Distribution Patterns and Community Assembly of Soil Nematodes Along Elevation Gradients in a Dry‐Hot Valley
4 affiliations
- 1State Key Laboratory of Vegetation Structure, Function and Construction (VegLab), Yunnan Key Laboratory of Plant Reproductive Adaptation and Evolutionary Ecology, School of Ecology and Environmental Science Yunnan University Kunming China
- 2School of Geography and Remote Sensing Ningbo University Ningbo China
- 3CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden Chinese Academy of Sciences Mengla China
- 4Yuanjiang Savanna Ecosystem Research Station, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden Chinese Academy of Sciences Yuanjiang China
Abstract
In arid regions, mountain ecosystems are biodiversity hotspots but also highly fragile. While aboveground communities have been well studied, belowground communities—particularly soil fauna—remain poorly understood despite their key roles in ecosystem functioning. Soil nematodes play an important role in soil faunal communities. Here, we characterized soil nematode communities and soil properties in plots located at four different elevations in the Yuanjiang dry‐hot valley, China. We examined the effects of soil properties on nematode abundance, diversity, and community composition, and explored the community assembly along the elevational gradient. Our findings suggest that the increase in soil moisture is the primary driver of the elevational rise in nematode abundance, but it is not the main factor responsible for changes in nematode diversity. Instead, with increasing elevation, NH ₄ ⁺ ‐N simultaneously promoted the abundance and diversity of plant parasites nematodes while reducing the diversity of bacterivores nematodes. We also found that NH ₄ ⁺ ‐N and MBC exerted stronger influences on nematode community composition than soil moisture, underscoring the importance of nutrient‐related factors in shaping belowground biodiversity. Furthermore, soil moisture does not influence soil nematode community assembly as an environmental filter, but rather indirectly affects community assembly by regulating nematode abundance, suggesting that nematode communities in this arid region are adapted to low‐moisture conditions. Our study provides new insights into the elevational distribution patterns of soil nematodes in arid mountain ecosystems and helps to fill a critical knowledge gap regarding nematode community assembly in arid environments.
Related
- Temporal stasis in three facets of biodiversity reveals mechanisms of community assembly across elevation gradients
- Spatio-temporal patterns of diversity and distribution of common Megachile bees across agroclimatic gradients in Eastern India
- Response of Non-Structural Carbohydrates in Picea crassifolia to Elevation Gradients in the Qilian Mountains
- Elevation gradients shape morphology and acoustic phenotype across isolated songbird populations
- Morphological and molecular characterization of nematodes in a freshwater fish community from La Mojana, Sucre, Colombia
BibTeX
@article{zhang2026distribution,
title = {{Distribution Patterns and Community Assembly of Soil Nematodes Along Elevation Gradients in a Dry‐Hot Valley}},
author = {Jinxiu Zhang and Haoran Lei and Na Lin and Chunyu Hou and Chunyu Yue and Yajun Chen and Jianping Wu},
journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1002/ece3.74358},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74358},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Distribution Patterns and Community Assembly of Soil Nematodes Along Elevation Gradients in a Dry‐Hot Valley
AU - Jinxiu Zhang
AU - Haoran Lei
AU - Na Lin
AU - Chunyu Hou
AU - Chunyu Yue
AU - Yajun Chen
AU - Jianping Wu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/30
JO - Ecology and Evolution
DO - 10.1002/ece3.74358
UR - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74358
AB - In arid regions, mountain ecosystems are biodiversity hotspots but also highly fragile. While aboveground communities have been well studied, belowground communities—particularly soil fauna—remain poorly understood despite their key roles in ecosystem functioning. Soil nematodes play an important role in soil faunal communities. Here, we characterized soil nematode communities and soil properties in plots located at four different elevations in the Yuanjiang dry‐hot valley, China. We examined the effects of soil properties on nematode abundance, diversity, and community composition, and explored the community assembly along the elevational gradient. Our findings suggest that the increase in soil moisture is the primary driver of the elevational rise in nematode abundance, but it is not the main factor responsible for changes in nematode diversity. Instead, with increasing elevation, NH ₄ ⁺ ‐N simultaneously promoted the abundance and diversity of plant parasites nematodes while reducing the diversity of bacterivores nematodes. We also found that NH ₄ ⁺ ‐N and MBC exerted stronger influences on nematode community composition than soil moisture, underscoring the importance of nutrient‐related factors in shaping belowground biodiversity. Furthermore, soil moisture does not influence soil nematode community assembly as an environmental filter, but rather indirectly affects community assembly by regulating nematode abundance, suggesting that nematode communities in this arid region are adapted to low‐moisture conditions. Our study provides new insights into the elevational distribution patterns of soil nematodes in arid mountain ecosystems and helps to fill a critical knowledge gap regarding nematode community assembly in arid environments.
SN - 2045-7758
SN - 2045-7758
ER -