白水江自然保护区两栖爬行动物物种丰富度和种域海拔梯度格局及对Rapoport法则的验证

物种丰富度和种域宽度沿海拔梯度分布格局及其形成机制一直是生物地理学和生物多样性讨论的重要议题之一。海拔Rapoport法则认为,物种丰富度随海拔升高而逐渐变低,种域宽度逐渐变宽。本文基于白水江保护区两栖爬行动物物种的海拔分布数据,分析了白水江保护区两栖爬行动物物种丰富度及其种域宽度的海拔梯度格局;采用常用的4种验证方法,验证了不同类群、不同区系物种丰富度和不同阶元丰富度与其分布中点间的关系,并检验了Rapoport法则的适应性。结果表明:(1)白水江保护区两栖爬行动物物种丰富度随海拔升高呈逐渐下降趋势,大体符合单调递减模式,水分可能是决定两栖动物物种分布格局的主要环境因子,而决定爬行动物物种分布的环境因子主要是温度,这可能由这两种类群动物不同的生理需求所致。(2)两栖爬行动物物种(特别是狭域种)主要分布在低海拔,因此保护两栖爬行动物应该把重点放在低海拔段。(3)Stevens方法、Pagel法和逐中法验证结果支持海拔Rapoport法则,中点法由于受中域效应的影响,物种种域与海拔梯度呈先升后降的单峰分布模型。因此,验证方法对Rapoport法则的验证结果具有重要的影响。Rapoport法则验证的研究方法亟待改进,物种丰富度和种域的海拔梯度格局及其形成机理需要更多的案例比较研究,以形成普遍性的认识。     

台湾维管束植物物种丰富度和种域宽度的海拔格局及对Rapoport法则的检验

物种丰富度和种域(即物种分布范围)沿环境梯度的变化是生物地理学和生物多样性研究的核心问题.岛屿由于受到地理隔离的作用.其物种分布、多样性格局及其成因的特殊性对于发展和检验生物地理学的假说具有重要意义.Rapoport法则提出,生物种域存在着随海拔上升而增大的趋势.台湾地区具有显著的海拔梯度和典型的岛屿环境,其植物区系丰富而独特.我们首次对台湾维管束植物的海拔分布进行研究,包括不同类群植物的物种丰富度和种域的海拔梯度格局,并检验了Rapoport法则的适用性.综合相关信息得到台湾维管束植物区系包含241科1,466属4,751种(含种下单位),对其中具有海拔分布范围信息的3,330种植物进行统计,结果表明:(1)台湾维管束植物科、属、种的丰富度总体上随海拔上升而减小,入侵植物丰富度具有类似格局,而台湾特有植物呈现明显的单峰格局;按照分类群计,蕨类植物和裸子植物为单峰格局,被子植物的3个生态类群均为单调递减格局.(2)物种种域海拔宽度与海拔的关系随不同类群和分析方法而异.其中,入侵植物的种域宽度和中点海拔具有显著的正相关关系,支持Rapoport法则,而全部植物和特有植物不支持;蕨类植物的海拔分布支持Rapopott法则,裸子植物不支持,其他分类群因方法不同而结果之间不一致.我们还比较了台湾和周边大陆和岛屿山地的物种丰富度海拔格局,认为它们物种丰富度海拔梯度模式的不同可能与降水海拔格局的差异有关;而关于Rapoport法则的检验表明,即使在同一山体,不同类群植物分布范围的海拔模式也可能取决于不同的因素和作用机制.     

神农架海拔梯度上的植物种域分布特征及Rapoport法则检验

根据Rapoport法则, 动物、植物物种的纬度或海拔分布宽度存在着从高纬度或高海拔地区向低纬度或低海拔地区逐渐变窄的现象。本文基于物种的海拔分布数据, 分析了神农架维管束植物及不同种域宽度组的物种丰富度海拔格局; 采用已有的4种方法和本文改进的种域分组中点法, 分析了海拔梯度上种域宽度与种域中点的关系, 并检验其是否符合Rapoport法则。结果表明, 神农架地区维管植物丰富度的海拔梯度分布格局呈单峰型, 峰值在1,000–1,500 m; 不同种域组的物种丰富度分布具有类似的单峰格局, 但随着种域宽度减小, 其物种丰富度的峰值逐渐偏向低海拔。对于神农架的物种海拔分布数据, Stevens方法、Pagel方法和逐种方法的结果都支持Rapoport法则, 而中点法的结果主要反映中域效应的影响, 种域分组中点法可有效控制中域效应的影响, 但不支持Rapoport法则。上述结果表明, 对于Rapoport法则的检验亟待研究方法的改进; 而种域的海拔格局及其形成机制, 还需要更多案例的比较研究, 才能形成普遍性的认识。     

喜马拉雅中段繁殖鸟类种域格局及Rapoport法则检验——基于3 600 m海拔梯度范围的数据

物种种域的分布规律是生物地理学与生物多样性研究的热点问题.Rapoport法则认为,物种分布范围随海拔上升而增大,但其适用性一直存在较大争议.喜马拉雅山脉是全球生物多样性热点地区之一,拥有全球最广的海拔落差以及完整的垂直气候和植被带,是验证Rapoport法则的理想场所.为探讨中喜马拉雅山脉吉隆沟3 600 m海拔梯度...     

秦岭小陇山保护区维管植物丰富度和种域海拔梯度格局及其对Rapoport法则验证

物种丰富度和种域的海拔梯度格局及其形成机制一直是生物地理学和生物多样性研究的重点.海拔Rapoport法则认为,物种丰富度随海拔升高而逐渐降低,种域逐渐变宽.本文分析了秦岭小陇山国家级自然保护区维管植物物种丰富度及其种域宽度的海拔梯度格局;采用4种常用方法,验证不同类群、不同生长型和不同阶元的物种丰富度与其分布中点间的关系,并检验其是否支持海拔Rapoport法则.结果表明: 除窄域种外,秦岭小陇山维管植物物种丰富度随海拔升高呈先升后降的单峰分布格局;狭域种主要分布在低海拔和高海拔段,低海拔段的丰富度高于高海拔段;物种海拔分布宽度与海拔关系因不同类群和验证方法而异,随分类阶元的增大更容易支持Rapoport法则,这可能与不同分类阶元所占据的生态位不同有关;被子植物的平均种域呈单峰分布格局,蕨类植物和裸子植物的种域海拔梯度格局无明显规律;藤本植物平均种域随海拔升高而变宽,灌木能适应不同的环境条件,因此,灌木分布对海拔梯度的变化不敏感.Pagel验证方法最容易支持Rapoport法则,Stevens方法次之,中点法受中域效应的影响物种平均种域分布呈单峰分布格局而不支持Rapoport法则,逐种法受散点图分布格局的影响线性模型拟合结果解释力很低.
     

秦岭两栖、爬行动物物种多样性海拔分布格局及其解释

物种多样性和种域宽度沿环境梯度的分布格局及其成因机制一直是生物地理学和生态学讨论的重要议题。本研究采用多元回归模型和方差分离的方法判断面积、水分和能量、边界限制对秦岭两栖、爬行动物及其不同区系成分的物种丰富度海拔梯度分布格局的影响。结果表明, 秦岭两栖爬行动物及其不同区系成分的物种丰富度均呈单峰分布格局, 但峰值分布的海拔段有所差异。形成这种格局是各种因素相互作用的结果, 3种假设的独立解释力较低。水分能量动态假设对两栖、爬行动物物种的丰富度格局有很强的解释能力, 但水分和能量的解释力中有很大一部分属于边界限制、面积的协同作用, 在解释两栖动物的海拔分布格局时, 边界限制与水分和能量之间存在较强的共线性, 而在解释爬行动物的海拔分布格局时, 面积与水分和能量之间存在较强的共线性。同时, 本研究采用Stevens法和逐种法对Rapoport法则进行了验证。结果表明, 爬行动物物种种域的海拔梯度格局基本上支持Rapoport法则, 两栖动物很难判断是否支持Rapoport法则。     

安徽省繁殖鸟类分布格局和热点区分析

作者广泛收集了安徽省繁殖鸟类的分布资料,采用地理信息系统技术,通过生境适宜性分析,预测物种的分布范围,获得数字化的分布图。将安徽省划分为425个等面积栅格,以此作为基本地理单元,研究繁殖鸟类分布规律,并进行热点区分析。基于分布型物种数的地理单元聚类分析结果表明,安徽省鸟类地理分布区大致以大别山北缘-巢湖一线为界分为两大组,两组在区系成分上存在较大的区域分异：东洋型物种在整个安徽境内比例均占60％以上,同时呈现由北向南递增的格局。基于物种组成的相似性的地理单元聚类分析结果表明,安徽省繁殖鸟类地理分布单元也可以分成两组,与安徽省气候带的划分基本一致,进一步分析可以划分为7组,体现鸟类地理分布的区域分异与地形地貌等生态环境之间的密切联系。鸟类热点区分析表明,所有繁殖鸟类,以及列入《国家重点保护野生动物名录》和CITES附录Ⅰ、Ⅱ的繁殖鸟类物种丰富度高值区都集中在安徽省南部。由此可见,安徽省南部地区是鸟类多样性保护的重要区域。     

长江流域兽类物种多样性的分布格局

共记录了长江流域内兽类280种,隶属于11目36科135属,特有种和受威胁物种分别有14种和154种。根据兽类分布特点,依据山系和水系将长江流域分为19个区域,除了江源区外,物种丰富度、G-F多样性指数和特有种比例,从上游到下游区域总体趋势是随海拔降低逐渐降低,形成以四川盆地和沅江为分界线的3个数量级;利用Jaccard物种相似性系数对长江流域内19个区域进行聚类分析,发现整个流域分成4部分:江源区;横断山区、川西高原、云南高原、四川盆地和秦巴山区;贵州高原、江南丘陵、鄱阳湖平原和长江三角洲;淮阳山地、两湖平原和长江下游平原,基本反映了流域内自然地理环境及我国大陆地势三级台阶变化的特点。     

植物物种多样性的垂直分布格局

生物多样性沿环境梯度的变化趋势是生物多样性研究的一个重要议题,而海拔梯度包含了多种环境因子的梯度效应,因此研究生物多样性的海拔梯度格局对于揭示生物多样性的环境梯度变化规律具有重要意义。在不同的研究尺度,植物多样性沿海拔梯度具有不同的分布格局,而形成这种格局的因素有很大差异。本文从α多样性,β多样性和γ多样性三个尺度总结了植物物种多样性沿海拔梯度分布格局及其环境解释。α多样性沿海拔梯度的分布格局在不同生活型的物种之间差异很大,但对于木本植物来说,虽然也存在其他格局,但α多样性随海拔升高而降低是被广泛接受的一种格局。在一般情况下,β多样性随着海拔的升高而降低,并且对于不同生活型的物种,β多样性沿海拔梯度具有相似的分布格局。γ多样性沿海拔梯度具有两种分布格局：偏峰分布格局和显著的负相关格局;特有物种数往往随着海拔的升高而减少,而特有度则随着海拔的升高而增加。     

安徽省兽类物种多样性及其分布格局

搜集整理安徽省兽类物种分布数据,结合调查数据,通过生境分析,确定兽类物种分布范围。基于GIS技术,以面积约为404.685 km²的425个栅格收集安徽省兽类的二元分布数据,采用多元分析的分层聚类方法,依据地理单元中物种组成和分布型组成的相似程度进行分析,对安徽兽类物种多样性及其分布格局和相关的动物地理学问题进行了探讨。结果表明,山区兽类物种丰富度显著高于平原丘陵区,其中,皖南山区兽类物种丰富度总体高于皖西大别山区,东部的江淮丘陵区略高于皖北的淮北平原。依物种组成进行的聚类分析结果表明,当相似性系数分别为0.647、0.570、0.461和0.399时,将425个地理单元聚为9、5、3 和2 个单元组,分析结果表明兽类分布受地形因素和人为活动的影响较自然地理亚区的界限影响明显。依分布型组成进行聚类分析时,当卡方距离为1.561、1.759、2.521和3.509 时,分别聚为9、5、3 和2 组,分析结果表明分布单元以长江为界分为两组,以古北型物种为主的长江以北地区和以东洋型物种为主的长江以南地区。对9 个分布单元组中的古北型和东洋型物种优势度分析结果表明:古北界和东洋界宏观上的界线大致以长江为界,呈现广阔的过渡区。过渡区的北界沿大别山北麓,经六安、舒城、合肥、定远以至来安一线,南界西起东至县北部、经贵池、青阳、南陵、沿宣城北部至广德一线。     

Beyond Rapoport's rule: evaluating range size patterns of New World birds in a two-dimensional framework

Aim To evaluate Rapoport's rule for New World birds in two‐dimensional geographical space. We specifically test for a topography × climate interaction that predicts little difference in range sizes between lowlands and mountains in cold climates, whereas in the tropics, montane species have narrow ranges and lowland species have broad ranges. Location The western hemisphere. Methods We used digitized range maps of breeding birds to generate mean range sizes in grids of 27.5 × 27.5 km and 110 × 110 km across North and South America. We examined the geographical pattern with respect to range in elevation, mean temperature in the coldest month, their interaction, biome size and continental width, using model II analysis of variance, multiple regression and simple correlation. Results In northern latitudes species have broad ranges in both mountainous and flat areas. However, range sizes in the mountains and lowlands diverge southwards, with the most extreme differences in the tropics. Further, there are minimal differences in range sizes across latitudes in lowlands. The smallest mean ranges occur in the tropical Andes. Mean range sizes in north‐central Canada, Central America and Argentina/Chile are also small, reflecting the narrowing of the continents in these areas. The best regression model explained 51% of the variation in mean range size. Main conclusions The two‐dimensional range size pattern indicates that neither winter temperature nor annual variability in temperature strongly influences the distribution of range sizes directly; rather, climate influences bird range sizes indirectly via effects on habitat size. Also, macroclimate interacts with topographic relief across latitudes, generating sharp mesoscale habitat gradients in tropical mountains but not in high latitude mountains or in lowlands at any latitude. Birds respond to these habitat gradients, resulting in ‘latitudinal’ range size gradients in topographically complex landscapes but not in simple landscapes.     

Simulation of Rapoport's rule for latitudinal species spread

Rapoport's rule claims that latitudinal ranges of plant and animal species are generally smaller at low than at high latitudes. However, doubts as to the generality of the rule have been expressed, because studies providing evidence against the rule are more numerous than those in support of it. In groups for which support has been provided, the trend of increasing latitudinal ranges with latitude is restricted to or at least most distinct at high latitudes, suggesting that the effect may be a local phenomenon, for example the result of glaciations. Here we test the rule using two models, a simple one-dimensional one with a fixed number of animals expanding in a northern or southerly direction only, and the evolutionary/ecological Chowdhury model using birth, ageing, death, mutation, speciation, prey-predator relations and food levels. Simulations with both models gave results contradicting Rapoport's rule. In the first, latitudinal ranges were roughly independent of latitude, in the second, latitudinal ranges were greatest at low latitudes, as also shown empirically for some well-studied groups of animals.     

Can Rapoport's rule explain tree species richness along the Himalayan elevation gradient,Nepal?

Rapoport's rule applied to an elevation gradient predicts a positive correlation between elevation ranges and elevation. This is supposed to be caused by the increasing magnitude of the climatic extremes at higher elevations, and thus, it is deduced that species richness should decrease with increasing elevation. The distribution of 614 tree species was used to test Rapoport's elevational rule along a gradient from 100 to 4300 m a.s.l., in the Nepalese Himalaya. The relationship between species richness and elevation was analysed by using generalized linear models (GLM). Generalized additive models (GAM) were used to examine the relationship between elevational range and the elevational mid-point of a species along the gradient. The widest elevation ranges are observed at mid-elevations, and narrow elevation ranges are observed at both ends of the gradient. This does not support Rapoport's elevation rule, as proposed by Stevens. There is a peak in species richness between 900 and 1000 m, and not in the tropical lowland as projected by Rapoport's elevation rule.     

Rapoport's bathymetric rule and the latitudinal species diversity gradient for Northeast Pacific fishes and Northwest Atlantic gastropods: evidence against a causal link

Aim Few studies have explicitly considered the recurrent pattern of declining species diversity and increasing geographical range size that exists for numerous taxa across a variety of physical gradients. We extend Stevens’ [ Stevens, G.C. (1996) Journal of Biogeography, 23 , 149] work on Rapoport's bathymetric rule, using a more complete latitudinal assemblage of Northeast Pacific fishes and new data from Northwest Atlantic gastropods, to show that bathymetrical range size and species diversity are not causally linked. Location Fishes from the Northeast Pacific (0°–60° N) and gastropods from the Northwest Atlantic (0°–74° N) distributed from the surface to depths greater than 200 m. Methods Species pools were divided into three bathymetrical subgroups: (1) species restricted to shallow waters, between the surface and 200 m, (2) species that occurred in waters, both shallow and deep of 200 m, and (3) species restricted to waters deeper than 200 m. Median bathymetrical range size and total number of species were plotted against latitude (2° bins) using Stevens’ method, for the entire species pool and individual bathymetrical groups. Results For both fishes and gastropods, the apparent link between extratropical diversity and bathymetrical range size is an artefact resulting from the disproportionately high number of shallow restricted species in tropical latitudes, and the loss of these species in temperate latitudes. Furthermore, the extratropical gradient in gastropod diversity and bathymetrical range size are decoupled by approximately 15°, and while the latitudinal pattern for diversity is consistent across bathymetrical groups, median bathymetrical range size is highly irregular. Main conclusions These results suggests that functional groups can contribute disproportionately to patterns apparent at larger scales and that analysis of ecographical patterns by subregion is a novel approach that can help resolve debates over causality when patterns are seemingly coincident.     

The applicability of Rapoport's rule to the marine molluscs of the Americas

Aim We evaluated the applicability of Rapoport's rule (RR) to the marine molluscs of the Americas. The biogeographical pattern predicted by RR has been the subject of a large number of studies, some supporting it and some not. In this exercise, we attempted to generate results free of biases in taxonomy or geographical scale. Location The study area encompassed the Pacific and Atlantic sides of the entire North and South American continents. Methods Our analysis was based on secondary data. We tested the relationship of the geographical range to gradients of latitude and depth, using the methodologies of Stevens (1989) and midpoint ( Rohde et al., 1993 ). By Spearman's correlation, we related the mean amplitude of the geographical distribution to each gradient. We compared all known molluscan species together, and performed a second analysis limited to certain taxonomically well‐known groups. Results Our results were generated from a databank encompassing 4067 species. The analyses corroborated RR on both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. In applying the pattern to the Atlantic coast, certain methodological issues had to be considered, such as the exclusion of deep‐water species and taxonomically biased groups. Regional features, such as the size of a biogeographical province, seemed to strongly affect the form of the pattern. The results also supported the association of RR with a depth gradient.     

Species range size distributions for some marine taxa in the Atlantic Ocean. Effect of latitude and depth

The range size distributions of 6643 species in ten different fish and invertebrate taxa dwelling in pelagic (latitudinal range sizes) and benthic (latitudinal and depth range sizes) habitats on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean (80°N−70°S) were studied. The objectives were to analyse: (1) the range size distribution patterns for the various taxa and whether they have right/left skewed or lognormal distributions; (2) the geographical species distributions, to ascertain whether the distribution ranges change with latitude (Rapoport's rule); and (3) the relationship between the depth ranges of benthic species and their maximum depth of occurrence and how depth range size distributions change with latitude. The pelagic taxa exhibited larger range sizes than did the benthic taxa, continental slope/rise species excepted. On the other hand, the boundaries between geographical provinces for both benthic taxa and pelagic taxa tended to occur in association with major oceanographic processes. The shape of the latitudinal range frequency distributions (LRFDs) of the pelagic organisms were distinctly left‐skewed, and the LRFDs for most taxa were significantly different from lognormal. There was no common pattern for the distributions of the benthic organisms, which were lognormal in Cephalopoda, Stomatopoda, and Crustacea Decapoda and tended to be left‐skewed and significantly different from lognormal in Pisces. The applicability of Rapoport's rule was not clearly inferable from the results, and the rule appears to be conditioned by the location of biogeographical boundaries and the endemism rate in the different biogeographical provinces. A clear increase in depth range size with maximum depth range was observable for benthic species, confirming previous studies. Species’ depth range distributions displayed a discernible latitudinal pattern, right‐skewed at high latitudes and left‐skewed at low latitudes. The location of biogeographical boundaries, and endemism rate by biogeographical province were considered to be the factors most useful in explaining species’ distribution patterns and their conformity or nonconformity to Rapoport's rule. © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2003, 80 , 437–455.