Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology >
Regional differentiation of functional trait network of C4 plants Setaria viridis along precipitation gradient
Received date: 2024-10-31
Accepted date: 2025-01-10
Online published: 2025-01-19
Supported by
National Natural Science Foundation of China(32371662);National Natural Science Foundation of China(42330503);Major Special Project of Department of Science and Technology of Zhejiang Province(2022C02019)
Aims Revealing the regional differentiation of functional traits and their adaptative strategies of widely distributed species is of great ecological significance for predicting the adaptation of plants under climate change.
Methods Setaria viridiswas studied for its 18 water-carbon-related stem and leaf traits in 9 study sites along the precipitation gradient from southeast to northwest China. The trait network analysis and principal component analysis were used to quantify the regional differentiation of traits to clarify their habitat adaptative strategies.
Important findings (1) In humid regions, Setaria viridis exhibited the largest vessel diameter and specific leaf mass; in the semiarid/semihumid region, Setaria viridis exhibited the highest maximum net photosynthetic rate per unit leaf area, anatomical maximum stomatal conductance and stomatal area fraction; in arid regions, Setaria viridis exhibited the highest thickness-to-span ratio of vessel and maximum net photosynthetic rate per unit leaf mass. These trait variations revealed the adaptative strategies of Setaria viridis in different regions. (2) Both the correlations between traits and the connectivity of the network decreased with the decrease of precipitation, while the complexity of the network increased. The proportion of positive correlations among the trait network reached the maximum in the semiarid/semihumid regions, showing the best cooperative relationship between plant traits, which may be related to the balanced allocation of water and light resources in this region. (3) The trait network of nine sites indicated that the adaptation of Setaria viridis along the precipitation gradient was mainly regulated by stomatal traits. This study helps us to reveal the mechanisms of plant adaptation under the background of climate change.
TONG Jin-Lian , ZHANG Bo-Na , TANG Lu-Yao , YE Lin-Feng , LI Shu-Wen , XIE Jiang-Bo , LI Yan , WANG Zhong-Yuan . Regional differentiation of functional trait network of C4 plants Setaria viridis along precipitation gradient[J]. Chinese Journal of Plant Ecology, 2025 , 49(11) : 1817 -1832 . DOI: 10.17521/cjpe.2024.0388
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