Ecosystem mean residence times of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus (τ_e,C, τ_e,N and τ_e,P, respectively) are important ecosystem properties. By analyzing the dependence of the observation-based estimates of τ_e,C, τ_e,N and τ_e,P of 127 mature forests on climate, vegetation, soil and terrain-related variables, we found that climate, particularly mean annual minimum temperature (T_min), had the greatest influence on τ_e,C, τ_e,N and τ_e,P. Different from previous studies, we found that both τ_e,C and τ_e,P increased with T_min when T_min > 0 ℃. Despite a decreasing phosphorus input with T_min, vegetation adapted to low phosphorus environment by increasing internal recycling and phosphorus use efficiency, together with the increasing soil clay content with T_min, not the direct response to T_min, explained why both τ_e,C and τ_e,P increased with T_min when T_min > 0 ℃. Our results highlight the importance of factors beyond climate in regulating residence times, especially in subtropical forests.