Ecological strategies of Al-accumulating and non-accumulating functional groups from the cerrado sensu stricto

Souza, Marcelo Claro de; Bueno, Paula Carolina Pires; Morellato, Leonor Patrícia Cerdeira; Habermann, Gustavo

doi:10.1590/0001-3765201520140222

Cited by 29 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…, Souza et al . ). Studies in cerrado sensu stricto sites in Brazil Central also found a high proportion of deciduous and semi‐deciduous woody species (Pirani et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…In the cerrado community studied, the predominance of deciduous or semi-deciduous species (74%), in relation to the evergreen ones (26%), was related to the climate seasonality with a marked dry season and has also been associated with soil properties and species' leaf-economy strategies (Franco et al 2005, Souza et al 2015a. Studies in cerrado sensu stricto sites in Brazil Central also found a high proportion of deciduous and semideciduous woody species (Pirani et al 2009, Rossatto et al 2009), while in West African and Australian savannas the strategies are more evenly distributed in the community (Eamus & Prior 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Leafing patterns and leaf exchange strategies of a cerrado woody community

et al. 2018

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The deciduousness of tropical trees and communities depend on ecosystems characteristics such as plant species diversity, and strength of the dry season. Based on seven years of phenological observations, we provide the first long‐term description of leafing patterns of a woody cerrado community, aiming to investigate (1) the leaf exchange strategies considering the interannual variation in the degree of deciduousness of individuals and species and quantify the community deciduousness; (2) the relationship between interannual patterns of leaf fall and leaf flush according to the species’ leaf exchange strategies and climate; (3) the onset of cerrado growing season and its relation to climate seasonality. To detect seasonality and leafing onset we applied circular statistics and to understand the relationships between environmental predictors and leaf exchange strategies, we used generalized additive models. From 106 species observed, we classified 69 as deciduous (26 species), semi‐deciduous (25) or evergreen (18) and defined the studied cerrado as a semi‐deciduous vegetation. Leaf phenology was markedly seasonal and similar among years. Leaf fall peaked in the dry season, and leaf flush in the dry‐to‐wet transition. Leaf fall patterns related to temperature and leaf flush to day length and rainfall. Semi‐deciduous and deciduous species were more constrained by climate than the evergreen ones. The cerrado growing season started in the dry‐to‐wet season transition. Interannual variations in rainfall and temperature affected the individuals’ and, consequently, species’ degree of deciduousness, highlighting individual and species variability, and suggesting that cerrado leafing patterns are likely susceptible to future climate change scenarios.

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“…, Souza et al . ). Studies in cerrado sensu stricto sites in Brazil Central also found a high proportion of deciduous and semi‐deciduous woody species (Pirani et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leafing patterns and leaf exchange strategies of a cerrado woody community

et al. 2018

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“…The leaves were washed with deionized water and oven-dried at 60°C until constant mass to avoid N losses (Souza et al 2015). LEAF SCLEROMORPHISM IN CERRADO PLANTS To determine the specific leaf area (SLA), six leaves per plant of each species were used for obtaining 40 leaf discs of pre-determined area (1 cm of diameter).…”

Section: Site and Study Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The length of the dry season may be associated with leaf scleromorphism in cerrado plants

Souza

Franco

Haridasan

et al. 2015

An. Acad. Bras. Ciênc.

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Despite limitations of low fertility and high acidity of the soils, the cerrado flora is the richest amongst savannas. Many cerrado woody species show sclerophyllous leaves, which might be related to the availability of water and nutrients in the soil. To better understand the function and structure of cerrado vegetation within its own variations, we compared two cerrado communities: one in its core region in central Brazil (Brasília, DF) and the other on its southern periphery (Itirapina, SP). We contrasted the length of the dry season, soil fertility rates, leaf concentrations of N, P, K, Ca and Mg and the specific leaf area (SLA) between these communities. The dry season was shorter on the periphery, where the soil was more fertile although more acidic. Plants from the periphery showed higher SLA and higher leaf concentrations of N, P, Ca and Mg. We propose that the higher SLA of plants from the periphery is related to the shorter dry season, which allows better conditions for nutrient uptake.

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“…This is particularly the case for traits associated with carbon gain, considering morphological (specific leaf area) and physiological aspects (maximum photosynthesis and stomatal conductance) (Pérez-Harguindeguy et al 2013). Many studies reported how these traits enable plant persistence in savanna environments (Lemos Filho 2000;Prado et al 2004;Franco et al 2005;Habermann et al 2011;Souza et al 2015;Rossatto and Franco 2017); which are characterized by a series of selective pressures such as fire, rainfall seasonality, lower content of soil nutrients and elevated irradiance (Franco 2002). Such studies, however, focused only on tree species, a diverse, but not unique, component of the savanna ecosystem.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leaf traits combinations may explain the occurrence of savanna herbaceous species along a gradient of tree encroachment

Carlos

Rossatto

2017

Theor. Exp. Plant Physiol.

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In savanna environments, plants have specific leaf traits to deal with high irradiance. These traits allow plants to show high carbon assimilation capacity. However, under encroachment, reduced light availability may act as a filter on traits of plants established under typical savanna conditions. Here we studied morpho-physiological traits of species exclusively found in typical and forested savanna conditions to evaluate how encroachment selects for specific leaf traits in such environments. We also evaluated if species occurring in distinct encroached situations would show plasticity to deal with light variations. We studied two species exclusively found in typical savanna (TS, open condition), two species exclusively found in forested savanna (FS, encroached condition) and two species growing along a gradient of tree encroachment (typical, dense and forested savanna). We measured specific leaf area (SLA), maximum photosynthetic rate in an area basis (A max), stomatal conductance (g s), water use efficiency (WUE), leaf carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) concentrations. We found that herbaceous species exclusively found in TS possess higher A max , g s , WUE and C in comparison with plants from forested savanna. Such strategies are necessary to thrive under environments with elevated irradiances. In turn, species from FS showed elevated SLA and foliar N concentration, strategies linked to capture diffuse light in forested environments. Species capable of thriving in sites with distinct degrees of encroachment changed their leaf traits according with light availability. We conclude that differences in leaf traits between typical and forested savanna species may explain the non-occurrence of typical savanna species when their environment become encroached. Only those species capable of showing a certain degree of plasticity may survive under such distinct encroached states.

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Ecological strategies of Al-accumulating and non-accumulating functional groups from the cerrado sensu stricto

Cited by 29 publications

References 48 publications

Leafing patterns and leaf exchange strategies of a cerrado woody community

Leafing patterns and leaf exchange strategies of a cerrado woody community

The length of the dry season may be associated with leaf scleromorphism in cerrado plants

Leaf traits combinations may explain the occurrence of savanna herbaceous species along a gradient of tree encroachment

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