Chin J Plant Ecol ›› 2021, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (2): 187-196.DOI: 10.17521/cjpe.2020.0257

• Research Articles • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Stomatal traits of main greening plant species in Lanzhou

YANG Ke-Tong1, CHANG Hai-Long1, CHEN Guo-Peng1,*(), YU Xiao-Ya2, XIAN Jun-Ren3   

  1. 1College of Forestry, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanhou 730070, China
    2School of Tourism and Resource Environment, Qiannan Normal College for Nationalities, Duyun, Guizhou 558000, China
    3College of Environmental Sciences, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
  • Received:2020-07-30 Accepted:2020-12-28 Online:2021-02-20 Published:2021-03-09
  • Contact: CHEN Guo-Peng
  • Supported by:
    National Natural Science Foundation of China(31800352);College Students’ Innovative Entrepreneurial Training Plan Program(201710733052);College Students’ Innovative Entrepreneurial Training Plan Program(202010733027)

Abstract:

Aims Stomata are the main channels for water and gas exchange between plants and the atmosphere. Stomatal traits reflect plant responses to environmental changes, and thus could help us better understand plant adaptation strategies to arid environments.
Methods In July 2019, six traits for stomata were measured from 40 main greening plant species in Lanzhou, Gansu Province. One-way ANOVA was used to test the traits difference among the growth forms (tree, semi-tree, shrub and herb) and leaf habits (deciduous and evergreen). Standardized major axis estimation and phylogenetically independent contrast analysis were used to compare the allometry relationship between stomatal traits. Then the Blomberg’sK value was calculated to determine phylogenetic signal. Functional groups were partition by k-means clustering and principal component analysis.
Important findings The stomatal traits varied significantly among greening plant species. Different growth forms (trees, semi-trees, shrubs and herbs) showed significant variations in stomatal length (SL), width (SW), opening level (SOL) and density (SD), while deciduous and evergreen plants only differed in SOL. Significant allometric relations were detected between SL vs. SW, SOL vs. SA. We also observed negative allometric relations between SD vs. SA and SD vs. SOL. Phylogeny significantly influenced the correlations among stomatal traits. Although the phylogenetic conservatism of stomatal traits was not strong (K< 1),SOL and stomatal opening ratio (SOR) showed significant phylogenetic signals (p < 0.05). According to the stomatal traits, greening plants can be divided into three functional groups: lower-density with larger area, higher-density with smaller area, or medium- density with moderate area. The combination of phylogeny and allometric scaling relations can provide a better explanation for stomatal trait variations and adaptation strategies.

Key words: Loess Plateau, greening plant, stomata, allometry, phylogeny