scholarly journals The Economics Spectrum Drives Root Trait Strategies in Mediterranean Vegetation

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique G. de la Riva ◽  
José Ignacio Querejeta ◽  
Rafael Villar ◽  
Ignacio M. Pérez-Ramos ◽  
Teodoro Marañón ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Vegetation ◽  
Root Trait ◽  
Main Trend ◽  
Trait Variation ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Leaf Economics Spectrum ◽  
Root Area ◽  
Selected Traits ◽  
Specific Root Area ◽  
Leaf Economics

Extensive research efforts are devoted to understand fine root trait variation and to confirm the existence of a belowground root economics spectrum (RES) from acquisitive to conservative root strategies that is analogous to the leaf economics spectrum (LES). The economics spectrum implies a trade-off between maximizing resource acquisition and productivity or maximizing resource conservation and longevity; however, this theoretical framework still remains controversial for roots. We compiled a database of 320 Mediterranean woody and herbaceous species to critically assess if the classic economics spectrum theory can be broadly extended to roots. Fine roots displayed a wide diversity of forms and properties in Mediterranean vegetation, resulting in a multidimensional trait space. The main trend of variation in this multidimensional root space is analogous to the main axis of LES, while the second trend of variation is partially determined by an anatomical trade-off between tissue density and diameter. Specific root area (SRA) is the main trait explaining species distribution along the RES, regardless of the selected traits. We advocate for the need to unify and standardize the criteria and approaches used within the economics framework between leaves and roots, for the sake of theoretical consistency.

Intraspecific trait variation across multiple scales: the leaf economics spectrum in coffee

2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 604-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam R. Martin ◽  
Bruno Rapidel ◽  
Olivier Roupsard ◽  
Karel Van den Meersche ◽  
Elias Melo Virginio Filho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Trait Variation ◽  
Leaf Economics Spectrum ◽  
Intraspecific Trait Variation ◽  
Leaf Economics

scholarly journals Digging into the roots: understanding direct and indirect drivers of ecosystem service trade-offs in coastal grasslands via plant functional traits

2021 ◽  
Vol 193 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Cebrián-Piqueras ◽  
Juliane Trinogga ◽  
Anastasia Trenkamp ◽  
Vanessa Minden ◽  
Martin Maier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Functional Traits ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Plant Functional Traits ◽  
Forage Production ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Leaf Economics Spectrum ◽  
Ecosystem Properties ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Leaf Economics

AbstractRecent empirical and theoretical approaches have called for an understanding of the processes underpinning ecosystem service provision. Environmental gradients have shown effects on key plant functional traits that subsequently explain ecosystem properties of several systems. However, little is known concerning how associations between plant functional traits, including both below- and aboveground plant components, predict ecosystem properties and independently measured final ecosystem services. Here, we modeled (1) the responses of the leaf and plant economics spectrum, Plant size axis, and root growth to environmental gradients and (2) how associations between plant functional traits explain trade-offs and synergies between multiple ecosystem properties and final services. Forty-four plots were studied in a coastal marsh landscape of the German North Sea Coast. We used a partial least square structural equation model approach to test the hypothesized model. We found (1) a negative covariation between plant traits pertaining to a size axis and traits explaining both plant growth (roots and stems) and the leaf economics spectrum; (2) this trade-off responded significantly to the land use gradient and nutrient availability, which were both strongly driven by the groundwater gradient; (3) this trade-off explained an initial major trade-off between carbon stocks, at one extreme of the axis, and both the habitat value to conserve endangered plants and forage production for meat and dairy products at the other extreme. However, a secondary trade-off between nature conservation value and forage production, explained by a trade-off between leaf economics spectrum and plant growth in response to the land use intensity gradient, was also found.

Biogeographic constraints on the world-wide leaf economics spectrum

2012 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 1137-1146 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Mason Heberling ◽  
Jason D. Fridley
Keyword(s):  
World Wide ◽  
Leaf Economics Spectrum ◽  
The World ◽  
Leaf Economics

The shape of a defense-growth trade-off governs seasonal trait dynamics in natural phytoplankton

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elias Ehrlich ◽  
Nadja J. Kath ◽  
Ursula Gaedke
Keyword(s):  
Fitness Landscape ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Grazing Pressure ◽  
Trait Variation ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Community Persistence ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Combining Data ◽  
Persistence Theory

Functional trait compositions of communities can adapt to altered environmental conditions ensuring community persistence. Theory predicts that the shape of trade-offs between traits crucially affects these trait dynamics, but its empirical verification from the field is missing. Here, we show how the shape of a defense-growth trade-off governs seasonal trait dynamics of a natural community, using high-frequency, long-term measurements of phytoplankton from Lake Constance. As expected from the lab-derived concave trade-off curve, we observed an alternating dominance of several fast-growing species with intermediate defense levels and gradual changes of the biomass-trait distribution due to seasonally changing grazing pressure. By combining data and modelling, we obtain mechanistic insights on the underlying fitness landscape, and show that low fitness differences can maintain trait variation along the trade-off curve. We provide firm evidence for a frequently assumed trade-off and conclude that quantifying its shape allows to understand environmentally driven trait changes within communities.

scholarly journals Functional ecology of congeneric variation in the leaf economics spectrum

2019 ◽  
Vol 225 (1) ◽  
pp. 196-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenli Ji ◽  
Stefanie E. LaZerte ◽  
Marcia J. Waterway ◽  
Martin J. Lechowicz
Keyword(s):  
Functional Ecology ◽  
Leaf Economics Spectrum ◽  
Leaf Economics
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