GRADIENT: Himalayan elevation gradient NICHE: temperature niches Richness Endemics Life forms

1. GRADIENT: Himalayan elevation gradient NICHE: temperature niches Richness Endemics Life forms

4. But first: do communities exist?

5. A short answer after a long debate: No. Compositional variation in nature tends to be gradual.

6. How can we analyse species composition? Within some defined environment or area we sample a number of plots and register the species present

7. The temperature nicheHabitat is where plant live, e.g. in oak forest, on open slopes, at rhododendron trees, etcDistribution range is where on a geogrphical one may find the target species

8. high Alpine Tundra Elevation low Temperated Forest Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra Elevation gradient variation in temperature and correlated variables e.g. soil Montane Coniferous Forest Deciduous Forest

9. Laps rate = 0.55 oC pr 100 elevation-meter

10. High-land sp Mid elevation Low-land sp M ASL ELEVATION GRADIENT SPCECIES OCCURE AND DISAPEAR

11. ELEVATIONE RANGEELEVATION CONVERTED TO TEMPERATURE EXAMPLES: RHODODENDRON IN THE HIMALAYAS

13. 1000 masl Elevation range of Rh. Arboreum 3600 masl

14. Concepts: realized and potentialniche Realized climate niche = the average climate conditions where the species are growing in nature Potential climate niche = the climate conditions where the (fundamental) species are able to grow without interference from other organisms abundance temperature

15. high Alpine Tundra Elevation low Subtropical Forest Northern Arctic Tundra Elevation gradient in temperature lapse rate= decrease 0.5 degrees Celsius each 100 elevation meter Montane Coniferous Forest Deciduous Forest

18. INTERPOLATION : ASSUMING ALL SPECIES ARE PRESNET IN ALL 100M INTERVALS BETWEEN LOWER AND UPPER ELEVATION LIMIT This gives total number of specie in all different elevation bands from 100 m to 6000 m a.s.l.

19. INTERPOLATION : ASSUMING ALL SPECIES ARE PRESNET IN ALL 100M INTERVALS BETWEEN LOWER AND UPPER ELEVATION LIMIT This gives total number of species in all different elevation bands from 100 m to 6000 m a.s.l. This can be done for different life forms, such as ferns,trees or total number of endemics and total number of species

20. Species richness Elevation Tree species richness patterns • Unimodal relationship between tree species richness and elevation. • Maximum tree species found between 900 and 1000 m.

22. Mountain Biomes • “Islands” = isolation= speciation, polyploidy => endemics

23. Internpolated species richness in the Himalayas

24. Interpolated species richness in the Himalayas Plateau MASL

25. 1500 200 m asl

26. Is Gamma diversity able to predict the pattern of Alpha diversity along an elevation range? Ole R. Vetaas, M. Panthi, & K. Shrestha, IE Maaren Centre for Development Studies, University of Bergen, Nygaardsgt. 5, N-5015 Bergen, NORWAY. Central Department of Botany, Tribhuvan University, P.B. 5927 Kathmandu, Nepal.

30. high Ice & rock Alpine Tundra Elevation low TROPICAL FOREST Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra Elevation Gradient Montane BETULA &…… Coniferous Forest EVERGREEN OAK-RHODODENDRON-Forest Deciduous Forest TROPICAL FOREST

32. high Ice & rock Alpine Tundra Elevation low TROPICAL FOREST Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra elevation gradient Montane BETULA &…… 4000 m asl Coniferous Forest EVERGREEN OAK-RHODODENDRON-Forest Deciduous Forest 2000 m asl TROPICAL FOREST

33. high Ice & rock Alpine Tundra Elevation low TROPICAL FOREST Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra elevation gradient Montane BETULA &…… Coniferous Forest EVERGREEN OAK-RHODODENDRON-Forest Deciduous Forest TROPICAL FOREST

34. Rh. arboreum spp. arboreum Rh. arboreum spp. cinnamomeum

35. high Ice & rock Alpine Tundra Elevation low TROPICAL FOREST Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra elevation gradient Montane BETULA &…… Coniferous Forest EVERGREEN OAK-RHODODENDRON-Forest Deciduous Forest TROPICAL FOREST

36. Sampling: 5 plots (10m x10m) in each 100m elevation on N- and S- aspects of the valley Area: Manag 3200 – 4000 masl

37. high Ice & rock Alpine Tundra Elevation low TROPICAL FOREST Northern Coniferous Forest Arctic Tundra elevation gradient BETULA Montane BETULA &…… Coniferous Forest EVERGREEN OAK-RHODODENDRON-Forest Deciduous Forest TROPICAL FOREST

38. Dry inner valleys

39. ANNAPURNA RANGE MONSOON

41. Dry south-exposed slopes

42. Alpine shrub at 3800+ masl

43. Diversity concepts • Two of late R.H. Whittakers diversity concepts • Alpha diversity number of species in community, i.e. # species per area • (point-alpha) • Gamma diversity not well-defined concept, high alpha and high beta produce high gamma.

44. Gamma diversity? • Lomolino defined Gamma diversity as total number of species in certain elevations zone in a mountain range. • Similar to the concept of Species pool, which is indicating the potential number of species that could be found in a given area.

45. Interpolated species richness in the Himalayas GAMMA diversity~ species pool We used data on elevation ranges in the Enumeration of flowering plants in Nepal (Hara et al., 1978;Hara & Williams, 1979; Hara et al., 1982) to describe the pattern of species richness along the elevation gradient. MASL

46. Interpolated species richness in the Himalayas Plateau MASL

47. LOCATION OF THE PLOTS

48. Alpha diversity number of species per 100 square metre • Species richness was recorded from 350 10m x 10m plots: 2000 - 4000 m asl Average species richness (alpha diversity) for each 100 m elevation zone Sources: Vetaas, Maaren, KB Shrestah, M Panthi, and Ohasi H. (The Flora of eastern Himalaya)

49. Species pool for each 100m elevation interval = Gamma diversity

50. Average alpha diversity in 100 square metre plots for each 100m elevation interval