Energy availability outperforms topographic heterogeneity in predicting global patterns of mountain endemic plant richness.
Gu Y, Ji J, Li Z, Jiang Z, Sun W.
Mountain Biodiversity
Rare alpine wildflowers and mountain trees found nowhere else on Earth are where they are largely because of sunlight and temperature — meaning climate change doesn't just shift seasons, it quietly reshuffles the entire geography of mountain biodiversity.
Scientists looked at thousands of plant species that live exclusively on the world's mountain ranges and asked: why are some mountains teeming with unique plants while others have very few? They found that how much sunlight and warmth a mountain gets is generally more important than how steep, rocky, or varied its landscape is — especially for trees and shrubs. For smaller flowering herbs, though, the physical patchwork of ridges, valleys, and slopes plays the bigger role in driving plant variety.
Key Findings
Energy availability explains ~69% of variation in tree endemic richness vs. ~59% for topographic heterogeneity, making it the stronger global predictor for woody plants.
For endemic herb plants, the pattern flips: topographic heterogeneity is more explanatory (76.70% ± 14.34%), suggesting landscape complexity drives diversity for low-growing flora.
In regions with unusually stable energy supplies, such as the Cape of Good Hope, terrain complexity becomes the dominant driver of plant richness — highlighting that the energy-vs-topography balance is context-dependent.
chevron_right Technical Summary
A global study of mountain plants found that energy availability — sunlight and temperature — is a stronger predictor of where rare, mountain-only species concentrate than the physical ruggedness of terrain. The exception is low-growing herbs, where landscape complexity matters more.
Abstract Preview
Mountain uplift alters both topographic complexity and energy patterns. However, the relative importance (RI) of these factors in shaping mountain diversity has not been systematically analyzed. Th...
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