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Global patterns of Rhododendron diversity explained by island biogeography theory and habitat heterogeneity - EurekAlert


- Global Rhododendron hotspots are mainly distributed in the Hengduan Mountains of southwestern China and the southern regions of the Himalayas. - Rhododendron diversity patterns were most strongly explained by proxies of island biogeography theory (i.e., mountain area) and habitat heterogeneity (i.e., elevation range). - The planimetric area and the volume of mountains were positively correlated with the Rhododendron diversity, whereas the ‘mountains-to-mainland’ distance was negatively correlated with Rhododendron diversity and shared species. - Island biogeography theory and habitat heterogeneity jointly explain global patterns of Rhododendron diversity, and mountains can be regarded as islands which supported island biogeography theory.

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