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Application of L oreau & H ector's (2001) partitioning method to complex functional traits
Author(s) -
Grossiord Charlotte,
Granier André,
Gessler Arthur,
SchererLorenzen Michael,
Pollastrini Martina,
Bonal Damien
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
methods in ecology and evolution
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.425
H-Index - 105
ISSN - 2041-210X
DOI - 10.1111/2041-210x.12090
Subject(s) - biodiversity , ecosystem , transpiration , water use efficiency , abundance (ecology) , species richness , ecology , complementarity (molecular biology) , biology , environmental science , botany , photosynthesis , genetics , irrigation
Summary In 2001, L oreau and H ector proposed a method to calculate the effect of biodiversity on ecosystem‐level properties that distinguished selection effects ( SE ) from complementarity effects ( CE ). The approach was designed and has been widely used for the study of yield in mixed‐species situations taking into account the relative abundance of each species in ecosystem‐level yield. However, complex functional traits commonly used to integrate ecosystem‐level properties that cannot be analysed like yield data because the weighted contribution of each species is not determined by its relative abundance. We adapted the original method by clearly identifying ecologically meaningful weighting coefficients to represent species‐specific contributions to ecosystem function. We applied the adapted method of analysis to tree foliar carbon isotope composition in an experimental plantation in order to test the influence of species richness on plot water use efficiency ( WUE plot ). The appropriate weights for the WUE plot of each species are leaf CO 2 assimilation rate. We observed a large range of WUE plot and biodiversity effects among plots. The absence of a significant SE on WUE plot indicated that the overall net biodiversity effect was primarily driven by a CE . The net biodiversity effect and CE were mostly negative, suggesting that interspecific interactions resulted in a decrease in the ratio between carbon acquisition and transpiration at the ecosystem level. The application of the method to complex components of ecosystem functioning provides important new insights into the practical and conceptual aspects of functional biodiversity research.