So close, yet so different: Divergences in resource use may help stabilize coexistence of phylogenetically-related species in a megadiverse grassland

Castro, Silvana Aparecida Barbosa de; Silveira, Fernando A. O.; Marcato, Mateus S.; Lemos-Filho, José Pires de

doi:10.1016/j.flora.2016.11.018

Cited by 17 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…Covering these Special Issue topics, Castro et al (2018) investigated the functional mechanisms behind species coexistence through a phylogenetically-controlled assessment of photosynthetic performance and water relations in species of Melastomataceae from xeric vs mesic microhabitats. Owing to consistent differences in water relations, but not in photosynthetic performance among species from these two microhabitats, they argue that differential water-economy strategies support hydrological niche segregation in campo rupestre; this species trait may help stabilize species coexistence.…”

Section: Species Coexistence Regeneration Niche and Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Plant life in campo rupestre : New lessons from an ancient biodiversity hotspot

Morellato

Silveira²

2018

Flora

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Section: Species Coexistence Regeneration Niche and Climate Changementioning

confidence: 99%

Plant life in campo rupestre : New lessons from an ancient biodiversity hotspot

Morellato

Silveira²

2018

Flora

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“…Campos rupestres show the greatest degree of seasonality in precipitation among tropical montane ecosystems and, in this environment, plants use a wide range of strategies to cope with drought (Oliveira et al, ). These plants have morphological and physiological adaptations to improve water and nutrient acquisition, including drought‐tolerant, drought‐avoiding, and desiccation‐tolerant strategies (Castro, Silveira, Marcato, & Lemos‐Filho, ; Jacobi, Carmo, Vincent, & Stehmann, ; Oliveira et al, ; Porembski & Barthlott, ; Vitarelli, Riina, Cassino, & Meira, ). Drought‐tolerant species in campos rupestres deal with drought by maintaining metabolism and cell turgor through regulatory mechanisms, such as strong stomata control over water loss.…”

Section: Edaphic Climatic and Hydrological Controls On The Distribumentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecohydrological drivers of Neotropical vegetation in montane ecosystems

et al. 2018

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Montane ecosystems are known for their high numbers of endemic species, unique climate conditions, and wide variety of ecosystem services such as water supply and carbon storage. Although many ecohydrological and climatic studies of montane environments have been carried out in temperate and boreal regions, few have been done in Neotropical regions. Hence, the objective of this review is to synthesize the existing literature on the main factors (biotic and abiotic) that influence vegetation distribution, functional traits, and ecohydrological processes and feedbacks in tropical montane ecosystems and to identify key knowledge gaps. Most of the literature used includes work conducted in Neotropical montane rainforests, cloud forests, and grass/scrublands (e.g., páramos, punas, and campos de altitude/rupestres). Fog is a major climatic attribute in tropical montane habitats. We found that fog regimes (frequency and intensity of fog events) influence both water inputs (i.e., canopy interception and foliar water uptake) and outputs (evapotranspiration) and represent an important driver of local species composition, dominance of plant functional types, and ecological functioning. The stability and conservation of tropical montane ecosystems depends on such ecohydrological fluxes, which are sensitive to increases in air temperature and changing precipitation and fog regimes. Furthermore, to better inform effective conservation and restoration strategies, more work is needed to elucidate how key ecohydrological processes are affected by land use conversion to agriculture and pasture lands, as human activities influence the water budgets in Neotropical montane watersheds not only at regional‐scales but also globally.

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