Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests

Abstract Screening species-rich communities for the variation in functional traits along environmental gradients may help understanding the abiotic drivers of plant performance in a mechanistic way. We investigated tree leaf trait variation along an elevation gradient (1000–3000 m) in highly diverse...

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Autores principales:	Jürgen Homeier, Tabea Seeler, Kerstin Pierick, Christoph Leuschner
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/c35b5af1f5e14017b5b988597b1f523b
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:c35b5af1f5e14017b5b988597b1f523b2021-12-02T16:57:37ZLeaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests10.1038/s41598-021-89190-82045-2322https://doaj.org/article/c35b5af1f5e14017b5b988597b1f523b2021-05-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-89190-8https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Screening species-rich communities for the variation in functional traits along environmental gradients may help understanding the abiotic drivers of plant performance in a mechanistic way. We investigated tree leaf trait variation along an elevation gradient (1000–3000 m) in highly diverse neotropical montane forests to test the hypothesis that elevational trait change reflects a trend toward more conservative resource use strategies at higher elevations, with interspecific trait variation decreasing and trait integration increasing due to environmental filtering. Analysis of trait variance partitioning across the 52 tree species revealed for most traits a dominant influence of phylogeny, except for SLA, leaf thickness and foliar Ca, where elevation was most influential. The community-level means of SLA, foliar N and Ca, and foliar N/P ratio decreased with elevation, while leaf thickness and toughness increased. The contribution of intraspecific variation was substantial at the community level in most traits, yet smaller than the interspecific component. Both within-species and between-species trait variation did not change systematically with elevation. High phylogenetic diversity, together with small-scale edaphic heterogeneity, cause large interspecific leaf trait variation in these hyper-diverse Andean forests. Trait network analysis revealed increasing leaf trait integration with elevation, suggesting stronger environmental filtering at colder and nutrient-poorer sites.Jürgen HomeierTabea SeelerKerstin PierickChristoph LeuschnerNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-11 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Jürgen Homeier Tabea Seeler Kerstin Pierick Christoph Leuschner Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
description	Abstract Screening species-rich communities for the variation in functional traits along environmental gradients may help understanding the abiotic drivers of plant performance in a mechanistic way. We investigated tree leaf trait variation along an elevation gradient (1000–3000 m) in highly diverse neotropical montane forests to test the hypothesis that elevational trait change reflects a trend toward more conservative resource use strategies at higher elevations, with interspecific trait variation decreasing and trait integration increasing due to environmental filtering. Analysis of trait variance partitioning across the 52 tree species revealed for most traits a dominant influence of phylogeny, except for SLA, leaf thickness and foliar Ca, where elevation was most influential. The community-level means of SLA, foliar N and Ca, and foliar N/P ratio decreased with elevation, while leaf thickness and toughness increased. The contribution of intraspecific variation was substantial at the community level in most traits, yet smaller than the interspecific component. Both within-species and between-species trait variation did not change systematically with elevation. High phylogenetic diversity, together with small-scale edaphic heterogeneity, cause large interspecific leaf trait variation in these hyper-diverse Andean forests. Trait network analysis revealed increasing leaf trait integration with elevation, suggesting stronger environmental filtering at colder and nutrient-poorer sites.
format	article
author	Jürgen Homeier Tabea Seeler Kerstin Pierick Christoph Leuschner
author_facet	Jürgen Homeier Tabea Seeler Kerstin Pierick Christoph Leuschner
author_sort	Jürgen Homeier
title	Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
title_short	Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
title_full	Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
title_fullStr	Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
title_full_unstemmed	Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests
title_sort	leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical andean forests
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/c35b5af1f5e14017b5b988597b1f523b
work_keys_str_mv	AT jurgenhomeier leaftraitvariationinspeciesrichtropicalandeanforests AT tabeaseeler leaftraitvariationinspeciesrichtropicalandeanforests AT kerstinpierick leaftraitvariationinspeciesrichtropicalandeanforests AT christophleuschner leaftraitvariationinspeciesrichtropicalandeanforests
_version_	1718382527922569216

Leaf trait variation in species-rich tropical Andean forests

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