Small mammal species richness and turnover along elevational gradient in Yulong Mountain, Yunnan, Southwest China

Understanding the species diversity patterns along elevational gradients is critical for biodiversity conservation in mountainous regions. We examined the elevational patterns of species richness and turnover, and evaluated the effects of spatial and environmental factors on non-volant small mammals (hereafter ‘small mammal’) predicted a priori by alternative hypotheses [Mid-domain effect (MDE), species area relationship (SAR), energy, environmental stability and habitat complexity)] proposed to explain the variation of diversity. We designed a standardized sampling scheme to trap small mammals at ten elevational bands across the entire elevational gradient on Yulong Mountain, Southwest China. A total of 1808 small mammals representing 23 species were trapped. We observed the hump-shaped distribution pattern of the overall species richness along elevational gradient. Insectivores, rodents, large-ranged species and endemic species richness showed the general hump-shaped pattern but peake...