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35 results for “tropical tree seedling”
Data from: Multi-population seedling and soil transplants show possible responses of a common tropical montane tree species (Weinmannia bangii) to climate change
<p>A possible response of many plant species to global warming is migration to higher elevations. However, these migrations may not be required if species can tolerate higher temperatures, or may be prevented if there are other factors such as changes in soil conditions that make upslope areas unsuitable.</p> <p>We used a set of 3-year field transplant experiments in the remote Peruvian Andes to simulate two possible responses of an abundant tropical montane cloudforest tree species (Weinmania bangii) to global warming: (1) "upward migration", in which case seedlings of W. bangii's were grown at their current elevation/temperature but in soils transplanted from higher elevations; and (2) "migration failure", in which case seedlings were transplanted downslope along with their home soils into areas that are 1°C or 2°C warmer. We conducted separate experiments with populations from the upper/leading edge, middle and lower/trailing edges of W. bangii's elevational/thermal range to assess the influence of local adaptation on responses to changes in temperature or soil.</p> <p>We found that seedling survival and growth were not affected by changes in soil conditions, regardless of the origin population. However, seedling survival decreased with temperature. A simulated warming of 1°C caused a significant reduction in the survival of seedlings transplanted from the mid-range population, and 2°C warming caused a severe decrease in the survival of seedlings transplanted from both the mid-range and bottom-edge populations.</p> <p>Synthesis. Our findings reveal that rising temperatures are a serious threat to plants, especially in populations growing in the hotter portion of their species' range. At least in the case of W. bangii, novel soil conditions will not limit the establishment or growth of seedlings at higher elevations. As such, decreases in the survivorship at lower elevations may be offset through upward migrations as temperatures continue to increase.</p>
Data from: Negative density dependence in the mortality and growth of tropical tree seedlings is strong, and primarily caused by fungal pathogens
<ol> <li class="Body">Natural enemies have been implicated as agents of negative density dependence (NDD) in tropical forests, but their relative contributions to NDD, and thus to the maintenance of diversity, are largely unknown.</li> <li class="Body">We monitored the rates of survival and relative growth rates on seedlings for ten years in tropical moist forest in Manu National Park, Peru. We then experimentally manipulated the plots to exclude fungal pathogens, insects, small mammals, and large mammals for an additional 31 months to assess the influence of these natural enemies on density-dependent interactions among tropical seedlings.</li> <li class="Body">Fungal pathogens made the most important contribution to negative density dependence. The application of fungicide led to lower mortality rates, faster growth rates, and decreased species diversity. Other taxa of natural enemies had at most minor effects on seedling performance.</li> <li class="Body"> <i>Synthesis. </i>We conclude that fungal pathogens are the strongest contributors to the widely observed NDD that occurs among seedlings. Moreover, the presence of fungal pathogens augments the species diversity of seedlings, indicating their critical contribution to the maintenance of species coexistence and the structure of tropical tree communities.</li> </ol>
Data from: Effects of soil type and light on height growth, biomass partitioning, and nitrogen dynamics on 22 species of tropical dry forest tree seedlings: comparisons between legumes and nonlegumes
PREMISE OF THE STUDY: The seedling stage is particularly vulnerable to resource limitation, with potential consequences for community composition. We investigated how light and soil variation affected early growth, biomass partitioning, morphology, and physiology of 22 tree species common in tropical dry forest, including eight legumes. Our hypothesis was that legume seedlings are better at taking advantage of increased resource availability, which contributes to their successful regeneration in tropical dry forests. METHODS: We grew seedlings in a full-factorial design under two light levels in two soil types that differed in nutrient concentrations and soil moisture. We measured height biweekly and, at final harvest, biomass partitioning, internode segments, leaf carbon, nitrogen, δ 13 C, and δ 15 N. KEY RESULTS: Legumes initially grew taller and maintained that height advantage over time under all experimental conditions. Legumes also had the highest final total biomass and water-use efficiency in the high-light and high-resource soil. For nitrogen-fixing legumes, the amount of nitrogen derived from fixation was highest in the richer soil. Although seed mass tended to be larger in legumes, seed size alone did not account for all the differences between legumes and nonlegumes. Both belowground and aboveground resources were limiting to early seedling growth and function. CONCLUSIONS: Legumes may have a different regeneration niche, in that they germinate rapidly and grow taller than other species immediately after germination, maximizing their performance when light and belowground resources are readily available, and potentially permitting them to take advantage of high light, nutrient, and water availability at the beginning of the wet season.
Effects of leaf silicon on drought performance of tropical tree seedlings
<p>Elevated leaf silicon (Si) concentrations improve drought resistance in cultivated plants, suggesting Si might also improve the drought performance of wild species. Tropical tree species, for instance, take up substantial amounts of Si, and leaf Si varies markedly at local- and regional-scales, suggesting consequences for seedling drought resistance. Yet, whether elevated leaf Si improves seedling drought performance in tropical forests is unknown. To manipulate leaf Si concentrations, seedlings of seven tropical tree species were grown in Si-rich and -poor soil, before exposing them to drought in the forest understory. Survival, growth, and wilting were monitored. Elevated leaf Si did not improve drought survival and growth in any of the species. In one species, drought survival was reduced in seedlings previously grown in Si-rich soil, contrary to our expectations. Our results suggest that elevated leaf Si does not improve the drought resistance of wild tropical tree species. Elevated leaf Si may even reduce drought performance, suggesting differences in soil conditions influencing leaf Si may contribute to soil-related variation of tropical seedling performance. Furthermore, our results are at odds with most studies on cultivated species and show that alleviative effects of Si in crops cannot be generalized to wild plants in natural systems.</p>
Data for: "Above and below ground trait coordination in tree seedlings depend on the most limiting resource: A test comparing a wet and a dry tropical forest in Mexico" by L. Sanaphre-Villanueva, F. Pineda-Garcia, W. Dattilo, L. F. Pinzon-Perez, A. Ricaño Rocha, H. Paz.
<p>These data represent those published in “Above and below ground trait coordination in tree seedlings depend on the most limiting resource: A test comparing a wet and a dry tropical forest in Mexico” by L. Sanaphre-Villanueva, F. Pineda-Garcia, W. Dattilo, L. F. Pinzon-Perez, A. Ricaño Rocha, H. Paz. PeerJ. 2022.</p>
Widespread variation in functional trait-vital rate relationships in tropical tree seedlings across a precipitation and soil phosphorus gradient
<p>A fundamental assumption of functional ecology is that functional traits are related to interspecific variation in performance. However, the relationship between functional traits and performance is often weak or uncertain, especially for plants. A potential explanation for this inconsistency is that the relationship between functional traits and vital rates (e.g., growth and mortality) is dependent on local environmental conditions, which would lead to variation in trait-rate relationships across environmental gradients. In this study, we examined trait-rate relationships for six functional traits (seed mass, wood density, maximum height, leaf mass per area, leaf area, and leaf dry matter content) using long-term data on seedling growth and survival of woody plant species from eight forest sites spanning a pronounced precipitation and soil phosphorus gradient in central Panama. For all traits considered except for leaf mass per area-mortality, leaf mass per area-growth, and leaf area-mortality relationships, we found widespread variation in the strength of trait-rate relationships across sites. For some traits, trait-rate relationships showed no overall trend but displayed wide site-to-site variation. In a small subset of cases, variation in trait-rate relationships was explained by soil phosphorus availability. Our results demonstrate that environmental gradients have the potential to influence how functional traits are related to growth and mortality rates, though much variation remains to be explained. Accounting for site-to-site variation may help resolve a fundamental issue in trait-based ecology – that traits are often weakly related to performance – and improve the utility of functional traits for explaining key ecological and evolutionary processes.</p>
Silicon-based anti-herbivore defense in tropical tree seedlings
<p>Silicon-based defenses effectively deter insect herbivores in many cultivated and wild grass species. Furthermore, in some of these species, silicon (Si) uptake and defense can be induced by herbivory. Tropical trees also take up Si and leaf Si concentrations vary greatly across and within species. As herbivory is a major driver of seedling mortality and niche differentiation of tropical tree species, understanding anti-herbivore defenses is pivotal. Yet, whether silicon is a constitutive and inducible herbivory defense in tropical forest tree species remains unknown.</p> <p>We grew seedlings of eight tropical tree species in a full factorial experiment, including two levels of plant-available soil Si concentrations (-Si/+Si) and a simulated herbivory treatment (-H/+H). The simulated herbivory treatment was a combination of clipping and application of methyl jasmonate. We then carried out multiple-choice feeding trials, separately for each tree species, in which leaves of each treatment combination were offered to a generalist caterpillar (<em>Spodoptera frugiperda</em>). Leaf damage was assessed.</p> <p>Three species showed a significant decrease in leaf damage under high compared to low Si conditions (by up to 72%), consistent with our expectation of Si-based defenses acting in tropical tree species. In one species, leaf damage was increased by increasing soil Si and in the remaining four species, no effect of soil Si on leaf damage was observed. Opposite to our expectation of Si uptake and defense being inducible by herbivory damage, simulated herbivory increased leaf damage in two species. Furthermore, simulated herbivory reduced Si concentrations in one species.</p> <p>Our results showed that tropical tree seedlings can be better defended when growing in Si-rich compared to Si-poor soils, and that the effects of Si on plant defense vary strongly across species. Furthermore, Si-based defenses may not be inducible in tropical tree species. Overall, constitutive Si-based defense should be considered part of the vast array of anti-herbivore defenses of tropical tree species. Our finding that Si-based defenses are highly species-specific combined with the fact that herbivory is a major driver of mortality in tropical tree seedling, suggests that variation in soil Si concentrations may have pervasive consequences for regeneration and performance across tropical tree species.</p>
Data from: Negative density dependence in the mortality and growth of tropical tree seedlings is strong, and primarily caused by fungal pathogens
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Data from: Individual-level trait variation and negative density dependence affects growth in tropical tree seedlings
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Pathogen incidence on tree and liana seedlings along a chronosequence of tropical forest recovery in Panama
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Silicon-based anti-herbivore defense in tropical tree seedlings
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Widespread variation in functional trait-vital rate relationships in tropical tree seedlings across a precipitation and soil phosphorus gradient
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Data from: Multi-population seedling and soil transplants show possible responses of a common tropical montane tree species (Weinmannia bangii) to climate change
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Data from: Effects of soil type and light on height growth, biomass partitioning, and nitrogen dynamics on 22 species of tropical dry forest tree seedlings: comparisons between legumes and nonlegumes
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Effects of leaf silicon on drought performance of tropical tree seedlings
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Data from: Combined effects of seed and soil quality drive seedling performance of a late-successional canopy tree in a tropical forest
Habitat loss and fragmentation affect the structure and functioning of forested ecosystems worldwide, yet we lack an understanding of how species respond to environmental changes. Here, we examined reproductive success and seedling performance of Poulsenia armata (Moraceae) in continuous and fragmented forests of Los Tuxtlas, southern Mexico. We further investigated how maternal habitat and soil conditions manifested in the seedling stage. We determined seed quality and seedling performance by combining isotopic analyses in seed quality with field observations of P. armata fruit production and a common--garden experiment. Soil conditions in forest fragments negatively impacted P. armata reproductive success. Trees of P. armata in forest fragments were smaller in size and produced fewer fruits and smaller seeds with lower quality compared with trees from the continuous forest. The combined effects of maternal habitat and soil conditions determined seedling survival and growth of this tropical tree. Notably, seedlings had restricted plasticity for biomass allocation to roots, limiting the capacity of fragmented populations to compensate for the initial low N content in seeds. Trees in forest fragments at Los Tuxtlas produced offspring competitively inferior and potentially less resilient than counterparts in continuous forest, jeopardizing future persistence of this late-successional tree species.
Data from: Multiple stages of tree seedling recruitment are altered in tropical forests degraded by selective logging
Tropical forest degradation is a global environmental issue. In degraded forests, seedling recruitment of canopy trees is vital for forest regeneration and recovery. We investigated how selective logging, a pervasive driver of tropical forest degradation, impacts canopy tree seedling recruitment, focusing on an endemic dipterocarp Dryobalanops lanceolata in Sabah, Borneo. During a mast-fruiting event in intensively logged and nearby unlogged forest, we examined four stages of the seedling recruitment process: seed production, seed predation, and negative density-dependent germination and seedling survival. Our results suggest that each stage of the seedling recruitment process is altered in logged forest. The seed crop of D. lanceolata trees in logged forest was one-third smaller than that produced by trees in unlogged forest. The functional role of vertebrates in seed predation increased in logged forest while that of non-vertebrates declined. Seeds in logged forest were less likely to germinate than those in unlogged forest. Germination increased with local-scale conspecific seed density in unlogged forest, but seedling survival tended to decline. However, both germination and seedling survival increased with local-scale conspecific seed density in logged forest. Notably, seed crop size, germination and seedling survival tended to increase for larger trees in both unlogged and logged forests, suggesting that sustainable timber extraction and silvicultural practices designed to minimize damage to the residual stand are important to prevent seedling recruitment failure. Overall, these impacts sustained by several aspects of seedling recruitment in a mast-fruiting year suggest that intensive selective logging may affect long-term population dynamics of D. lanceolata. It is necessary to establish if other dipterocarp species, many of which are threatened by the timber trade, are similarly affected in tropical forests degraded by intensive selective logging.
Species‐specific root proliferation of tree seedlings in tropical litter: do nutrients matter?
<p>Litter decomposition mobilizes nutrients that sustain ecosystem productivity, but decomposition by-products may also hamper root proliferation by phytotoxicity. The aim of this study was to assess the litter substrate preferences of tropical tree seedlings in relation to litter chemical traits. We characterized 44 litter types (11 species at 4 decomposition ages; 0, 30, 90 and 180 days) for nutrients (N, P, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Fe and Zn) and proximate chemical parameters (cellulose, extractive, lignin and C) and tested the effect of such litter materials on seedling root growth of Albizia procera, Dalbergia sissoo and Terminalia arjuna. A. procera root growth was inhibited by all litter types and ages, including conspecific materials, while different heterospecific litters had inhibitory or stimulatory effect on D. sissoo and T. arjuna root growth, compared to the control. Interestingly, inhibitory and stimulatory effects of heterospecific litters significantly changed with litter age, although with no clear-cut pattern among target species and litter species and age, while conspecific litters consistently inhibited root growth when aged, but not when fresh. Litter nutrient, extractive, C, cellulose and lignin showed no consistent association with root growth of tested plants. A. procera root growth was positively associated with Na content and N:P ratio. D. sissoo root growth was positively associated to C:N and lignin:N ratios, and negatively to K, Na and Zn content. Finally, T. arjuna root was positively associated to cellulose and N:P ratio, but negatively to extractive. We conclude that studied nutrient, cellulose and lignin do not consistently explain the species-specific response of root of tree seedlings to decomposing litter.</p>
Data from: Photosynthetic acclimation to warming in tropical forest tree seedlings
Tropical forests have a mitigating effect on man-made climate change by acting as a carbon sink. For that effect to continue, tropical trees will have to acclimate to rising temperatures, but it is currently unknown whether they have this capacity. We grew seedlings of three tropical tree species over a range of temperature regimes (TGrowth = 25, 30, 35 °C) and measured the temperature response of photosynthetic CO2 uptake. All species showed signs of acclimation: the temperature-response curves shifted, such that the temperature at which photosynthesis peaked (TOpt) increased with increasing TGrowth. However, although TOpt shifted, it did not reach TGrowth at high temperature, and this difference between TOpt and TGrowth increased with increasing TGrowth, indicating that plants were operating at supra-optimal temperatures for photosynthesis when grown at high temperatures. The high-temperature CO2 compensation point did not increase with TGrowth. Hence, temperature-response curves narrowed with increasing TGrowth. TOpt correlated with the ratio of the RuBP regeneration capacity over the RuBP carboxylation capacity, suggesting that at high TGrowth photosynthetic electron transport rate associated with RuBP regeneration had greater control over net photosynthesis. The results show that although photosynthesis of tropical trees can acclimate to moderate warming, carbon gain decreases with more severe warming.
Turgor loss point predicts survival responses to experimental and natural drought in tropical tree seedlings
<p>Identifying key traits that can serve as proxies for species drought resistance is crucial for predicting and mitigating effects of climate change in diverse plant communities. Turgor loss point (π<sub>tlp</sub>) is a recently emerged trait that has been linked to species distributions across gradients of water availability. However, a direct relationship between π<sub>tlp</sub> and species ability to survive drought has yet to be established for woody species. Using a manipulative field experiment to quantify species drought resistance (i.e. their survival response to drought), combined with measurements of π<sub>tlp</sub> for 16 tree species, we show a negative relationship between π<sub>tlp</sub> and seedling drought resistance. Using long-term forest plot data, we also show that π<sub>tlp</sub> predicts seedling survival responses to a severe El Niño-related drought, although additional factors are clearly also important. Our study demonstrates that species with lower π<sub>tlp</sub> exhibit higher survival under both experimental and natural drought. These results provide a missing cornerstone in the assessment of the traits underlying drought resistance in woody species and strengthen π<sub>tlp</sub> as a proxy for evaluating which species will lose or win under projections of exacerbating drought regimes.</p>
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