Volume: 5, 2026
5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland:
ENVIRONMENT – PLANT – ANIMAL – PRODUCT
Abstract number: P014
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.P014
Published online: 22 April 2026
Disentangling drivers of plant diversity across spatial scales on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China
Wajid Khan*, Rong Zhang, Yanhao Feng
State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-ecosystems, College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730020, China
* Corresponding author: wajidforester@yahoo.com
Understanding the drivers of plant diversity across spatial scales is critical for conserving high-elevation ecosystems sensitive to climate change. Using 758 plots from 338 sites across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, we calculated alpha, beta and gamma diversity and assessed how climatic, topographic and anthropogenic variables shape them using multivariate models and structural equation modeling (SEM), with analyses repeated across three elevation zones. Gamma diversity emerged as an emergent property of alpha and beta diversity. The aridity index representing moisture availability was the strongest positive driver of all diversity components. Elevation and inclination also strongly influenced diversity through microhabitat heterogeneity. Driver impacts shifted with elevation: climatic factors dominated at high elevations (>4500 m), while topographic factors were more influential at low elevations (<3000 m). Grazing intensity showed weak effects overall, though local signals were detected within elevation zones. Our findings reveal that plant diversity on the Plateau is jointly structured by climatic and topographic gradients operating through scale-specific pathways, with their relative influence varying along elevation. This highlights the need for elevation-explicit approaches in biodiversity conservation across mountain systems.
Keywords: conservation; ecosystem management; environmental variables; plant communities; plant diversity; Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
How to cite
Khan W.,, Zhang R., Feng Y., 2026. Disentangling drivers of plant diversity across spatial scales on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China. In: 5th International PhD Students’ Conference at the University of Life Sciences in Lublin, Poland: Environment – Plant – Animal – Product. https://doi.org/10.24326/ICDSUPL5.P014