Three types of alpine plant species,Carex montis-everestii,Quercus aquifolioidesandStipa capillacea, along an altitudinal gradient of 3005–5025 m on the Tibetan Plateau, were chosen to test the generality of the hypothesis that foliar carbon isotope composition (δ¹³C) of C3 plants increases significantly with altitude and to determine climate drivers shaping its altitudinal pattern. Temperature and relative humidity showed significantly negative correlations with altitude; however, precipitation and soil water potential remained unchanged with altitude. Foliar δ¹³C of C. montis-everestii,Q. aquifolioides,S. capillaceaalone or combined together did not significantly increase with altitude, which does not support the leading hypothesis of increased foliar δ¹³C with altitude. There was no difference in foliar δ¹³C among all three species. Multi-factor correlation analyses showed that temperature, precipitation and relative humidity alone did not affect foliar δ¹³C ofC. montis-everestiiandS. capillacea, but conferred significant effects on foliar δ¹³C of Q. aquifolioides.
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