Does climate-related in situ variability of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) needles have a genetic basis? Evidence from common garden experiments

Latitudinal growth compensation (i.e., countergradient growth) is increasingly suspected to be pervasive across diverse taxa. However, a major challenge limiting wider exploration of this topic lies in the difficulty of quantifying these relationships. Common garden experiments, and ideally genetics, remain the only true methods for understanding the genetic basis for compensatory growth. However, previous research suggests that comparative life-history data might produce concomitant, albeit nonconfirmatory, results on countergradient growth variations. However, there have been no evaluations of the precision of such estimates against those that are experimentally derived. I examined countergradient growth variations using comparative size-at-age data for striped bass ( Morone saxatilis ), a species for which experiments have already quantified countergradient growth patterns, and compared results derived from both techniques. The slope of the growth–latitude relationship for striped bass in eastern North America as measured with comparative data was virtually identical to that produced from experiments. Furthermore, comparative estimates of countergradient growth variations developed using a variety of metrics produced highly concordant results with one another. Comparative life-history data are not a replacement for experiments, but do provide valuable information on countergradient growth variations, especially for species and hypotheses not amenable to experimentation.

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Photosynthetic production of ground vegetation in different-aged Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) forests

Canadian Journal of Forest Research ◽

10.1139/x11-121 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 41 (10) ◽

pp. 2020-2030 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

L. Kulmala ◽

J. Pumpanen ◽

P. Kolari ◽

P. Muukkonen ◽

P. Hari ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Pinus Sylvestris ◽

Scots Pine ◽

Forest Succession ◽

Gross Primary Production ◽

Light Availability ◽

Primary Objective ◽

Stand Age ◽

Ground Vegetation ◽

Photosynthetic Production

The photosynthesis of ground vegetation is dependent on species composition and environmental factors that are extremely diverse during forest succession. However, present in situ measurements over the gross primary production (GPP) of ground vegetation are unable to cover this variability. The primary objective of the present study was to estimate the GPP of ground vegetation in five differently aged Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) forests in southern Finland during the growing season of 2006 by using temperature, soil moisture, photosynthetically active radiation, and biomass of the ground vegetation to run a known process-based model. The GPP of ground vegetation was ~350 g·m–2 at the 6- and 12-year-old sites and 168, 146, and 41 g·m–2 thereafter at the 20-, 45-, and 120-year-old sites, respectively. The values decreased with stand age, because as the stand ages, light availability decreases, the dominant species below the canopy show lower rates of photosynthesis than species in open areas, and the biomass of the ground vegetation decreases. Grasses and herbs took up nearly half of the value at the youngest site but their role decreased thereafter, whereas low shrubs were responsible for most of the GPP of ground vegetation below closed canopies.

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Methane emissions from Scots pine and Norway spruce in the spring

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-5189 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Salla Tenhovirta ◽

Lukas Kohl ◽

Markku Koskinen ◽

Marjo Patama ◽

Mari Pihlatie

Keyword(s):

Pinus Sylvestris ◽

Norway Spruce ◽

Scots Pine ◽

Boreal Forests ◽

Common Garden ◽

Dry Weight ◽

Solar Irradiation ◽

Atmospheric Methane ◽

Geophysical Research ◽

Custom Made

Plant shoots can emit methane (CH4) which is produced by an unknown aerobic, non-enzymatic process within the plant. Only a few publications report shoot CH4 fluxes outside a laboratory setting, and those of boreal trees come to contradictory results (Machacova et al., 2016; Sundqvist et al., 2012).&#160; Resolving the CH4 fluxes of boreal trees is needed in order to understand the role of boreal forests in the global methane budget.We conducted shoot chamber measurements on Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) and Norway spruce (Picea abies) between April and May 2019, to find out if the shoots of boreal conifer trees are a source of aerobic CH4 during the early growing season. The experiment was done with potted 2-3 year old nursery saplings in a common garden experiment, to enable regular measurements over a period of six weeks. CH4 fluxes were measured 2-3 times per day, on two days per week from seven saplings (four P. sylvestris and three P. abies, respectively). We also conducted two around the clock campaigns where we measured the saplings hourly throughout the day and night. The CH4 and carbon dioxide (CO2) exchange were quantified with a portable LGR online greenhouse gas analyser connected in closed loop to custom-made, transparent shoot chambers. Photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) was measured concurrently with a PP Systems EGM-4 monitor.Our measurements show emissions of CH4 from both tree species, ranging from 0.25 to 7.64 and -0.45 to 6.42 g-1 needle dry weight h-1 (inter-quartile range) from P. sylvestris and P. abies shoots, respectively. The shoot CH4 emissions from both species correlated positively with PAR. During the around the clock measurements the emissions showed a diurnal pattern. Our experiment demonstrates that the shoots of both P. sylvestris and P. abies can be a source of CH4 in the spring and that the source process is likely driven by solar irradiation.&#160;ReferencesMachacova, K., B&#228;ck, J., Vanhatalo, A. et al. 2016. Pinus sylvestris as a missing source of nitrous oxide and methane in boreal forest. Scientific Reports, 6(September 2015), 1&#8211;8.Sundqvist, E., Crill, P., Mlder, M. et al. 2012. Atmospheric methane removal by boreal plants. Geophysical Research Letters, 39(21), 10&#8211;15.

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Experimental evidence for the biological species status in Lake Tana's Labeobarbus flock (Cyprinidae)

Animal Biology ◽

10.1163/157075610x491725 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 60 (2) ◽

pp. 183-193 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Arjan Palstra ◽

Martin de Graaf ◽

Leo Nagelkerke ◽

Ferdinand Sibbing

Keyword(s):

Genetic Basis ◽

Direct Proof ◽

Morphological Differentiation ◽

Common Garden ◽

Biological Species ◽

Species Flock ◽

Lake Tana ◽

Cyprinid Fishes ◽

Morphological Differences ◽

Common Garden Experiments

AbstractLake Tana (Ethiopia) harbours the only known remaining intact species flock of large (max. 100 cm standard length, SL) cyprinid fishes (15 Labeobarbus spp.). In 'common garden' experiments progeny of the riverine spawning benthivorous L. tsanensis, and of the piscivorous L. truttiformis and L. megastoma was raised under similar environmental conditions to test if interspecific morphological differentiation would occur. Interspecific morphological differences and divergence were clearly observed early in ontogeny (≤ 40 mm SL). This study is the first to demonstrate direct proof for the genetic basis of morphological differentiation among these labeobarbs, providing further support that Lake Tana's labeobarb species are true biological species.

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