Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient

doi:10.1016/j.pld.2019.10.004

Plant Diversity ›› 2020, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (01): 1-6.DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2019.10.004

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Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient

Wumei Xu^a, Kyle W. Tomlinson^b, Jie Li^a

a Plant Phylogenetics and Conservation Group, Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China;
b Community Ecology and Conservation Group, Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla 666303, China

收稿日期:2019-04-22 修回日期:2019-10-21 出版日期:2020-02-25 发布日期:2020-02-29
通讯作者: Jie Li
基金资助:
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. 31770569) and CAS 135 program (Grant no. XTBG-T01). The authors would like to thank the Xishuangbanna Station for Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem Studies for assistance during the fieldwork and Prof. Richard Corlett for the insightful comments and revisions during the 2nd XTBG writing course 2017 at Kunming branch, XTBG.

Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient

Wumei Xu^a, Kyle W. Tomlinson^b, Jie Li^a

a Plant Phylogenetics and Conservation Group, Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China;
b Community Ecology and Conservation Group, Center for Integrative Conservation, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla 666303, China

Received:2019-04-22 Revised:2019-10-21 Online:2020-02-25 Published:2020-02-29
Contact: Jie Li
Supported by:
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. 31770569) and CAS 135 program (Grant no. XTBG-T01). The authors would like to thank the Xishuangbanna Station for Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem Studies for assistance during the fieldwork and Prof. Richard Corlett for the insightful comments and revisions during the 2nd XTBG writing course 2017 at Kunming branch, XTBG.

摘要/Abstract

摘要： Functional trait variation of plant species includes both inter- and intraspecific variation; however, traitbased plant ecology generally considers only interspecific variation while ignoring intraspecific variation. One reason for this neglect is that intraspecific variation may be negligible when compared to interspecific variation; however, direct comparisons between inter- and intraspecific variation of plant species are lacking, especially in tropical forests. Here we investigated intraspecific leaf trait variation (leaf area, specific leaf area, leaf thickness, leaf density, leaf chlorophyll content) of Pittosporopsis kerrii Craib (Icacinaceae), the most abundant tree species in the Xishuangbanna tropical seasonal rainforest in southwestern China, along an elevational gradient (703-824 m). We found a substantial range of intraspecific variation in P. kerrii that was never less than 22.1% of range of the interspecific variation among 462 tree species reported before in the same community. Moreover, with increased elevation, both leaf thickness and density increased and specific leaf area decreased significantly. It could be more important for the individuals of P. kerrii to produce thicker and denser leaves to tolerate environmental stress (e.g. soil water availability) rather than having high growth rates at the places with higher elevation in the Xishuangbanna tropical seasonal rainforest.

关键词: Functional traits, Intraspecific variation, Trade-off, Tropical seasonal rainforest, Xishuangbanna

Abstract: Functional trait variation of plant species includes both inter- and intraspecific variation; however, traitbased plant ecology generally considers only interspecific variation while ignoring intraspecific variation. One reason for this neglect is that intraspecific variation may be negligible when compared to interspecific variation; however, direct comparisons between inter- and intraspecific variation of plant species are lacking, especially in tropical forests. Here we investigated intraspecific leaf trait variation (leaf area, specific leaf area, leaf thickness, leaf density, leaf chlorophyll content) of Pittosporopsis kerrii Craib (Icacinaceae), the most abundant tree species in the Xishuangbanna tropical seasonal rainforest in southwestern China, along an elevational gradient (703-824 m). We found a substantial range of intraspecific variation in P. kerrii that was never less than 22.1% of range of the interspecific variation among 462 tree species reported before in the same community. Moreover, with increased elevation, both leaf thickness and density increased and specific leaf area decreased significantly. It could be more important for the individuals of P. kerrii to produce thicker and denser leaves to tolerate environmental stress (e.g. soil water availability) rather than having high growth rates at the places with higher elevation in the Xishuangbanna tropical seasonal rainforest.

Key words: Functional traits, Intraspecific variation, Trade-off, Tropical seasonal rainforest, Xishuangbanna

Wumei Xu, Kyle W. Tomlinson, Jie Li. Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient[J]. Plant Diversity, 2020, 42(01): 1-6.

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Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient

Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient

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