To understand the ecological adaptation mechanism and strategies of Q. spinosa to high-altitude environments, 12 leaf functional traits (here after LFTs) of the alpine oaks from three different altitudinal plots in Wumeng township, Luquan, Yunnan, China were characterized. Furthermore, variance partitioning analysis (VPA) and redundancy analysis (RDA) were used to reveal the response of the LFTs to environmental factors, and leaf trait networks (LTNs) and principal component analysis (PCA) were employed to analyze the survival adaptation strategies of the species. The results showed that: (1) All the LFTs of the oaks in Wumeng township were variable, with the coefficients of variation ranging from 6.12% to 54.97%, of which leaf water content (LWC) had the highest degree of variation with a coefficient of variation of 54.97%, and leaf carbon content (LCC) had the lowest with a coefficient of variation of 6.12%. (2) Significant change trend along the increase in altitude were observed in the most LFTs of the oak in Wumeng township. There was a significant upward trend as the altitude increases in the specific leaf area (SLA), chlorophyll content (CC), LCC, and leaf nitrogen content (LNC), while there was a significant downward trend in the leaf thickness (LT), leaf dry weight (LDW), leaf dry matter content (LDMC), LWC, and carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C/N). (3) In the study area, soil factors determined the variation in LFTs of the oak, and among the different soil factors, the total kalium content (TK), total nitrogen content (TN), available phosphorus content (AP) and soil water content (SWC) were stand out as important soil factors. (4) Centered around the specific leaf area (SLA), a network was formed among the various LFTs of the oak in Wumeng township. The species adaption to the environmental changes through the network was adjusted by two functional modules: resource acquisition functional (RAF) module represented by the LCC and nutrient utilization functional (NUF) module represented by the nitrogen-to-phosphorus ratio (N/P). (5) In the study area, the different economic strategies adapting to environmental changes were discovered in the oak at different elevation gradients. An improved photosynthetic efficiency and more proactive "fast investment-return" resource strategy were took by the oak at high altitudes to adapt to the high-altitude habits. In conclusion, the significant variation was observed in the LFTs of Q. spinosa along the altitude gradients in Wumeng Township, and nutrients and water content of the soil were the main factors causing the variation, which leading to the generation of different adaptation strategies.