Editing Environmental gradient (section)

== Abiotic influence ==
The [[species distribution]] along environmental gradients has been studied intensively due to large databases of species presence data (e.g. [[Global Biodiversity Information Facility|GBIF]]). The abiotic factors that environmental gradients consist of can have a direct ramifications on organismal survival. Generally, organismal distribution is tied to those abiotic factors, but even an environmental gradient of one abiotic factor yields insight into how a species distribution might look. For example, aspects of the landscape such as soil composition, temperature, and precipitation all factor in to an accurate idea of habitable territory a plant species might occupy; information on one of those factors can help form an environmental gradient by which a proximate species distribution may be generated.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Kirkman|first1=L. K.|last2=Mitchell|first2=R. J.|last3=Helton|first3=R. C.|last4=Drew|first4=M. B.|date=November 2001|title=Productivity and species richness across an environmental gradient in a fire-dependent ecosystem|journal=American Journal of Botany|volume=88|issue=11|pages=2119–2128|doi=10.2307/3558437|issn=0002-9122|jstor=3558437|pmid=21669643|doi-access=free}}</ref> Similarly, along the upstream-downstream gradient of a river, fish assemblages (groupings) can vary in species and trait diversity; upstream habitats, which tend to be at higher elevations, have been observed to develop greater species and trait diversity. With elevated regions most intensely feeling the effects of climate change and these effects being linked to increased species diversity in impacted regions, this is a key consideration in prioritizing habitats for conservation efforts.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Buisson|first1=Laëtitia|last2=Grenouillet|first2=Gaël|date=2009|title=Contrasted impacts of climate change on stream fish assemblages along an environmental gradient|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1472-4642.2009.00565.x|journal=Diversity and Distributions|language=en|volume=15|issue=4|pages=613–626|doi=10.1111/j.1472-4642.2009.00565.x|s2cid=86026682 |doi-access=free}}</ref> At an [[ecotone]], species [[abundance (ecology)|abundances]] change relatively quickly compared to the environmental gradient.