Variability in growth-determining hydraulic wood and leaf traits in Melia dubia across a steep water availability gradient in southern India

2022 ◽  
Vol 505 ◽  
pp. 119875
Author(s):  
Mundre N. Ramesha ◽  
Roman M. Link ◽  
Sharath S. Paligi ◽  
Dietrich Hertel ◽  
Alexander Röll ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Availability ◽  
Leaf Traits ◽  
Southern India ◽  
Melia Dubia

Differences in morpho-physiological leaf traits reflect the response of growth to drought in a seeder but not in a resprouter Mediterranean species

2012 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 332 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Ramírez ◽  
Antonio Parra ◽  
Víctor Resco de Dios ◽  
José M. Moreno
Keyword(s):  
Water Availability ◽  
Isotope Composition ◽  
Carbon Assimilation ◽  
Late Summer ◽  
Leaf Traits ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Photosynthetic Gas Exchange ◽  
Maximum Water ◽  
Monthly Changes ◽  
Projected Changes

Understanding the mechanisms underlying the response of different plant functional types to current and projected changes in rainfall is particularly important in drought-prone areas like the Mediterranean. Here, we report the responses of two species with contrasting leaf characteristics and post-fire regeneration strategies (Cistus ladanifer L., malacophyllous, seeder; Erica arborea L., sclerophyllous, resprouter) to a manipulative field experiment that simulated a severe drought (45% reduction of historical average rainfall). We measured monthly changes in relative growth rate (RGR), specific leaf area (SLA), bulk leaf carbon isotope composition (δ13C), predawn water potential (Ψpd), photosynthetic gas exchange, bulk modulus of elasticity and osmotic potential at maximum turgor (π). Temporal (monthly) changes in RGR of C. ladanifer were correlated with all measured leaf traits (except π) and followed Ψpd variation. However, the temporal pattern of RGR in E. arborea was largely unrelated to water availability. SLA monthly variation reflected RGR variation reasonably well in C. ladanifer, but not in E. arborea, in which shoot growth and δ13C increased at the time of maximum water stress in late summer. The relationship between water availability, and RGR and carbon assimilation in C. ladanifer, and the lack of any relationship in E. arborea suggest that the former has an enhanced capacity to harness unpredictable rainfall pulses compared with the latter. These contrasting responses to water availability indicate that the projected changes in rainfall with global warming could alter the competitive ability of these two species, and contribute to changes in plant dominance in Mediterranean shrublands.

scholarly journals Morphoanatomical plasticity of Tibouchina clavata (Melastomataceae) in ombrophilous forest and restinga forest

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 484 ◽  
Author(s):  
João Carlos Ferreira Melo Júnior ◽  
Maick William Amorim ◽  
Igor Abba Arriola ◽  
Jessica Stefani Dirksen ◽  
Fernando Andreacci
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Water Availability ◽  
Species Coexistence ◽  
Leaf Traits ◽  
Plasticity Index ◽  
Environmental Constraints ◽  
Lower Variation ◽  
Ombrophilous Forest ◽  
Foliar Traits ◽  
Plastic Responses

Structural adjustments in plants may occur in response to environmental constraints, which may influence plant growth and development, as well as patterns of species coexistence. The present study aimed to evaluate the plastic responses of Tibouchina clavata (Melastomataceae) occurring in two forest formations governed by different environmental conditions. Ten leaves of ten individuals were collected in each formation, for a total of n = 100 per area. as were stem samples, for measuring architectural, morphological and foliar traits. Environmental variables considered included edaphic nutrition, water availability and light radiation. The phenotypic plasticity index was calculated for each trait. Morphoanatomical traits varied among populations with greater emphasis on plant height and stem diameter, in contrast to the lower variation observed for leaf traits. Foliar morphoanatomy met the expected pattern for plants that grow under conditions of greater luminosity. Greater development of the aerial system (height and diameter of the stem) was observed in the plants of the ombrophilous forest, indicating that this growth is related to the soil fertility and water availability. The phenotypic plasticity index indicates low plasticity for T. clavata in the geographic distribution studied.

Drivers of water conflicts in co-evolving human-water systems in Cauvery Basin, Southern India

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veena Srinivasan ◽  
Neha Khandekar ◽  
Ganesh Shinde
Keyword(s):  
Principal Component Analysis ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Water Availability ◽  
Print Media ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Statistical Analyses ◽  
Southern India ◽  
Water Conflicts ◽  
Cauvery Basin

<div> </div><div> <div>​India is a rapidly evolving economy with rising demands from various sectors and stakeholders including the environment.  Water conflicts emerge when mechanisms to allocate water between different sectors do not keep up with changing demands. </div> <div> </div> <div>Because biophysical drivers of water availability such as industrialization, urbanization, and deforestation are driven by humans - integration of underlying socio-economic drivers with bio-physical in is, therefore, understanding water conflicts requires a socio-hydrological approach.</div> <div> </div> <div>In an attempt to understand this dynamism of human-water interactions within the landscape and improve the emergence of water conflicts, we present the case of the Cauvery basin -- a highly contentious inter-state river basin in Southern India. Over a two-decade period, we explore how catchments have co-evolved by studying signatures of 53 watersheds in Cauvery basin and correlate it to the occurrence of conflict in print media. Using spatiotemporal cluster statistical analyses tools like principal component analysis in R, we explore how changes in the landscape have triggered water conflicts.</div> </div>

Assessing water availability in a semi-arid watershed of southern India using a semi-distributed model

2012 ◽  
Vol 460-461 ◽  
pp. 143-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Perrin ◽  
S. Ferrant ◽  
S. Massuel ◽  
B. Dewandel ◽  
J.C. Maréchal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Availability ◽  
Southern India ◽  
Distributed Model ◽  
Semi Arid

scholarly journals Water Availability Controls the Biomass Increment of Melia dubia in South India

Forests ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1675
Author(s):  
Alexander Röll ◽  
Mundre N. Ramesha ◽  
Roman M. Link ◽  
Dietrich Hertel ◽  
Bernhard Schuldt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Growth Model ◽  
Water Availability ◽  
South India ◽  
Biomass Accumulation ◽  
Deciduous Tree ◽  
Rainfall Gradient ◽  
Soil Variables ◽  
Short Rotation ◽  
Main Driver ◽  
Melia Dubia

Farmland tree cultivation is considered an important option for enhancing wood production. In South India, the native leaf-deciduous tree species Melia dubia is popular for short-rotation plantations. Across a rainfall gradient from 420 to 2170 mm year–1, we studied 186 farmland woodlots between one and nine years in age. The objectives were to identify the main factors controlling aboveground biomass (AGB) and growth rates. A power-law growth model predicts an average stand-level AGB of 93.8 Mg ha–1 for nine-year-old woodlots. The resulting average annual AGB increment over the length of the rotation cycle is 10.4 Mg ha–1 year–1, which falls within the range reported for other tropical tree plantations. When expressing the parameters of the growth model as functions of management, climate and soil variables, it explains 65% of the variance in AGB. The results indicate that water availability is the main driver of the growth of M. dubia. Compared to the effects of water availability, the effects of soil nutrients are 26% to 60% smaller. We conclude that because of its high biomass accumulation rates in farm forestry, M. dubia is a promising candidate for short-rotation plantations in South India and beyond.

Southern India sees drop in HIV

Nature ◽  
2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Pearson
Keyword(s):  
Southern India
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