5 Conclusions
The phylogenetic and trait-based analyses conducted in this study showed that functional traits and phylogeny provide a meaningful way to detect community assembly processes. The results show that there were significant interspecific variations in leaf traits at L. glaber–C. glauca evergreen broad-leaved forest community. Leaf functional traits composition of coexisting species showed dispersion pattern and tended to adopt “realism” to adapt to their habitats. Strong phylogenetic signals were detected only in LA and LT. In addition, TK, TP, altitude, aspect, and convexity were the primary influencing environmental factors. Neutral theory-based stochastic processes were the main drivers in the development of community leaf functional traits, but niche-based habitat filtration was more important influencing mechanism of community phylogenetic structure. In future research, more functional traits as well as a larger scale should be taken into account.