Intraspecific variability of specific leaf area fosters the persistence of understorey specialists across a light availability gradient.
beech forest
forest ecology
habitat specialization
light capture
photosynthetic active radiation
shade tolerance
species turnover
Journal
Plant biology (Stuttgart, Germany)
ISSN: 1438-8677
Titre abrégé: Plant Biol (Stuttg)
Pays: England
ID NLM: 101148926
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
Jan 2021
Jan 2021
Historique:
received:
05
05
2020
revised:
08
09
2020
accepted:
22
09
2020
pubmed:
20
10
2020
medline:
3
3
2021
entrez:
19
10
2020
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
Forest understorey plants are sensitive to light availability, and different species groups can respond differently to changing light conditions. A plant trait tightly linked to light capture is specific leaf area (SLA). Studies considering the relative role of within- and among-species SLA variation across different species groups (e.g. specialists and generalists) are rarely implemented in temperate forest understories varying in their maturity. We examined community-level SLA patterns of beech forest understories along a light availability gradient, and for habitat specialists and generalists separately. We then disentangled and quantified the contribution of intraspecific trait variability and interspecific trait differences in shaping SLA patterns. We revealed that the increase in community-level SLA with decreasing light availability was primarily driven by beech forest specialists (and, to a lesser extent, by forest generalists), and this pattern was mainly determined by specialists' high intraspecific variability. Community-level SLA was therefore formed by different responses at different organizational levels, i.e. within and among species, and for separate species groups. This study provides insights into factors shaping the shade tolerance strategy in beech forest understorey plants; specialists persistence under putative less favourable conditions (i.e. high irradiation) may be fostered by their ability to adjust their light capture strategies intraspecifically.
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Pagination
212-216Subventions
Organisme : Czech Science Foundation
ID : 19-
Organisme : Czech Academy of Sciences
Informations de copyright
© 2020 German Society for Plant Sciences and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.
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