类似于化学元素周期表，生态位周期表是指特定生物群落中不同物种之间的生态位关系位序表。植物功能性状是指植物在生长发育过程中与环境长期相互作用而产生的有利于其生存适合度的性状。基于功能性状构建多维生态位是探讨植物生态适应与潜在分布的一个全新途径。构建并比较不同气候区森林植被基于功能性状的植物生态位周期表，对于揭示森林植被的群落组配机制、演替动态和地理分异都具有重要的理论意义。本项目以我国四个气候区的典型森林植被为对象，在对各区域已建立的多个森林动态样地及其卫星样地调查监测、木本植物功能性状和环境因子测定以及已有数据库信息挖掘的基础上，构建并比较不同区域基于功能性状的森林植物生态位周期表，辨识其主体生态位维度及区域差异，阐明森林植物生态位周期表地理分异的驱动因素，为拓展和创新功能生物地理学理论做出贡献。

Similar to the periodic table of elements in chemistry, the periodic table of niches for species is defined as the niche relationships and their order tables in a specific biotic community. Plant functional traits are the traits best fit for survival, which are formed during long term interactions with the environmental conditions in their process of growth and development. Construction of functional trait-based multi-dimensional niche space is a new approach to elucidate plant adaptability and its potential distribution. Constructing and comparing the periodic tables of niches based on functional traits for plants in forest vegetation types across different climatic zones is highly significant in the theoretical explorations for community assembly, successional dynamics and geographic differentiations of different forest vegetation types..In this project, we select the typical vegetation types in four climatic zones across China (tropical rainforest, subtropical evergreen-deciduous broadleaved mixed forest, warm temperate coniferous-broadleaved mixed forest and temperate coniferous forest) as our study subjects. Based on the investigation and monitoring on a number of our already established forest dynamics plots (FDPs) and their satellite subplots in the typical vegetation types, as well as measuring major functional traits of woody plants and environmental factors, and combined with information gathering from online available common databases, we will construct and compare periodic tables of niches based on functional traits for plants in typical forest vegetation types across different climatic zones, identify the dominant niche dimensions and their regional differences. On this basis, we will disentangle the driving factors for the geographic differentiations of periodic tables of niches based on functional traits for plants in forest vegetation types across different climatic zones. The results of this project will make significant contributions to theoretical extensions and innovations of the newly emerged functional biogeography.