Conduits anatomical structure and leaf traits of diffuse- and ring-porous stems in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests

doi:10.17521/cjpe.2019.0291

Abstract

Abstract: Aims

The conduits characters are critical for plants to develop their survival strategies. Our current knowledge in this regard remains limited for the subtropical forest. In this study, we set a study objective to quantify the relationship between the conduits characters and the leaf functional traits of the dominant species in the region.

Methods

Two dominant species, Castanopsis chinensis and Schima superba, in a subtropical forest in Shimentai Nature Reserve were selected to compare their differences in functional traits, including conduits anatomical structure, the leaf morphological characteristics, and leaf physiological characteristics. The study was conducted during the dry season (October to March of the following year) for quantifying the ring-porous and diffuse-porous species. A series of t-tests were performed to quantify the statistical differences of all traits between the two species.

Important findings

We found that the density of conduits of S. superba (diffuse-porous) was significantly higher than that of C. chinensis (ring-porous), while the diameter of conduits for C. chinensis was much larger than that of S. superba. The leaf water content and the Chlorophyll a/Chlorophyll b ratio were much higher for S. superba than that of C. chinensis; the stomatal density and specific leaf area (SLA) tended to be higher in C. chinensis. In addition, it appeared that the differences in leaf specific net photosynthetic rates and the leaf stomatal conductance were not significant between S. superba and C. chinensis. These results indicated that the ring-porous species C. chinensis maintain a high photosynthetic capacity by maintaining a higher SLA at the expense of low leaf water content in responding to the water stress. The diffuse-porous species S. superba, meanwhile, tended to maintain a high capability of light transform under drought. These functional differences might be responsible for the succession pathways under the gradual changes of global precipitation for the region.

http://jtp.cnki.net/bilingual/detail/html/ZWSB201902005

Key words: ring-porous, diffuse-porous, leaf trait, survival strategy, subtropical forest

ZHANG Zhen-Zhen, ZHAO Ping, ZHANG Jin-Xiu, SI Yao. Conduits anatomical structure and leaf traits of diffuse- and ring-porous stems in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests[J]. Chin J Plant Ecol, 2019, 43(2): 131-138.

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URL: https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/10.17521/cjpe.2019.0291

https://www.plant-ecology.com/EN/Y2019/V43/I2/131

Figures/Tables 5

Table 1 Community characteristics of the two dominant tree species of the subtropical forest in Shimentai of Guangdong Province

树种 Species	科 Family	相对覆盖度 Relative coverage	相对密度 Relative density	相对频度 Relative frequency	重要值 Important value	样本量 Sample size	树高(平均值± 标准误差) Tree height (mean ± SE) (m)
桂林栲 Castanopsis chinensis	壳斗科 Fagaceae	0.22	0.06	0.04	0.32	137	13.2 ± 2.1
木荷 Schima superba	山茶科 Theaceae	0.15	0.03	0.02	0.20	69	15.4 ± 1.3

Fig. 1 Microscopic images of conduits in Schima superba and Castanopsis chinensis.

Fig. 3 Specific leaf area (SLA), leaf water content (LWC), stomatal quantity (Sd) and size (Ss) of Schima superba and Castanopsis chinensis (mean ± SE). *, p < 0.05; **, p < 0.01.

Fig. 4 Leaf chlorophyll (Chl) content, Chl a/b, net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (Cond), leaf transpiration rate (Tr) and instantaneous water use efficiency (WUEi) for Schima superba and Castanopsis chinensis (mean ± SE). *, p < 0.05; **, p < 0.01.

Fig. 2 Mean (± SE) of conduit density and diameter for Schima superba and Castanopsis chinensis. **, p < 0.01.

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