From tropics to tundra: global convergence in plant functioning
TLDR
These results demonstrate convergent evolution and global generality in plant functioning, despite the enormous diversity of plant species and biomes, and have significant implications for global scale modeling of vegetation-atmosphere CO2 exchange.Abstract:
Despite striking differences in climate, soils, and evolutionary history among diverse biomes ranging from tropical and temperate forests to alpine tundra and desert, we found similar interspecific relationships among leaf structure and function and plant growth in all biomes. Our results thus demonstrate convergent evolution and global generality in plant functioning, despite the enormous diversity of plant species and biomes. For 280 plant species from two global data sets, we found that potential carbon gain (photosynthesis) and carbon loss (respiration) increase in similar proportion with decreasing leaf life-span, increasing leaf nitrogen concentration, and increasing leaf surface area-to-mass ratio. Productivity of individual plants and of leaves in vegetation canopies also changes in constant proportion to leaf life-span and surface area-to-mass ratio. These global plant functional relationships have significant implications for global scale modeling of vegetation–atmosphere CO2 exchange.read more
Citations
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The worldwide leaf economics spectrum
Ian J. Wright,Peter B. Reich,Mark Westoby,David D. Ackerly,Zdravko Baruch,Frans Bongers,Jeannine Cavender-Bares,Terry Chapin,Johannes H. C. Cornelissen,M. Diemer,Jaume Flexas,Eric Garnier,Philip K. Groom,Javier Gulías,Kouki Hikosaka,Byron B. Lamont,Tali D. Lee,William G. Lee,Christopher H. Lusk,Jeremy J. Midgley,Marie-Laure Navas,Ülo Niinemets,Jacek Oleksyn,Jacek Oleksyn,Noriyuki Osada,Hendrik Poorter,Pieter Poot,Lynda D. Prior,Vladimir I. Pyankov,Catherine Roumet,Sean C. Thomas,Mark G. Tjoelker,Erik J. Veneklaas,Rafael Villar +33 more
TL;DR: Reliable quantification of the leaf economics spectrum and its interaction with climate will prove valuable for modelling nutrient fluxes and vegetation boundaries under changing land-use and climate.
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A handbook of protocols for standardised and easy measurement of plant functional traits worldwide
Johannes H. C. Cornelissen,Sandra Lavorel,Eric Garnier,Sandra Díaz,Nina Buchmann,Diego E. Gurvich,Peter B. Reich,H. ter Steege,H. D. Morgan,M. van der Heijden,Juli G. Pausas,Hendrik Poorter +11 more
TL;DR: This paper provides an international methodological protocol aimed at standardising this research effort, based on consensus among a broad group of scientists in this field, and features a practical handbook with step-by-step recipes, for 28 functional traits recognised as critical for tackling large-scale ecological questions.
Book
Principles of Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology
TL;DR: In this paper, the Ecosystem Concept is used to describe the Earth's Climate System and Geology and Soils, and the ecosystem concept is used for managing and sustaining ecosystems.
Journal ArticleDOI
Predicting changes in community composition and ecosystem functioning from plant traits: revisiting the Holy Grail
Sandra Lavorel,Eric Garnier +1 more
TL;DR: A framework using concepts and results from community ecology, ecosystem ecology and evolutionary biology to provide a linkage between traits associated with the response of plants to environmental factors and traits that determine effects of plants on ecosystem functions is presented.
Journal ArticleDOI
New handbook for standardised measurement of plant functional traits worldwide
Natalia Pérez-Harguindeguy,Sandra Díaz,Eric Garnier,Sandra Lavorel,Hendrik Poorter,Pedro Jaureguiberry,M.S. Bret-Harte,William K. Cornwell,Joseph M. Craine,Diego E. Gurvich,Carlos Urcelay,Erik J. Veneklaas,Peter B. Reich,Lourens Poorter,Ian J. Wright,P. Ray,Lucas Enrico,Juli G. Pausas,A. C. de Vos,Nina Buchmann,Guillermo Funes,Fabien Quétier,Fabien Quétier,John G. Hodgson,Ken Thompson,H. D. Morgan,H. ter Steege,M.G.A. Van Der Heijden,Lawren Sack,Benjamin Blonder,Peter Poschlod,Maria Victoria Vaieretti,Georgina Conti,A. C. Staver,S. Aquino,Johannes H. C. Cornelissen +35 more
TL;DR: This new handbook has a better balance between whole-plant traits, leaf traits, root and stem traits and regenerative traits, and puts particular emphasis on traits important for predicting species’ effects on key ecosystem properties.
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The worldwide leaf economics spectrum
Ian J. Wright,Peter B. Reich,Mark Westoby,David D. Ackerly,Zdravko Baruch,Frans Bongers,Jeannine Cavender-Bares,Terry Chapin,Johannes H. C. Cornelissen,M. Diemer,Jaume Flexas,Eric Garnier,Philip K. Groom,Javier Gulías,Kouki Hikosaka,Byron B. Lamont,Tali D. Lee,William G. Lee,Christopher H. Lusk,Jeremy J. Midgley,Marie-Laure Navas,Ülo Niinemets,Jacek Oleksyn,Jacek Oleksyn,Noriyuki Osada,Hendrik Poorter,Pieter Poot,Lynda D. Prior,Vladimir I. Pyankov,Catherine Roumet,Sean C. Thomas,Mark G. Tjoelker,Erik J. Veneklaas,Rafael Villar +33 more