In order to elucidate the ecological relationships among the principal woody plants within the representative evergreen broad-leaved forest on the southern slope of Shennongjia and unveil the trajectory of community succession, we selected 190 species groups from 20 main woody plants in the Cyclobalanopsis myrsinifolia+C. oxyodon group as the focal subjects of our research. The determination of their ecological niche involved distinguishing specialized species from generalized ones and assessing interspecific connections. Subsequently, we analyzed the ecological niche and interspecific connections of the primary species within the community. The main results show that: (1) The evergreen broad-leaved forest community exhibits species richness and a complex composition. Cyclobalanopsis myrsinifolia, with the highest importance value (11.13%) and ecological niche width (58.3), emerges as the dominant species. Notably, the inconsistency between ecological niche width ranking and importance value ranking is attributed to the pronounced influence of distribution frequency on ecological niche width. (2) The classification of the 20 primary woody plants reveals six specialized species, three generalized species, and eleven neutral taxa. The notable degree of ecological niche differentiation arises from variations in resource utilization and habitat adaptability, constituting the principal factors influencing this differentiation. (3) Species with expansive ecological niche widths exhibit the substantial overlap and similarity in ecological niches. Despite a slightly low overall ecological niche overlap index, most species share comparable environmental or resource requirements but display low similarity. This suggests weak inter-species competition and relatively stable inter-species relationships. (4) The comprehensive network of primary woody plants exhibits significantly positive linkage (P ＜ 0.05). Results from the χ² test, connection coefficient AC, and Spearman rank correlation test collectively indicate a prevalence of positive linkage between species, though the majority of species do not exhibit significant linkage and tend towards independent distribution. (5) Employing cluster analysis, the study categorizes 20 principal woody plants into three significant ecological species groups: the building community species group, the symbiotic species group, and the edge species group.The findings indicates that the evergreen broad-leaved forests, featuring Cyclobalanopsis myrsinifolia+C. oxyodon, on the southern slope of Shennongjia are presently in a stable later stage of succession, demonstrating a relatively mature community development. The primary factors influencing species coexistence in this community encompass ecological niche differentiation, habitat selection, and complementary or mutualistic resource requirements.The study elucidates genuine interactions and community characteristics among the principal representative species within the evergreen broad-leaved forests on the southern slope of Shennongjia. It offers a foundation for more profound comprehension of the factors driving species coexistence and the governing principles of community succession.