Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession
It is important to understand how eco-physiological characteristics shift in forests when elucidating the mechanisms underlying species replacement and the process of succession and stabilization. In this study, the dominant species at three typical successional stages (early-, mid-, and late-succes...
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| Format: | Article |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2018-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Plant Science |
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| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpls.2018.00117/full |
| _version_ | 1818984443716567040 |
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| author | Yihua Xiao Shirong Liu Fuchun Tong Bufeng Chen Yuanwen Kuang Yuanwen Kuang |
| author_facet | Yihua Xiao Shirong Liu Fuchun Tong Bufeng Chen Yuanwen Kuang Yuanwen Kuang |
| author_sort | Yihua Xiao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | It is important to understand how eco-physiological characteristics shift in forests when elucidating the mechanisms underlying species replacement and the process of succession and stabilization. In this study, the dominant species at three typical successional stages (early-, mid-, and late-succession) in the subtropical forests of China were selected. At each stage, we compared the leaf construction costs (CC), payback time (PBT), leaf area based N content (NA), maximum CO2 assimilation rate (Pmax), specific leaf area (SLA), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), and leaf N allocated to carboxylation (NC), and to bioenergetics (NB). The relationships between these leaf functional traits were also determined. The results showed that the early-succession forest is characterized with significantly lower leaf CC, PBT, NA, but higher Pmax, SLA, PNUE, NC, and NB, in relation to the late-succession forest. From the early- to the late-succession forests, the relationship between Pmax and leaf CC strengthened, whereas the relationships between NB, NC, PNUE, and leaf CC weakened. Thus, the dominant species are able to decrease the allocation of the photosynthetic N fraction to carboxylation and bioenergetics during forest succession. The shift in these leaf functional traits and their linkages might represent a fundamental physiological mechanism that occurs during forest succession and stabilization. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-20T18:19:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d076168a450d4d47ba26f4f4685605b0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-462X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-20T18:19:05Z |
| publishDate | 2018-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Plant Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-d076168a450d4d47ba26f4f4685605b02022-12-21T19:30:17ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Plant Science1664-462X2018-02-01910.3389/fpls.2018.00117312093Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest SuccessionYihua Xiao0Shirong Liu1Fuchun Tong2Bufeng Chen3Yuanwen Kuang4Yuanwen Kuang5Research Institute of Tropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Guangzhou, ChinaKey Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Environment, China's State Forestry Administration, Institute of Forest Ecology, Environment and Protection, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing, ChinaCollege of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, ChinaResearch Institute of Tropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Guangzhou, ChinaKey Laboratory of Vegetation Restoration and Management of Degraded Ecosystems, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, ChinaGuangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Applied Botany, South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, ChinaIt is important to understand how eco-physiological characteristics shift in forests when elucidating the mechanisms underlying species replacement and the process of succession and stabilization. In this study, the dominant species at three typical successional stages (early-, mid-, and late-succession) in the subtropical forests of China were selected. At each stage, we compared the leaf construction costs (CC), payback time (PBT), leaf area based N content (NA), maximum CO2 assimilation rate (Pmax), specific leaf area (SLA), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), and leaf N allocated to carboxylation (NC), and to bioenergetics (NB). The relationships between these leaf functional traits were also determined. The results showed that the early-succession forest is characterized with significantly lower leaf CC, PBT, NA, but higher Pmax, SLA, PNUE, NC, and NB, in relation to the late-succession forest. From the early- to the late-succession forests, the relationship between Pmax and leaf CC strengthened, whereas the relationships between NB, NC, PNUE, and leaf CC weakened. Thus, the dominant species are able to decrease the allocation of the photosynthetic N fraction to carboxylation and bioenergetics during forest succession. The shift in these leaf functional traits and their linkages might represent a fundamental physiological mechanism that occurs during forest succession and stabilization.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpls.2018.00117/fullleaf construction costphotosynthesisnitrogen allocationspecific leaf areaforest succession |
| spellingShingle | Yihua Xiao Shirong Liu Fuchun Tong Bufeng Chen Yuanwen Kuang Yuanwen Kuang Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession Frontiers in Plant Science leaf construction cost photosynthesis nitrogen allocation specific leaf area forest succession |
| title | Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession |
| title_full | Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession |
| title_fullStr | Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession |
| title_short | Dominant Species in Subtropical Forests Could Decrease Photosynthetic N Allocation to Carboxylation and Bioenergetics and Enhance Leaf Construction Costs during Forest Succession |
| title_sort | dominant species in subtropical forests could decrease photosynthetic n allocation to carboxylation and bioenergetics and enhance leaf construction costs during forest succession |
| topic | leaf construction cost photosynthesis nitrogen allocation specific leaf area forest succession |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpls.2018.00117/full |
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