driving the mortality and recruitment of all individual and 12 dominant species in forest natural regeneration at the neighborhood scale. Our results show that: (1) In the crucial early stages of secondary forest restoration, natural regeneration is influenced by a synergy of environmental filtering, due to microtopographic heterogeneity, and resource competition among plants. (2) For distinct species responses, evergreen dominant species’ mortality is largely explained by neighborhood effects, while deciduous species are more affected by topographic factors. Furthermore, the adverse effects of larger conspecific trees on younger trees indicate a pattern of competitive pressure leading to mortality among regenerating trees, such pattern emphasis the influence of parent trees on natural regeneration. (3) As trees grow, their interaction with these stressors evolves, suggesting a shift in their resource acquisition strategies and response to neighborhood effects and environmental factors. Despite these changes, the relative importance of topographic factors in determining survival and recruitment success remains constant. This research highlights the importance of considering both environmental and neighborhood effects in forest management, particularly in early secondary forest restoration.


menu
Abstract
Full text
Outline
About this article

How topography and neighbor shape the fate of trees in subtropical forest restoration: Environmental filtering and resource competition drive natural regeneration

Show Author's information Haonan Zhanga, Xingshuo Zhanga, Yingying Lva, Yanyan Nia, Baokun Xua, Xiangnan Hana, Xiao Caoa, Qingpei Yangb, Wanggu Xua( ), Zhedong Qiana( )
Innovative Research Team for Forest Restoration Mechanisms, Nanjing Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), Nanjing 210042, China
College of Forestry, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China

Abstract

The structure of plant communities at local scales depends on both the spatial heterogeneity of abiotic environmental factors and the biotic interactions within the community. However, although environmental filtering due to microtopographic heterogeneity and resource competition among plants caused by spatial variation in tree density and size are considered to be very important in explaining the mechanisms of community assembly, their effects on the processes of individual mortality and recruitment in natural forest regeneration, as well as their relative contributions, are still poorly understood. To address this, we established a 12-ha permanent plot in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest area and measured microtopographic variables such as elevation, slope, aspect, and terrain position index (TPI) using a total station. We monitored the individual mortality and recruitment in forest natural regeneration through repeated surveys at 5-year intervals. We fitted spatial covariance models to jointly use multiple factors from three groups of variables (microtopographic effect, neighborhood density effects, neighborhood size effects) as explanatory variables to analyze their roles in driving the mortality and recruitment of all individual and 12 dominant species in forest natural regeneration at the neighborhood scale. Our results show that: (1) In the crucial early stages of secondary forest restoration, natural regeneration is influenced by a synergy of environmental filtering, due to microtopographic heterogeneity, and resource competition among plants. (2) For distinct species responses, evergreen dominant species’ mortality is largely explained by neighborhood effects, while deciduous species are more affected by topographic factors. Furthermore, the adverse effects of larger conspecific trees on younger trees indicate a pattern of competitive pressure leading to mortality among regenerating trees, such pattern emphasis the influence of parent trees on natural regeneration. (3) As trees grow, their interaction with these stressors evolves, suggesting a shift in their resource acquisition strategies and response to neighborhood effects and environmental factors. Despite these changes, the relative importance of topographic factors in determining survival and recruitment success remains constant. This research highlights the importance of considering both environmental and neighborhood effects in forest management, particularly in early secondary forest restoration.

Keywords: Natural regeneration, Microtopography, Neighborhood effects, Mortality and recruitment

References(75)

Amatulli, G., McInerney, D., Sethi, T., Strobl, P., Domisch, S., 2020. Geomorpho90m, empirical evaluation and accuracy assessment of global high-resolution geomorphometric layers. Sci. Data 7 (1), 162. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-020-0479-6.
DOI Google Scholar
Baddeley, A., Rubak, E., Turner, R., 2015. Spatial Point Patterns: Methodology andApplications with R, first ed. Chapman and Hall/CRC, New York. https://doi.org/10.1201/b19708.
DOI

Bagchi, R., Gallery, R.E., Gripenberg, S., Gurr, S.J., Narayan, L., Addis, C.E., Freckleton, R.P., Lewis, O.T., 2014. Pathogens and insect herbivores drive rainforest plant diversity and composition. Nature 506, 85-88. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12911.
DOI Google Scholar

Callaway, R.M., Walker, L.R., 1997. Competition and facilitation: a synthetic approach to interactions in plant communities. Ecology 78, 1958-1965. https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(1997)078[1958:CAFASA]2.0.CO;2.
DOI Google Scholar

Callaway, R.M., Brooker, R.W., Choler, P., Kikvidze, Z., Lortie, C.J., Michalet, R., Paolini, L., Pugnaire, F.I., Newingham, B., Aschehoug, E.T., Armas, C., Kikodze, D., Cook, B.J., 2002. Positive interactions among alpine plants increase with stress. Nature 417, 844-848. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature00812.
DOI Google Scholar

Canham, C.D., Papaik, M.J., Uriarte, M., McWilliams, W.H., Jenkins, J.C., Twery, M.J., 2006. Neighborhood analyses of canopy tree competition along environmental gradients in new England forests. Ecol. Appl. 16, 540-554. https://doi.org/10.1890/1051-0761(2006)016[0540:NAOCTC]2.0.CO;2.
DOI Google Scholar

Chang, L.W., Zeleny, D., Li, C.-F., Chiu, S.-T., Hsieh, C.-F., 2013. Better environmental data may reverse conclusions about niche- and dispersal-based processes in community assembly. Ecology 94, 2145-2151. https://doi.org/10.1890/12-2053.1.
DOI Google Scholar

Chang, Y.M., Baddeley, A., Wallace, J., Canci, M., 2013. Spatial statistical analysis of tree deaths using airborne digital imagery. Int. J. Appl. Earth. Obs. 21, 418-426. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2012.04.006.
DOI Google Scholar

Chase, J.M., Myers, J.A., 2011. Disentangling the importance of ecological niches from stochastic processes across scales. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. B Biol. Sci. 366, 2351-2363. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2011.0063.
DOI Google Scholar

Chen, L., Mi, X., Comita, L.S., Zhang, L., Ren, H., Ma, K., 2010. Community-level consequences of density dependence and habitat association in a subtropical broad-leaved forest. Ecol. Lett. 13, 695-704. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01468.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Coates, K.D., 2002. Tree recruitment in gaps of various size, clearcuts and undisturbed mixed forest of interior British Columbia, Canada. For. Ecol. Manag. 155, 387-398. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-1127(01)00574-6.
DOI Google Scholar

Comita, L.S., Muller-Landau, H.C., Aguilar, S., Hubbell, S.P., 2010. Asymmetric density dependence shapes species abundances in a tropical tree community. Science 329, 330-332. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1190772.
DOI Google Scholar

Comita, L.S., Queenborough, S.A., Murphy, S.J., Eck, J.L., Xu, K., Krishnadas, M., Beckman, N., Zhu, Y., 2014. Testing predictions of the Janzen-Connell hypothesis: a meta-analysis of experimental evidence for distance- and density-dependent seed and seedling survival. J. Ecol. 102, 845-856. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12232.
DOI Google Scholar

Coomes, D.A., Grubb, P.J., 2003. Colonization, tolerance, competition and seed-size variation within functional groups. Trends Ecol. Evol. 18, 283-291. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0169-5347(03)00072-7.
DOI Google Scholar

Dodson, E.K., Root, H.T., 2013. Conifer regeneration following stand-replacing wildfire varies along an elevation gradient in a ponderosa pine forest, Oregon, USA. For. Ecol. Manag. 302, 163-170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2013.03.050.
DOI Google Scholar

D’Amato, A.W., Puettmann, K.J., 2004. The relative dominance hypothesis explains interaction dynamics in mixed species Alnus rubra/Pseudotsuga menziesii stands. J. Ecol. 92, 450-463. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-0477.2004.00885.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Fichtner, A., Härdtle, W., Li, Y., Bruelheide, H., Kunz, M., von Oheimb, G., 2017. From competition to facilitation: how tree species respond to neighbourhood diversity. Ecol. Lett. 20, 892-900. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12786.
DOI Google Scholar

Fichtner, A., Schnabel, F., Bruelheide, H., Kunz, M., Mausolf, K., Schuldt, A., Härdtle, W., von Oheimb, G., 2020. Neighbourhood diversity mitigates drought impacts on tree growth. J. Ecol. 108, 865-875. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.13353.
DOI Google Scholar

Francis, D., Ex, S., Hoffman, C., 2018. Stand composition and aspect are related to conifer regeneration densities following hazardous fuels treatments in Colorado, USA. For. Ecol. Manag. 409, 417-424. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2017.11.053.
DOI Google Scholar

Franco, A.C., Nobel, P.S., 1988. Interactions between seedlings of Agave deserti and the nurse plant Hilaria rigida. Ecology 69, 1731-1740. https://doi.org/10.2307/1939879.
DOI Google Scholar

Funwi-gabga, N., Mateu, J., 2011. Understanding the nesting spatial behaviour of gorillas in the Kagwene Sanctuary, Cameroon. Stoch. Env. Res. Risk Asse. 26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00477-011-0541-1.
DOI Google Scholar

García-Palacios, P., Gross, N., Gaitán, J., Maestre, F.T., 2018. Climate mediates the biodiversity–ecosystem stability relationship globally. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 115, 8400-8405. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1800425115.
DOI Google Scholar

Getzin, S., Dean, C., He, F., Trofymow, J., Wiegand, K., Wiegand, T., 2006. Spatial patterns and competition of tree species in a Douglas-fir chronosequence on Vancouver Island. Ecography 29 (5), 671-682.
DOI Google Scholar

Gilbert, B., Lechowicz, M.J., 2004. Neutrality, niches, and dispersal in a temperate forest understory. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 101, 7651-7656. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0400814101.
DOI Google Scholar

Gonzalez-Zurdo, P., Escudero, A., Babiano, J., Garcia-Ciudad, A., Mediavilla, S., 2016. Costs of leaf reinforcement in response to winter cold in evergreen species. Tree Physiol 36, 273-286. https://doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpv139.
DOI Google Scholar

Gravel, D., Canham, C.D., Beaudet, M., Messier, C., 2006. Reconciling niche and neutrality: the continuum hypothesis. Ecol. Lett. 9, 399-409. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1461-0248.2006.00884.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Gunatilleke, C.V.S., Gunatilleke, I.A.U.N., Esufali, S., Harms, K.E., Ashton, P.M.S., Burslem, D.F.R.P., Ashton, P.S., 2006. Species habitat associations in a Sri Lankan Dipterocarp forest. J. Trop. Ecol. 22, 371-384. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266467406003282.
DOI Google Scholar

Harms, K.E., Condit, R., Hubbell, S.P., Foster, R.B., 2001. Habitat associations of trees and shrubs in a 50-ha neotropical forest plot. J. Ecol. 89, 947-959. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.0022-0477.2001.00615.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Hui, G.Y., Gadow, K.v., 2003. Quantitative Analysis of Forest Spatial Structure. China Science & Technology Press, Beijing (in Chinese with English abstract).

Iida, Y., Kohyama, T.S., Swenson, N.G., Su, S.-H., Chen, C.-T., Chiang, J.-M., Sun, I.-F., 2014. Linking functional traits and demographic rates in a subtropical tree community: the importance of size dependency. J. Ecol. 102, 641-650. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12221.
DOI Google Scholar

Jin, Y., Russo, S.E., Yu, M., 2018. Effects of light and topography on regeneration and coexistence of evergreen and deciduous tree species in a Chinese subtropical forest. J. Ecol. 106, 1634-1645. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12911.
DOI Google Scholar

Johnson, D.J., Magee, L., Pandit, K., Bourdon, J., Broadbent, E.N., Glenn, K., Kaddoura, Y., Machado, S., Nieves, J., Wilkinson, B.E., Almeyda Zambrano, A.M., Bohlman, S.A., 2021. Canopy tree density and species influence tree regeneration patterns and woody species diversity in a longleaf pine forest. For. Ecol. Manag. 490, 119082. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2021.119082.
DOI Google Scholar

Klink, G.V., Semenkov, I.N., Nukhimovskaya, Y.D., Gasanova, Z.U., Stepanova, N.Y., Konyushkova, M.V., 2022. Temporal change in plant communities and its relationship to soil salinity and microtopography on the Caspian Sea coast. Sci. Rep. 12, 18082. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-75100-3.
DOI Google Scholar

Kobe, R.K., Coates, K.D., 1997. Models of sapling mortality as a function of growth to characterize interspecific variation in shade tolerance of eight tree species of northwestern British Columbia. Can. J. For. Res. 27, 227-236. https://doi.org/10.1139/x96-159.
DOI Google Scholar

Legendre, P., Borcard, D., Peres-Neto, P.R., 2005. Analyzing beta diversity: Partitioning the spatial variation of community composition data. Ecol. Monogr. 75, 435-450. https://doi.org/10.1890/05-0549.
DOI Google Scholar

Levine, J.M., Murrell, D.J., 2003. The community-level consequences of seed dispersal patterns. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst. 34, 549-574. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.34.011802.132400.
DOI Google Scholar

Matsushita, M., Takata, K., Hitsuma, G., Yagihashi, T., Noguchi, M., Shibata, M., Masaki, T., 2015. A novel growth model evaluating age–size effect on long-term trends in tree growth. Funct. Ecol. 29, 1250-1259. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12416.
DOI Google Scholar

Miriti, M.N., 2006. Ontogenetic shift from facilitation to competition in a desert shrub. J. Ecol. 94, 973-979. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2006.01138.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Moktan, M.R., Gratzer, G., Richards, W.H., Rai, T.B., Dukpa, D., Tenzin, K., 2009. Regeneration of mixed conifer forests under group tree selection harvest management in western Bhutan Himalayas. Forest Ecol. Manag 257, 2121-2132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2009.02.022.
DOI Google Scholar

Moles, A.T., Westoby, M., 2006. Seed size and plant strategy across the whole life cycle. Oikos 113, 91-105. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2006.0030-1299.14714.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Muledi, J., Bauman, D., Jacobs, A., Meerts, P., Shutcha, M., Drouet, T., 2020. Tree growth, recruitment, and survival in a tropical dry woodland: the importance of soil and functional identity of the neighbourhood. For. Ecol. Manag. 460, 117894. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2020.117894.
DOI Google Scholar

Muller-Landau, H.C., Wright, S.J., Calderón, O., Condit, R., Hubbell, S.P., 2008. Interspecific variation in primary seed dispersal in a tropical forest. J. Ecol. 96, 653-667. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2008.01399.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Osumi, K., Sakurai, S., 2002. The unstable fate of seedlings of the small-seeded pioneer tree species, Betula maximowicziana. Forest Ecol. Manag. 160, 85-95. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-1127(01)00472-8.
DOI Google Scholar

Page, N.V., Shanker, K., 2018. Environment and dispersal influence changes in species composition at different scales in woody plants of the Western Ghats, India. J. Veg. Sci. 29, 74-83. https://doi.org/10.1111/jvs.12586.
DOI Google Scholar

Pommerening, A., Särkkä, A., 2013. What mark variograms tell about spatial plant interactions. Ecol. Model. 251, 64-72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2012.12.009.
DOI Google Scholar

Punchi-Manage, R., Getzin, S., Wiegand, T., Kanagaraj, R., Savitri Gunatilleke, C.V., Nimal Gunatilleke, I.A.U., Wiegand, K., Huth, A., 2013. Effects of topography on structuring local species assemblages in a Sri Lankan mixed dipterocarp forest. J. Ecol. 101, 149-160. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12017.
DOI Google Scholar

Punchi-Manage, R., Wiegand, T., Wiegand, K., Getzin, S., Huth, A., Gunatilleke, C., Gunatilleke, N., 2015. Neighborhood diversity of large trees shows independent species patterns in a mixed dipterocarp forest in Sri Lanka. Ecology 96, 1823-1834. https://doi.org/10.1890/14-1477.1.
DOI Google Scholar

Qian, H., Ricklefs, R.E., 2007. A latitudinal gradient in large-scale beta diversity for vascular plants in North America. Ecol. Lett. 10, 737-744. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1461-0248.2007.01066.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Qin, J., Fan, C., Geng, Y., Zhang, C., Zhao, X., Gao, L., 2022. Drivers of tree demographic trade-offs in a temperate forest. For. Ecosyst. 9, 100044. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fecs.2022.100044.
DOI Google Scholar

Rayburn, A., Wiegand, T., 2012. Individual species–area relationships and spatial patterns of species diversity in a Great Basin, semi-arid shrubland. Ecography 35, 341-347. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0587.2011.07058.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Redmond, M.D., Kelsey, K.C., 2018. Topography and overstory mortality interact to control tree regeneration in spruce-fir forests of the southern Rocky Mountains. For. Ecol. Manage. 427, 106-113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2018.05.057.
DOI Google Scholar

Rozendaal, D.M.A., Bongers, F., Aide, T.M., Alvarez-Dávila, E., Ascarrunz, N., Balvanera, P., Becknell, J.M., Bentos, T.V., Brancalion, P.H.S., Cabral, G.A.L., Calvo-Rodriguez, S., Chave, J., César, R.G., Chazdon, R.L., Condit, R., Dallinga, J.S., de Almeida-Cortez, J.S., de Jong, B., de Oliveira, A., Denslow, J.S., Dent, D.H., DeWalt, S.J., Dupuy, J.M., Durán, S.M., Dutrieux, L.P., Espírito-Santo, M.M., Fandino, M.C., Fernandes, G.W., Finegan, B., García, H., Gonzalez, N., Moser, V.G., Hall, J.S., Hernández-Stefanoni, J.L., Hubbell, S., Jakovac, C.C., Hernández, A.J., Junqueira, A.B., Kennard, D., Larpin, D., Letcher, S.G., Licona, J.-C., Lebrija-Trejos, E., Marín-Spiotta, E., Martínez-Ramos, M., Massoca, P.E.S., Meave, J.A., Mesquita, R.C.G., Mora, F., Müller, S.C., Muñoz, R., de Oliveira Neto, S.N., Norden, N., Nunes, Y.R.F., Ochoa-Gaona, S., Ortiz-Malavassi, E., Ostertag, R., Peña-Claros, M., Pérez-García, E.A., Piotto, D., Powers, J.S., Aguilar-Cano, J., Rodriguez-Buritica, S., Rodríguez-Velázquez, J., Romero-Romero, M.A., Ruíz, J., Sanchez-Azofeifa, A., de Almeida, A.S., Silver, W.L., Schwartz, N.B., Thomas, W.W., Toledo, M., Uriarte, M., de Sá Sampaio, E.V., van Breugel, M., van der Wal, H., Martins, S.V., Veloso, M.D.M., Vester, H.F.M., Vicentini, A., Vieira, I.C.G., Villa, P., Williamson, G.B., Zanini, K.J., Zimmerman, J., Poorter, L., 2019. Biodiversity recovery of Neotropical secondary forests. Sci. Adv. 5, eaau3114. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aau3114.
DOI Google Scholar

Saha, A.K., Hasan, Md.M., Khan, Md.R.A., Al-Amin, Md., 2022. Prediction of spatial saturated hydraulic conductivity at the upper soil layer using soil class and terrain attributes. Model. Earth Syst. Environ. 8, 3591-3605. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40808-021-01317-y.
DOI Google Scholar

Seidl, R., Turner, M.G., 2022. Post-disturbance reorganization of forest ecosystems in a changing world. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 119, e2202190119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2202190119.
DOI Google Scholar

Seidler, T.G., Plotkin, J.B., 2006. Seed dispersal and spatial pattern in tropical trees. PLoS Biol. 4, e344. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0040344.
DOI Google Scholar

Seifert, T., Seifert, S., Seydack, A., Durrheim, G., Gadow, K.v., 2014. Competition effects in an afrotemperate forest. For. Ecosyst. 1, 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40663-014-0013-4.
DOI Google Scholar

Stoll, P., Newbery, D.M., 2005. Evidence of species-specific neighborhood effects in the Dipterocarpaceae of a Bornean rain forest. Ecology 86, 3048-3062. https://doi.org/10.1890/04-1540.
DOI Google Scholar

Thomson, F.J., Moles, A.T., Auld, T.D., Kingsford, R.T., 2011. Seed dispersal distance is more strongly correlated with plant height than with seed mass. J. Ecol. 99, 1299-1307. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2745.2011.01867.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Tirado, R., Pugnaire, F.I., 2003. Shrub spatial aggregation and consequences for reproductive success. Oecologia 136, 296-301. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-003-1254-9.
DOI Google Scholar

Valencia, R., Foster, R.B., Villa, G., Condit, R., Svenning, J.C., Hernández, C., Romoleroux, K., Losos, E., Magård, E., Balslev, H., 2004. Tree species distributions and local habitat variation in the Amazon: large forest plot in eastern Ecuador. J. Ecol. 92, 214-229. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-0477.2004.00876.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Wang, X.H., Kent, M., Fang, X.F., 2007. Evergreen broad-leaved forest in Eastern China: Its ecology and conservation and the importance of resprouting in forest restoration. For. Ecol. Manag. 245, 76-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2007.03.043.
DOI Google Scholar

Weidlich, E.W.A., von Gillhaussen, P., Max, J.F.J., Delory, B.M., Jablonowski, N.D., Rascher, U., Temperton, V.M., 2018. Priority effects caused by plant order of arrival affect below-ground productivity. J. Ecol. 106, 774-780. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12864.
DOI Google Scholar

Whittaker, R.H., 1956. Vegetation of the Great Smoky Mountains. Ecol. Monogr. 26, 1-69. https://doi.org/10.2307/1943577.
DOI Google Scholar

Wiegand, T., Gunatilleke, C.V.S., Gunatilleke, I.A.U.N., Huth, A., 2007. How individual species structure diversity in tropical forests. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 104, 19029-19033. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0705621104.
DOI Google Scholar

Wright, A., Schnitzer, S., Reich, P., 2014. Living close to your neighbors: the importance of both competition and facilitation in plant communities. Ecology 95, 2213-2223. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1855.1.
DOI Google Scholar

Wu, Z.Y., 1980. Vegetation of China. Science Press, Beijing, China (in Chinese with English abstract).

Wu, Z.Y., 2001. Flora of China. Science Press, Beijing, China (in Chinese with English abstract).

Zhang, C., Jin, W., Gao, L., Zhao, X., 2014. Scale dependent structuring of spatial diversity in two temperate forest communities. For. Ecol. Manag. 316, 110-116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2013.07.025.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhang, H.N., Chen, S., Xia, X., Ge, X., Zhou, D., Wang, Z., 2021. The competitive mechanism between post-abandonment Chinese fir plantations and rehabilitated natural secondary forest species under an in situ conservation policy. For. Ecol. Manag. 502, 119725. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2021.119725.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhang, H., Xu, J., Meng, W., Li, Z., Ni, Y., Li, W., Chen, H., Zhang, X., Yuan, H., Wang, Z., 2024. Positive interactions in shaping neighborhood diversity during secondary forests recovery: Revisiting the classical paradigm. For. Ecol. Manag. 552, 121586. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2023.121586.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhang, H.N., Yang, Q., Zhou, D., Xu, W., Gao, J., Wang, Z., 2021. How evergreen and deciduous trees coexist during secondary forest succession: insights into forest restoration mechanisms in Chinese subtropical forest. Glob. Ecol. Conserv. 25, e01418. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2020.e01418.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhang, H.N., Chen, S., Zheng, X., Ge, X., Li, Y., Fang, Y., Cui, P., Ding, H., 2022. Neighborhood diversity structure and neighborhood species richness effects differ across life stages in a subtropical natural secondary forest. For. Ecosyst. 9, 100075. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fecs.2022.100075.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhu, Y., Mi, X., Ren, H., Ma, K., 2010. Density dependence is prevalent in a heterogeneous subtropical forest. Oikos 119, 109-119. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2009.17758.x.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhu, Y., Comita, L.S., Hubbell, S.P., Ma, K., 2015. Conspecific and phylogenetic density-dependent survival differs across life stages in a tropical forest. J. Ecol. 103, 957-966. https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2745.12414.
DOI Google Scholar

Zhu, Y., Queenborough, S.A., Condit, R., Hubbell, S.P., Ma, K.P., Comita, L.S., 2018. Density-dependent survival varies with species life-history strategy in a tropical forest. Eco. Lett. 21, 506-515. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.12915.
DOI Google Scholar
Publication history
Copyright
Acknowledgements
Rights and permissions

Publication history

Received: 24 August 2023
Revised: 23 January 2024
Accepted: 23 January 2024
Published: 02 February 2024
Issue date: February 2024

Copyright

© 2024 The Authors.

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the people who helped to collect field survey data.

Rights and permissions

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Return