DOI: 10.5061/dryad.rjdfn2z6b
title: Data from: Plant diversity in giant panda habitat

description: Understanding the relative importance of the factors driving the patterns
 of biodi- versity is a key research topic in community ecology and
 biogeography. However, the  main drivers of plant species
 diversity in montane forests are still not clear. In addi- tion, most
 existing studies make no distinction between direct and indirect effects
 of  environmental factors and spatial constraints on plant
 biodiversity. Using data from  107 montane forest plots in
 Sichuan Giant Panda habitat, China, we quantified the  direct and
 indirect effects of abiotic environmental factors, spatial constraints,
 and  plant functional traits on plant community diversity. Our
 results showed significant  correlations between abiotic
 environmental factors and trees (r = .10, p value = .001), 
 shrubs (r = .19, p value = .001), or overall plant diversity (r = .18, p
 value = .001) in mon- tane forests. Spatial constraints also showed
 significant correlations with trees and  shrubs. However, no
 significant correlations were found between functional traits 
 and plant community diversity. Moreover, the diversity (richness and
 abundance) of  shrubs, trees, and plant communities was directly
 affected by precipitation, latitude,  and altitude. Mean annual
 temperature (MAT) had no direct effect on the richness of  tree
 and plant communities. Further, MAT and precipitation indirectly affected
 plant  communities  via  the  tree
  canopy.  The  results  revealed
  a  stronger  direct  effect
  on  montane plant diversity than indirect effect,
 suggesting that single-species models  may be adequate for
 forecasting the impacts of climate factors in these communities. 
 The shifting of tree canopy coverage might be a potential indicator for
 trends of plant  diversity under climate change.
description: In 2017, 107 random sampling plots in montane forests were
 collected <br> from north to south, spanning the entire Sichuan
 Giant Panda habi-<br> tat. The sampling strategy and field site
 information are shown in Li et <br> al. (2019). The elevation within
 the sampling plots varied significantly <br> (from ca. 2,000 to
 3,600 m a.s.l.) (Li et al., 2019). The main vegetation <br> types in
 those plots were coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forests, <br> and
 evergreen and deciduous broad-leaved mixed forests. Using ques-<br>
 tionnaires, we surveyed 72 local people from Minshan,
 Xiaoxiangling, <br> and Qionglai in the Sichuan Giant Panda habitat
 in 2017. Those local <br> villagers mainly participated in the local
 Giant Panda habitat conser-<br> vation.  The  survey  information
  included  if  there  was  any  interfer-<br> ence in the sampling
 plots. In addition, we observed the plant species <br> composition
 and environment in the montane forests to choose only <br> mature
 forests. We finally screened 107 mature forest sampling plots <br>
 without human interventions. Vegetation surveys were conducted
 be-<br> tween July and September 2017 (the peak period of plant
 growth). All <br> plots were located at least 150 m from the road to
 avoid edge effects. <br> Within each plot, trees in a 20 m × 30 m
 subplot and shrubs from three <br> 5 m × 5 m subplots were studied.
 Data from the three subplots within <br> each plot were then pooled.
 The plant species, number of individu-<br> als (abundance), and
 coverage of each layer (e.g., tree, shrub) were re-<br> corded
 (Table S1).