Microbial gradual shifts during the process of species replacement in Taihang Mountain.

Species replacement, induced by climate related environmental change, significantly increased the above-ground biomass of shrublands, and TP and TK contents in topsoil. The succession from . to . var. communities resulted in the gradually replacement of cold-tolerant microbes with warm-affinity ones, and alterations of microbial communities involved in soil biogeochemical processes. Soil and plant variables, such as above-ground biomass, soil pH, total phosphorus, and total potassium, well explained the variations in microbial communities, indicating that the coordinated changes in plant communities and soil properties during secondary succession caused accompanied shifts in microbial diversity and composition.