Premium
Contrasting traits, contrasting environments, and considerations on population dynamics under a changing climate: an ecophysiological field study of two co‐dominant tree species
Author(s) -
Bontempo e Silva Edgard A.,
Ono Kiyomi,
Sumida Akihiro,
Uemura Shigeru,
Hara Toshihiko
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
plant species biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.419
H-Index - 36
eISSN - 1442-1984
pISSN - 0913-557X
DOI - 10.1111/1442-1984.12074
Subject(s) - canopy , biology , photoprotection , photosynthesis , population , botany , abiotic component , picea abies , ecology , tree canopy , horticulture , demography , sociology
The increase in light availability resulting from canopy changes or opening is not always beneficial and can inhibit photosynthesis of tree seedlings already under other environmental stress. Tree seedlings' responses to compounded abiotic stress depend on their life‐history traits, and understanding the variations of such responses is important for understanding population dynamics under a changing climate. In this study we investigate how the photosynthesis of juveniles of two canopy tree species with different life‐history traits, Abies sachalinensis and Betula ermanii , differs in two contrasting sites at a sub‐boreal forest in northern J apan—one under a deciduous canopy ( C losed site) and the other at a wide canopy opening ( O pen site). Seedlings at the O pen site had low F v / F m (quantum yield of photosystem II ) for a longer period than those at the C losed site. Abies sachalinensis at the C losed site showed lower F v / F m in spring than those at the O pen site, but recovered after the canopy's new leaves flushed, indicating its acclimation to the shaded condition. Mean P max (light‐saturated photosynthetic rate at ambient CO 2 levels) of A. sachalinensis seedlings was affected by site and air temperature, while B. ermanii seedlings were also affected by precipitation. Only B. ermanii 's seedlings presented growth in the period studied, in spite of observed mid‐day drops to F v / F m attributed to water‐deficit‐related photoprotection. Results suggest that the climate change predicted for the Hokkaido area may increase the competitive advantage of broad‐leaved deciduous species, such as B. ermanii , in relation to evergreen conifers like A. sachalinensis .