Spatial patterns of photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits of plants in the Loess Plateau of China |
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Authors: | Shuxia Zheng Zhouping Shangguan |
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Institution: | (1) State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming on the Loess Plateau, Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, P.R. China;(2) Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, P.R. China |
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Abstract: | The spatial patterns of photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits of 171 plants belonging to nine life-forms
or functional groups (trees, shrubs, herbs, evergreen trees, deciduous trees, C3 and C4 herbaceous plants, leguminous and non-leguminous species) and their relationships with environmental factors in seven sites,
Yangling, Yongshou, Tongchuan, Fuxian, Ansai, Mizhi and Shenmu, ranging from south to north in the Loess Plateau of China
were studied. The results showed that the leaf light-saturated photosynthetic rate (Pmax), photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE), chlorophyll content (Chl), and leaf mass per area (LMA) of all the plants
in the Loess Plateau varied significantly among three life-form groups, i.e., trees, shrubs and herbs, and two groups, i.e.,
evergreen trees and deciduous trees, but leaf nitrogen content differed little among different life-form groups. For the 171
plants in the Loess Plateau, leaf Pmax was positively correlated with PNUE. The leaf nitrogen content per unit area (Narea) was positively correlated but Chl was negatively correlated with the LMA. When controlling the LMA, the Narea was positively correlated with the Chl (partial r = 0.20, P < 0.05). With regard to relationships between photosynthetic characteristics and leaf physical traits, the Pmax was positively correlated with N
area, while the PNUE was positively correlated with the Chl and negatively correlated with the Narea and LMA. For all the species in the Loess Plateau, the PNUE was negatively correlated with the latitude and annual solar
radiation (ASR), but positively correlated with the mean annual rainfall (MAR) and mean annual temperature (MAT). With regard
to the leaf physical traits, the leaf Chl was negatively correlated with the latitude and ASR, but positively correlated with
the MAR and MAT. However, the Narea and LMA were positively correlated with the latitude and ASR, but negatively correlated with the MAR and MAT. In general,
leaf Narea and LMA increased, while PNUE and Chl decreased with increases in the latitude and ASR and decreases in MAR and MAT.
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article () contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. |
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Keywords: | Light-saturated photosynthetic rate Photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency Nitrogen content Leaf mass per area Chlorophyll Life form Loess Plateau |
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