The researchers studied how different types of plants in a tropical forest in China are affected by the landscape patterns of their habitat. They found that the number of plant species varied depending on the diversity and complexity of the patches in the forest. The main factors influencing species richness were the percentage of landscape, edge density, total edge contrast index, and area-weighted mean shape index. Climax species, which are more mature plants, were more affected by landscape fragmentation than pioneer species. As the landscape became more fragmented, the number of climax species increased with more diverse and complex patches, while pioneer species slightly increased but overall species richness decreased.