What role do dauciform roots play? Responses of <i>Carex filispica</i> to trampling in alpine meadows based on functional traits

Fan, Rong; Hua, Jinguo; Huang, Yulin; Lin, Jizhen; Ji, Wenli

doi:10.1002/ece3.9875

Cited by 3 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…In fact, while having the same response of belowground C to the intensifying degradation, P. viviparum and C. filispica without dauciform roots also showed a similar response to dauciform roots: as the proportion of dauciform roots increased, their position on the economic spectrum was both biased in a resource-conservative direction ( Figure 6 ), while individuals with dauciform roots did not have the same tendency. Our result is consistent with an earlier study showing that individuals with dauciform roots were proven to have more resource-acquiring traits after human trampling ( Fan et al., 2023 ). Species with resource-acquisitive strategies tend to increase as disturbance intensified ( Huang et al., 2021 ), and owing to the resource acquisition of dauciform roots contributing to the P-dissolution to ease the disturbance, all the other neighbouring plants remained resource-conservative.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Dauciform roots affect the position of the neighboring plants on the economic spectrum in degraded alpine meadows

Fan,

Huang,

Liu

et al. 2023

Front. Plant Sci.

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Background and aimsSpecial root structures that can dissolve insoluble phosphorus locked in soil are supposed to contribute not only to the growing status of themselves but also to the neighbouring plants. However, whether dauciform roots have any effect on the neighbouring plants and how does it respond to meadow degradation had not been studied.MethodsAlpine meadows with different degradation statuses were selected and the functional traits of Carex filispica and the co-occurring species Polygonum viviparum were measured to explore their response to degradation, as well as the response of Polygonum viviparum to the dauciform roots of Carex filispica.ResultsThe results showed that 1) the number of dauciform roots decreased with the intensifying degradation, positively related to available phosphorus in the soil and negatively related to the aboveground phosphorus of Carex filispica. 2) Carex filispica and Polygonum viviparum are similar in specific leaf area and specific root area, yet different in the phosphorus content. The available phosphorus in the soil was negatively related to the aboveground phosphorus of Carex filispica and positively related to that of Polygonum viviparum. 3) When lightly degraded, the proportion of dauciform roots had positive effects on the aboveground resource-acquiring traits of Polygonum viviparum, which were no longer significant at heavy degradation. 4) Polygonum viviparum and Carex filispica without dauciform roots have similar performance: a decrease of belowground carbon with the increasing degradation, and a trend toward resource conservation with the increasing proportion of dauciform roots, which did not exist in Carex filispica with dauciform roots.ConclusionOur study found that dauciform roots had a beneficial effect on the resource acquisition of their neighbouring plants. However, due to the uncontrollable nature of natural habitats, whether this effect is stable and strong enough to be performed in ecological restoration requires further lab-controlled studies.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Dauciform roots affect the position of the neighboring plants on the economic spectrum in degraded alpine meadows

Fan,

Huang,

Liu

et al. 2023

Front. Plant Sci.

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“…Previous studies have found that sedges with DRs have relatively less belowground biomass allocation and suggested that DRs may ease the limitation of belowground resources so that resources can be invested in the growth of aboveground parts (Gusewell & Schroth, 2017). The results of the 2‐week recovery showed that the number of DRs was positively proportional to the overall leaf size of C. filispica (Fan et al., 2023), but since the morphology was not measured separately in individuals with or without DRs, the exact object of effect could not be determined. This study further found that both the leaf area of individuals with and without DRs showed a positive correlation with the number of DRs (Figure 3).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Trampling leads to a shift in competitiveness from sensitive species to more tolerant ones (Miehe et al., 2019). With the increasing grazing disturbance, grasses and legumes on Tibetan plateau meadows are gradually replaced by sedge (Guo et al., 2019), which has been found to have a strong short‐term resistance to trampling, with no significant decrease in cover as the trampling intensity increases (Fan et al., 2023). As for this experiment, 1 year after trampling, the proportion of plants with DRs increased with trampling intensity, although the difference was not significant (Figure 1).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies have shown that 2 weeks after trampling, 50 passages led to a significantly higher proportion and density of DRs than the control group as well as the treatments of 200 and 500 passages (Fan et al, 2023). After minor trampling, the stimulation and changes in the microenvironment may promote root production, provide nutrients for aboveground regeneration and lead to compensatory growth (Jiang et al, 2021;Xu et al, 2014).…”

Section: Dauciform Rootsmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…These degraded alpine meadows, in the meanwhile, are the only natural habitats where dauciform roots were described in China (Gao & Yang, 2010), which begs the question: is there a link between the unique performance of Cyperaceae and the presence of dauciform roots? As a matter of fact, as a responding strategy of plants, dauciform roots are often found in disturbed habitats (Brundrett, 2009) and proved to be related to the response of Carex filispica to trampling: 2 weeks after trampling, the proportion of individuals with DRs was found to be positively related to the leaf size in total, while individuals with DRs had more aboveground biomass than those without DRs after mild and moderate trampling (Fan et al., 2023). However, the relationship between dauciform roots and the functional traits of plants in long‐term recovery from trampling has not yet been clarified (Fan et al., 2023), while recovery is an essential combination of resistance and resilience and must be taken into consideration (Gallet & Roze, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Recovering from trampling: The role of dauciform roots to functional traits response of Carex filispica in alpine meadow

Fan,

Liu,

Jiang

et al. 2023

Ecology and Evolution

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In the natural habitats of China, dauciform roots were only described in degraded alpine meadows. It was found that the presence of dauciform roots of Carex filispica was related to the advantage of multiple functional traits after trampling, reflecting short‐term resistance. However, the long‐term response of dauciform roots to trampling and the recovery of C. filispica with and without dauciform roots to trampling require further studies. In this study, different intensities of trampling (0, 50, 200 and 500 passages) were performed in an alpine meadow. One year later, individuals with and without dauciform roots were separated and their functional traits related to the economic spectrum of leaves and roots were measured as a reflection of recovery from trampling. The results showed that: (1) 1 year after trampling, the number of dauciform roots showed an increase with trampling intensity; (2) 1 year later, there was no significant difference in the response of economic spectrum traits among trampling intensities, or between plants with and without dauciform roots; (3) the number of dauciform roots was positively correlated with the leaf area of both individuals with and without dauciform roots, as well as with the biomass of those without dauciform roots; and (4) plants with more resource‐conservative roots showed an advantage after trampling recovery: specifically, plants with dauciform roots showed such an advantage in the control group, which was lost with a leaning towards resource‐acquisitive roots and an increased density of dauciform roots once trampled. In contrast, plants without dauciform roots showed a significant advantage of conservative roots only after trampling. In conclusion, the presence of dauciform roots is related to the plants' position on the root economic spectrum, thereby influencing the recovery of C. filispica from trampling. Carex filispica showed strong recovery from trampling after 1 year, which makes it an adequate choice for ecological restoration in alpine meadows. Dauciform roots showed a positive correlation with the aboveground growth of both plants with and without them, however, it requires a lab‐controlled study to confirm whether there is indeed a positive effect on the growth of neighbouring plants.

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Not only phosphorus: dauciform roots can also influence aboveground biomass through root morphological traits and metal cation concentrations

Huang,

Fan,

Wang

et al. 2024

Front. Plant Sci.

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BackgroundPhosphorus in the soil is mostly too insoluble for plants to utilize, resulting in inhibited aboveground biomass, while Carex can maintain their aboveground biomass through the presence of dauciform roots. However, dauciform roots lead to both morphological and physiological changes in the root system, making their primary mechanism unclear.MethodsA greenhouse experiment was conducted on three Carex species, in which Al-P, Ca-P, Fe-P, and K-P were employed as sole phosphorus sources. The plants were harvested and assessed after 30, 60 and 90 days.Results(1) The density of dauciform roots was positively correlated with root length and specific root length, positively influencing aboveground biomass at all three stages. (2) The aboveground phosphorus concentration showed a negative correlation with both dauciform root density and aboveground biomass in the first two stages, which became positive in the third stage. (3) Aboveground biomass correlated negatively with the aboveground Al concentration, and positively with Ca and Fe concentration (except Al-P). (4) Root morphological traits emerged as critical factors in dauciform roots’ promotion of aboveground biomass accumulation.ConclusionDespite the difference among insoluble phosphorus, dauciform roots have a contributing effect on aboveground growth status over time, mainly by regulating root morphological traits. This study contributes to our understanding of short-term variation in dauciform roots and their regulatory mechanisms that enhance Carex aboveground biomass under low available phosphorus conditions.

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What role do dauciform roots play? Responses of Carex filispica to trampling in alpine meadows based on functional traits

Cited by 3 publications

References 65 publications

Dauciform roots affect the position of the neighboring plants on the economic spectrum in degraded alpine meadows

Dauciform roots affect the position of the neighboring plants on the economic spectrum in degraded alpine meadows

Recovering from trampling: The role of dauciform roots to functional traits response of Carex filispica in alpine meadow

Not only phosphorus: dauciform roots can also influence aboveground biomass through root morphological traits and metal cation concentrations

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