Journal article
Do generalisations of global trade-offs in plant design apply to an Australian sclerophyllous flora?
Australian Journal of Botany, Vol.58(4), pp.257-270
2010
Abstract
Functional-trait analysis at a global scale has found evidence for evolutionary specialisation of species into those designed to acquire resources rapidly and those designed to conserve resources. The present study aimed to determine whether such a trade-off exists in sclerophyllous vegetation in Australia. We measured 10 traits for 167 plant species. The first axis of a principal components analysis represented a trade-off between resource acquisition and resource conservation, consistent with global trends. Common traits shared by resource-conservative species included low specific leaf area (SLA), resprouting, ant-dispersal, and ericoid mycorrhizal and ectomycorrhizal associations. These attributes were typical of 3 of 13 functional groups produced by cluster analysis (eucalypts, ant-dispersed shrubs, ericoid heaths) that had the lowest SLA, and were almost exclusively native shrubs and trees. Resource-acquisitive species had high SLA, a small stature, annual life cycle, arbuscular mycorrhizal or non-mycorrhizal associations, and small, wind-dispersed seeds. These attributes are similar to those identified for species with a ruderal strategy and were typical of the functional groups representing wind-dispersed composites, AM annuals and non-mycorrhizal annuals that had the highest SLA and were dominated by introduced species. Comparable trait associations have been found in other studies, suggesting that similar processes drive plant design at a global scale. However, there were some patterns specific to the flora studied that were attributable to adaptations to suit the nutrient-poor soils and arid conditions typical of the Australian environment.
Details
- Title
- Do generalisations of global trade-offs in plant design apply to an Australian sclerophyllous flora?
- Authors/Creators
- T.L. Meers (Author/Creator) - The University of MelbourneT.L. Bell (Author/Creator) - The University of MelbourneN.J. Enright (Author/Creator) - The University of MelbourneS. Kasel (Author/Creator)
- Publication Details
- Australian Journal of Botany, Vol.58(4), pp.257-270
- Publisher
- CSIRO Publishing
- Identifiers
- 991005543212407891
- Copyright
- © CSIRO 2010
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Environmental Science
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
Source: InCites
Metrics
57 Record Views
InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Citation topics
- 3 Agriculture, Environment & Ecology
- 3.40 Forestry
- 3.40.86 Plant Communities
- Web Of Science research areas
- Plant Sciences
- ESI research areas
- Plant & Animal Science