Globally, functional traits are weak predictors of juvenile tree growth, and we do not know why (original) (raw)
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Linking individual-level functional traits to tree growth in a subtropical forest
Ecology, 2016
Forging strong links between traits and performance is essential for understanding and predicting community assembly and dynamics. Functional trait analyses of trees that have correlated single-trait values with measures of performance such as growth and mortality have generally found weak relationships. A reason for these weak relationships is the failure to use individual-level trait data while simultaneously putting that data into the context of the abiotic setting, neighborhood composition, and the remaining axes constituting the overall phenotype. Here, utilizing detailed growth and trait data for 59 species of trees in a subtropical forest, we demonstrate that the individual-level functional trait values are strongly related to individual growth rates, and that the strength of these relationships critically depends on the context of that individual. We argue that our understanding of trait-performance relationships can be greatly improved with individual-level data so long as that data is put into the proper context.
In this study, we compare the relative growth rate (RGR) and biomass allocation of 10 woody species (5 deciduous and 5 evergreen) from the Mediterranean region using phylogenetic independent contrasts (PICs) to test if these two functional groups differ in these traits. In general, the results were similar when using PICs or without taking into account phylogenetic relations. Deciduous species had a higher RGR than evergreen species, due to the higher net assimilation rate (NAR). Deciduous species had a higher specific leaf area (SLA) but a lower leaf mass ratio (LMR), resulting in a similar LAR for deciduous and evergreen species (LAR = SLA LMR). In some cases, the use of PICs revealed patterns that would not have appeared if phylogeny had been overlooked. For example, there was no significant correlation between RGR and final dry mass (after 4 months of growth) but PICs revealed that there was a positive relation between these two variables in all deciduous-evergreen pairs. In general, RGR decreased with time and this temporal variation was due primarily to NAR variations (r = 0.79, p < 0.01), and also to variations in LAR (r = 0.69, p < 0.05). Considering the phylogeny, the only variable constantly different for all deciduous-evergreen pairs was SLA. This result, and the fact that SLA was the best correlated variable with RGR (r = 0.81, p < 0.01), reinforce the value of SLA as a variable closely associated to growth and to the functional groups (deciduous vs. evergreen).
2009
Surprisingly little is known about the relationship between functional traits and demographic rates of tree species under field conditions, particularly for non-tropical species. 2. We studied the interspecific relationship between key functional traits (wood density (WD), maximum tree height, specific leaf area, nitrogen (N) content of leaves, leaf size and seed mass), demographic rates (relative growth rate (RGR) and mortality rate (MR)) and climatic niche for the 44 most abundant tree species in Spain. 3. Demographic data were derived from the Spanish Forest Inventory, a repeated-measures scheme including c. 90 000 permanent plots spread over a territory of c. 500 000 km 2 . Functional traits data came primarily from a more detailed forest inventory carried out in Catalonia, NE Spain. 4. Our study region covers a wide range of climatic conditions and, not surprisingly, the studied species differed markedly in their climatic niche. Despite that fact, our results showed that the variability in demographic rates across species was much more related to differences in functional traits than to differences in the average climate among species. 5. Maximum tree height and, particularly, WD, emerged as key functional traits, and were the best predictors of demographic rates in our study. These two variables also mediated the marginally significant relationship between RGR and MR, suggestive of a weak trade-off between growth and survival. 6. The main aspects of our results were not altered by the explicit incorporation of phylogenetic effects, suggesting that the observed relationships are not due to divergences between a few major clades. 7. Synthesis. Our study gives support to the notion that variation in functional traits across species allows them to perform largely independently of climatic conditions along environmental gradients.
Functional traits shape ontogenetic growth trajectories of rain forest tree species
Journal of Ecology, 2011
1. Functional traits are posited to explain interspecific differences in performance, but these relationships are difficult to describe for long-lived organisms such as trees, which exhibit strong ontogenetic changes in demographic rates. Here, we use a size-dependent model of tree growth to test the extent to which of 17 functional traits related to leaf and stem economics, adult stature and seed size predict the ontogenetic trajectory of tree growth. 2. We used a Bayesian modelling framework to parameterize and contrast three size-dependent diameter growth models using 16 years of census data from 5524 individuals of 50 rain forest tree species: a size-dependent model, a size-dependent model with species-specific parameters and a size-dependent model based on functional traits. 3. Most species showed clear hump-shaped ontogenetic growth trajectories and, across species, maximum growth rate varied nearly tenfold, from 0.58 to 5.51 mm year )1 . Most species attained their maximum growth at 60% of their maximum size, whereas the magnitude of ontogenetic changes in growth rate varied widely among species. 4. The Trait-Model provided the best compromise between explained variance and model parsimony and needed considerably fewer parameters than the model with species terms. 5. Stem economics and adult stature largely explained interspecific differences in growth strategy. Maximum absolute diameter growth rates increased with increasing adult stature and leaf d 13 C and decreased with increasing wood density. Species with light wood had the greatest potential to modulate their growth, resulting in hump-shaped ontogenetic growth curves. Seed size and leaf economics, generally thought to be of paramount importance for plant performance, had no significant relationships with the growth parameters. 6. Synthesis. Our modelling approach offers a promising way to link demographic parameters to their functional determinants and hence to predict growth trajectories in species-rich communities with little parameter inflation, bridging the gap between functional ecology and population demography.
Relative growth rate in phylogenetically related deciduous and evergreen woody species
Oecologia, 2001
Relative growth rate (RGR) and other growth parameters were studied in eight pairs of closely related deciduous and evergreen species (within the same genus or family). The main objective of this study was to test the association between leaf turnover rate and RGR, specific leaf area (SLA, leaf area/leaf dry weight) and other growth variables. Plants were grown for 6 months in a greenhouse under favourable water and nutrient conditions. Variation in RGR among the 16 woody species was due mainly to differences in morphological parameters such as leaf area ratio (LAR, whole plant area/whole plant dry weight) and SLA). However, temporal variation in RGR within species was due mainly to variation in net assimilation rate. When phylogeny was not taken into account, analyses showed that deciduous species grew faster than evergreens. In contrast, when phylogeny was taken into account, the data analysis showed that a faster RGR is not consistently associated with the deciduous habit (in five pairs it was, but in the other three it was not). The faster growth of the deciduous trees (in the five positive contrasts) could be explained by their higher LAR and higher SLA relative to evergreens. The lack of differences in RGR between deciduous and evergreens (in three pairs) was due to the higher leaf mass ratio (LMR, leaf dry biomass/total dry biomass) for the evergreens, which offset the higher SLA of the deciduous species, resulting in a similar LAR in both functional groups (LAR=LMR×SLA). Deciduous species had consistently higher SLA than evergreens. We suggest that SLA, more than RGR, could be an important parameter in determining adaptive advantages of deciduous and evergreen species.
Identifying ontogenetic, environmental and individual components of forest tree growth
Annals of Botany, 2009
Aims This study aimed to identify and characterize the ontogenetic, environmental and individual components of forest tree growth. In the proposed approach, the tree growth data typically correspond to the retrospective measurement of annual shoot characteristics (e.g. length) along the trunk. † Methods Dedicated statistical models (semi-Markov switching linear mixed models) were applied to data sets of Corsican pine and sessile oak. In the semi-Markov switching linear mixed models estimated from these data sets, the underlying semi-Markov chain represents both the succession of growth phases and their lengths, while the linear mixed models represent both the influence of climatic factors and the inter-individual heterogeneity within each growth phase. † Key Results On the basis of these integrative statistical models, it is shown that growth phases are not only defined by average growth level but also by growth fluctuation amplitudes in response to climatic factors and inter-individual heterogeneity and that the individual tree status within the population may change between phases. Species plasticity affected the response to climatic factors while tree origin, sampling strategy and silvicultural interventions impacted inter-individual heterogeneity. † Conclusions The transposition of the proposed integrative statistical modelling approach to cambial growth in relation to climatic factors and the study of the relationship between apical growth and cambial growth constitute the next steps in this research.
American Journal of Botany, 2013
Premise of study: Plant functional traits are commonly used as proxies for plant responses to environmental challenges, yet few studies have explored how functional trait distributions differ across gradients of land-use change. By comparing trait distributions in intact forests with those across land-use change gradients, we can improve our understanding of the ways land-use change alters the diversity and functioning of plant communities.
Environment‐ and trait‐mediated scaling of tree occupancy in forests worldwide
Global Ecology and Biogeography, 2019
AimThe relationship between the proportion of sites occupied by a species and the area of a site [occupancy–area relationship (OAR)] offers key information for biodiversity management and has long fascinated ecologists. We quantified the variation in OAR for 3,157 woody species in 17 forest plots worldwide and tested the relative importance of environment and species traits for explaining this variation and evaluated overall model predictive ability.LocationGlobal.Time periodEarly 21st century.Major taxa studiedWoody plants.MethodsWe used mixed‐effect regression to examine the observed shape of the OAR (its “slope”) against species‐specific and plot‐wide predictors: coarse‐grain occupancy, tree size, plot species richness, energy availability and topographic complexity.ResultsWe found large variation in OAR slopes, and the variation was strongest among species within plots. The OAR slopes showed a latitudinal trend and were steeper near the equator. As predicted, coarse‐grain occupa...
Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America, 2018
Can morphological plant functional traits predict demographic rates (e.g., growth) within plant communities as diverse as tropical forests? This is one of the most important next-step questions in trait-based ecology and particularly for global reforestation efforts. Due to the diversity of tropical tree species and their longevity, it is difficult to predict their performance prior to reforestation efforts. In this study, we investigate if simple leaf traits are predictors of the more complex ecological process of plant growth in regenerating selectively logged natural forest within the Wet Tropics (WTs) bioregion of Australia. This study used a rich historical data set to quantify tree growth within plots located at Danbulla National Park and State Forest on the Atherton Tableland. Leaf traits were collected from trees that have exhibited fast or slow growth over the last ~50 yr of measurement. Leaf traits were found to be poor predictors of tree growth for trees that have entered...