Divergent drivers of leaf trait variation within species, among species, and among functional groups

Osnas, Jeanne L. D.; Katabuchi, Masatoshi; Kitajima, Kaoru; Wright, S. Joseph; Reich, Peter B.; Bael, Sunshine A. Van; Kraft, Nathan J. B.; Samaniego, Mirna; Pacala, Stephen W.; Lichstein, Jeremy W.

doi:10.1073/pnas.1803989115

Cited by 112 publications

(142 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…In vascular plants, experimental studies have shown a positive correlation between stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rates (Tanaka et al 2013, Lawson andBlatt 2014). The leaf masscarbon economic spectrum was defined by variation from high to low specific leaf area (and low to high leaf thickness), which is associated with a gradient of investment in structural components and rates of carbon assimilation (Wright et al 2004, Osnas et al 2018). The leaf masscarbon economic spectrum was defined by variation from high to low specific leaf area (and low to high leaf thickness), which is associated with a gradient of investment in structural components and rates of carbon assimilation (Wright et al 2004, Osnas et al 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, communities in the hot lowlands were comprised of species with larger leaves, possibly because of a higher investment by plants in metabolically active tissues that enhance photosynthetic capacity (Osnas et al 2018). For example, communities in the hot lowlands were comprised of species with larger leaves, possibly because of a higher investment by plants in metabolically active tissues that enhance photosynthetic capacity (Osnas et al 2018).…”

Section: The Macroclimatic Effects On the Elevational Patterns Of Epimentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Broadly, the LES shows a trade-off between two contrasting strategies of plant function and adaptation to environmental restrictions (Wright et al 2004, Shipley et al 2006, D ıaz et al 2016: (1) rapid resource acquisition for fast growth vs. (2) high construction costs for well-defended leaves with longer life spans. Although trait relationships depend in part on the length of the environmental gradient and spatial scale (Messier et al 2017), the LES is useful for characterizing the extent to which foliar area and mass determine photosynthetic rates and the rate of return on carbon investment in leaves (Osnas et al 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Functional composition of epiphyte communities in the Colombian Andes

Agudelo

Benavides

Taylor

et al. 2019

Ecology

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We identify changes in the functional composition of vascular epiphytes along a tropical elevational gradient with the aim of quantifying the role of climate in determining the assembly of epiphyte communities. We measured seven leaf functional traits (leaf area, specific leaf area, leaf dry-matter content, leaf thickness, force to punch, stomatal density, and potential conductance index) in the 163 most abundant epiphyte species recorded across 10 sites located along an elevational gradient between 60 and 2,900 m above sea level in the Colombian Andes. We grouped the epiphyte species into seven hierarchical functional groups according to their most characteristic leaf traits. Along the elevational gradient, the two main independent leaf trait dimensions that distinguished community assemblages were defined primarily by leaf area-photosynthetic (LAPS) and mass-carbon (LMCS) gradients. Mean annual temperature was the main determinant of species position along LAPS. In contrast, local changes in specific leaf area due to variation in the epiphytes' relative height of attachment was the main determinant of their position along the LMCS. Our findings indicate that epiphytic plant leaves have evolved to optimize and enhance photosynthesis through a leaf area-based strategy and carbon acquisition through investments in construction costs of leaf area per unit of biomass that aim to regulate light capture and tissue development. Given that most studies of plant functional traits neglect vascular epiphytes, our quantification of the multiple dimensions of epiphyte leaf traits greatly augments our understanding of vascular plant function and adaptation to changing environments.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Macroclimatic Effects On the Elevational Patterns Of Epimentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Functional composition of epiphyte communities in the Colombian Andes

Agudelo

Benavides

Taylor

et al. 2019

Ecology

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“…Fig. ) is consistent with a conceptual framework contrasting mass‐proportional and area‐proportional investments (Osnas et al ., , ; Katabuchi et al ., ). With the exception of P mass , the allometric scaling of variation in response to resource availability in the suite of LES traits is significantly linked to LMA, including P area .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent papers on modes of trait expression (Osnas et al ., , ; Katabuchi et al ., ) offer novel insights into the traditional view that species with a greater LMA tend to have longer‐lived leaves in compensation for their lower photosynthetic capacity (Wright et al ., ). Osnas et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional ecology of congeneric variation in the leaf economics spectrum

LaZerte

Waterway

et al. 2019

New Phytologist

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Summary Variation in resource availability can lead to phenotypic plasticity in the traits comprising the world‐wide leaf economics spectrum (LES), potentially impairing plant function and complicating the use of tabulated values for LES traits in ecological studies. We compared 14 Carex (Cyperaceae) species in a factorial experiment (unshaded/shaded × sufficient/insufficient P) to analyze how changes in the network of allometric scaling relationships among LES traits influenced growth under favorable and resource‐limited conditions. Changes in leaf mass per area (LMA) shifted the scaling relationships among LES traits expressed per unit area vs mass in ways that helped to sustain growth under resource limitation. Increases in area‐normalized photosynthetic capacity and foliar nitrogen (N) were correlated with increased growth, offsetting losses associated with mass‐normalized dark respiration and foliar N. These shifts increased the contributions to growth associated with photosynthetic N‐use efficiency and the N : P ratio. Plasticity in LMA is at the hub of the functional role of the LES as an integrated and resilient complex system that balances the relationships among area‐ and mass‐based aspects of gas exchange and foliar nutrient traits to sustain at least some degree of plant growth under differing availabilities of above‐ and below‐ground resources.

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N:P stoichiometric changes via species turnover in arid versus saline desert environments

Gong

Ling

Chen

et al. 2020

Ecology and Evolution

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Aridity and salinity have a key role in driving physiological and ecological processes in desert ecosystems. However, how community‐scale foliar nutrients respond to aridity and salinity, and how these responses might vary with community composition along aridity and salinity gradients is unclear. We hypothesize that the response will be a shift in community stoichiometric values resulting from nutrient variability of shared species and unique species (site‐specific species), but little research has addressed the relative contribution of either component. We analyzed the community‐scale stoichiometric response of a desert community of perennial plants along an aridity and salinity transect by focusing on foliar nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) concentrations and N:P ratios. After evaluating the shared and unique species variability, we determined their relative contribution to the community stoichiometric response to aridity and salinity, reflected by changes in nonweighted and weighted community‐average values. Community‐scale stoichiometry decreased significantly under aridity and salinity, with significantly consistent changes in nonweighted and weighted community‐average stoichiometry for most shared and unique species measurements. The relative contribution of unique species shifts to the changes in community stoichiometry was greater (15%–77%) than the relative contribution of shared species shifts (7%–45%), excluding the change in weighted P concentration under aridity. Thus, the shifts of unique species amplified the community stoichiometric response to environmental changes. Synthesis. These results highlighted the need for a more in‐depth consideration of shared and unique species variability to understand and predict the effects of environmental change on the stoichiometry of plant communities. Although variation in community stoichiometry can be expected under extreme aridity and salinity conditions, changes of unique species could be a more important driver of the stoichiometric response of plant communities.

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Divergent drivers of leaf trait variation within species, among species, and among functional groups

Cited by 112 publications

References 47 publications

Functional composition of epiphyte communities in the Colombian Andes

Functional composition of epiphyte communities in the Colombian Andes

Functional ecology of congeneric variation in the leaf economics spectrum

N:P stoichiometric changes via species turnover in arid versus saline desert environments

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