The spatial pattern of aboveground biomass and species richness in the grassland of Qilian Mountain

To determine how the effects of environmental factors (e.g. climate changes and geographic location) on plant aboveground biomass and species richness, an experiment was conducted in the alpine grasslands including 13 study sites that were selected along the longitude, latitude, and elevation of the Qilian Mountains. Results showed that the spatial distribution pattern of the aboveground biomass and species richness of Qilian Mountain grassland show high to low from north to south and east to west. Aboveground biomass and species richness were significantly positively correlated with latitude and longitude (P < 0.05), while aboveground biomass was significantly positively correlated with mean annual precipitation and negatively correlated with mean annual temperature (P < 0.05). The mean annual precipitation determined the east-west distribution patterns of aboveground biomass in the grassland of Qilian Mountains. The north-south distribution patterns of aboveground biomass were affected by the coupling effects of air temperature and annual precipitation. The aboveground biomass and species richness could be well predicted by using longitude, latitude, altitude, mean annual precipitation and mean annual temperature. The results highlight the significance to the scientific management of Qilian Mountain National Park.