Resistance of plant diversity to road disturbance: Evidence from the Tibetan Plateau

The expansion of road networks in recent decades has drawn considerable attention due to its impact on biodiversity in high-altitude ecosystems. Here, we conducted a comprehensive field survey to investigate the effects of road disturbance on plant diversity in alpine grasslands on the Tibetan Plateau. Our results indicate that road disturbance caused no significant changes in species richness, Shannon-Wiener's diversity, or Simpson's diversity, and the alteration in species composition was limited. These findings demonstrate the robust resistance of alpine grassland plant diversity to road disturbance. Plant diversity exhibited more resistance to road disturbance in regions with more hostile environments, such as plateau sub-frigid regions and alpine steppes. Our study suggests that road construction in the Tibetan Plateau poses limited risk to plant biodiversity.