Leaf size and specific leaf area of tropical deciduous trees increase with elevation in soil moisture content

Abstract

A functional trait-based approach provides insight into the functional variations between and within tropical deciduous forests across large gradients of soil moisture content (SMC). To test this hypothesis, we selected nine forest fragment sites in the tropical deciduous forest of India, which exhibited significant variations in SMC. At all nine sites, we measured leaf area (LA) and specific leaf area (SLA) of the four deciduous tree species (viz., Buchanania cochinchinensis, Diospyros melanoxylon, Lagerstroemia parviflora and Terminalia tomentosa), which are commonly found in the forest region. We observed significant variations in LA and SLA for the four deciduous tree species across the nine study sites. The inter-species and within species differences were also significant. Moreover, LA and SLA of the four tree species exhibited strong positive linear relationships with SMC across the nine sites. These variations in functional traits were mainly controlled by SMC. We suggest that LA and SLA are important functional traits for detecting the effects of variations in SMC on the physiology and distribution of trees in tropical deciduous forests. Moreover, LA and SLA are the key functional traits which are linked with major ecosystem processes, therefore extensive research on these traits could help in categorizing tree communities for the proper management of tropical deciduous forest ecosystems.

Estimation of Turbulent Heat Fluxes and Gross Primary Productivity by Assimilating Land Surface Temperature and Leaf Area Index

“…The magnitude of c g estimates is also compared to those of other studies (Table 4). As shown, the range of c g retrievals from the VDA approach is comparable to those of previous studies (e.g., Bateni et al., 2014; Chaturvedi & Raghubanshi, 2018; Hoffmann et al., 2005; Li et al., 2005; Williams et al., 2017).…”

Leaf functional trait evolution and its putative climatic drivers in AfricanCoffeaspecies

“…Species with larger leaves thus occur in environments with more rainfall and at more northern latitudes, i.e., in more equatorial regions, as has been observed in other taxa (e.g., Givnish, 1984; Peppe et al, 2011). We hypothesised that higher aridity would select for smaller leaf sizes to limit water loss via transpiration (Poole & Miller, 1981; Thuiller et al, 2004; Wright et al, 2017; Chaturvedi & Raghubanshi, 2018). For example, in a study on the genus Leucadendron in the Cape Floristic region, Thuiller et al (2004) observed significantly smaller leaves in species in arid environments than in species in more moist habitats.…”

“…Plants have also shown a reduced stomatal size and increased stomatal density when exposed to drought stress (Xu & Zhou, 2008), though this response is likely species-specific (Zhang et al, 2012). Further, specific leaf area (SLA, i.e., leaf area per unit of dry mass) has been found to increase with increasing soil nutrient levels (Andersen et al, 2012) and soil moisture content (Chaturvedi & Raghubanshi, 2018) in tropical forest species.…”

“…For example, a different pattern of leaf trait evolution can be expected between continental African (AFR) and Madagascan (WIOI) species, due to their independent evolutionary histories and different biogeographical configuration (Hamon et al, 2017). Furthermore, species that have adapted to survive in drier habitats could be expected to reflect these adaptations in their leaf traits, for example via lower SLA values (Chaturvedi & Raghubanshi, 2018). Also, functional trait variation is a prerequisite for natural selection and adaptive trait change.…”

Understanding the Impacts of Sowing Time and Tillage in Optimizing the Micro-Environment for Rainfed Lentil (Lens culinaris Medik) Production in the Lower Indo-Gangetic Plain

“…Moisture stress reduces the leaf area and chlorophyll content, aggravates leaf senescence, and retards overall plant biomass (Kusvuran 2012;Sharifi and Mohammadkhani 2016). Leaf area reduction causes reduced photosynthesis and negatively affects N metabolism in the plant that eventually result in yield decline (Chaturvedi and Raghubansi 2018). Plants respond to drought stress through significant overflow of different soluble osmolytes such as amino acids, phenol and proline, which can be used as potential indicators for moisture stress and were studied extensively (Mafakheri et al 2010;Anjum et al 2011;Blum 2017).…”