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Volume 14
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10.3390/plants14182835
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Article

Stoichiometric Homeostasis and Functional Group Divergence Jointly Enhance Alpine Plant Adaptation to Environmental Stress

by
Aihui Ma
1,2,3,
Zhe Chen
1,2,3,*,
Xin Jing
4,
Yu Chen
1,2,3,
Jinhong Guan
1,2,3,
Shixiong Wang
1,2,3,
Wenying Wang
1,2,3,
Huakun Zhou
5,
Jian Sun
6,
Xufeng Mao
1,2,3 and
Yanxia Jin
1,2,3
1
Key Laboratory of Tibetan Plateau Land Surface Processes and Ecological Conservation (Ministry of Education), Qinghai Normal University, Xining 810016, China
2
Academy of Plateau Science and Sustainability, Xining 810016, China
3
Qinghai Key Laboratory of Biodiversity Formation Mechanism and Comprehensive Utilization of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Xining 810016, China
4
State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730020, China
5
Qinghai Key Laboratory of Restoration Ecology of Cold Area, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining 810008, China
6
State Key Laboratory of Earth System Resources and Environment of Tibetan Plateau, Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Plants 2025, 14(18), 2835; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14182835
Submission received: 28 July 2025 / Revised: 3 September 2025 / Accepted: 6 September 2025 / Published: 11 September 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological and Ecological Responses of Arctic and Alpine Plants to Climate Change)
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Abstract

Climate warming promotes alpine plant migration to higher elevations, yet how they adapt via stoichiometric homeostasis remains unclear. We measured plant C, N, and P traits and homeostasis across community and functional group levels in three alpine vegetation types—meadow (3200–3400 m), shrubland (3400–3700 m), and cushion vegetation (3700–4400 m)—along an altitudinal gradient in the northern Qilian Mountains, Tibetan Plateau. Shrubland, as ecotones, had higher soil C and N, with plant communities showing the highest N and N:P but lowest C:N. At the functional group level, Poaceae (Gramineae) and forbs had the highest N and N:P, while Cyperaceae had the highest P in shrubland. Notably, Cyperaceae in shrubland exhibited weak P and C:P homeostasis. Poaceae (Gramineae) were mainly influenced by soil, Cyperaceae by climate, and forbs by elevation. Structural equation modeling showed elevation indirectly affected stoichiometry via climate and soil; climate influenced nutrient contents, while soil controlled C:N:P ratios. These results reveal diverse nutrient regulation and survival strategies in alpine plants, enhancing understanding of adaptation and community assembly under climate change.
Keywords: Tibetan Plateau; alpine grassland; altitudinal gradient; plant functional group; stoichiometric homeostasis Tibetan Plateau; alpine grassland; altitudinal gradient; plant functional group; stoichiometric homeostasis

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MDPI and ACS Style

Ma, A.; Chen, Z.; Jing, X.; Chen, Y.; Guan, J.; Wang, S.; Wang, W.; Zhou, H.; Sun, J.; Mao, X.; et al. Stoichiometric Homeostasis and Functional Group Divergence Jointly Enhance Alpine Plant Adaptation to Environmental Stress. Plants 2025, 14, 2835. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14182835

AMA Style

Ma A, Chen Z, Jing X, Chen Y, Guan J, Wang S, Wang W, Zhou H, Sun J, Mao X, et al. Stoichiometric Homeostasis and Functional Group Divergence Jointly Enhance Alpine Plant Adaptation to Environmental Stress. Plants. 2025; 14(18):2835. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14182835

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ma, Aihui, Zhe Chen, Xin Jing, Yu Chen, Jinhong Guan, Shixiong Wang, Wenying Wang, Huakun Zhou, Jian Sun, Xufeng Mao, and et al. 2025. "Stoichiometric Homeostasis and Functional Group Divergence Jointly Enhance Alpine Plant Adaptation to Environmental Stress" Plants 14, no. 18: 2835. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14182835

APA Style

Ma, A., Chen, Z., Jing, X., Chen, Y., Guan, J., Wang, S., Wang, W., Zhou, H., Sun, J., Mao, X., & Jin, Y. (2025). Stoichiometric Homeostasis and Functional Group Divergence Jointly Enhance Alpine Plant Adaptation to Environmental Stress. Plants, 14(18), 2835. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14182835

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