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Can plant phenology explain species coexistence: A case study in the subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest of Gutianshan,Zhejiang, China

Species coexistence has always been a major research focus in ecology. Classical coexistence theory indicates that plants can achieve species coexistence through spatial niche differentiation, thereby reducing the competition for resources among species. However, whether plants can also promote species coexistence through temporal niche differentiation (such as phenological differentiation) in the subtropical regions has yet to be tested. We take a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in eastern China as an example. Using reproductive phenology data from 2012 to 2017 for 102 species in the Gutianshan 24 ha permanent plot,we analyzed the phenological differences between species with different functional groups. We found that both the first flowering and fruit time had large temporal niche differentiation. The first flowering had greater variation than the first fruiting time, and that the flowering duration varied less than the fruiting duration. There was no overlap between flowering phenology and fruiting phenology. The phenology of different functional groups differed among species, with the first flowering time significantly earlier in trees than shrubs, but the first fruiting time later in trees than shrubs. The first flowering time was significantly earlier for wind-pollinated trees than insect-pollinated trees, and the first flowering time was also significantly earlier for fleshy-fruit species than nonfleshy-fruit species. The results indicate that differences in plant phenology, which create temporal niches, can reduce resource competition among species and promote community coexistence. Considering species coexistence from the perspective of phenology can help us understand how temporal niches alleviate competition for resources.