Biodiv Sci ›› 2020, Vol. 28 ›› Issue (3): 277-288.  DOI: 10.17520/biods.2019118

• Original Papers • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Impacts of microhabitats on leaf functional traits of the wild population of Sinojackia huangmeiensis

Shitong Wang1,2,3,Yaozhan Xu1,2,3,Teng Yang1,2,3,4,5,Xinzeng Wei1,2,3,*(),Mingxi Jiang1,2,3   

  1. 1. Key Laboratory of Aquatic Botany and Watershed Ecology, Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430074
    2. Center of Conservation Biology, Core Botanical Gardens, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430074
    3. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049
    4. Research Center for Ecology and Environment of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000
    5. College of Science, Tibet University, Lhasa 850000
  • Received:2019-04-04 Accepted:2019-08-02 Online:2020-03-20 Published:2019-12-13
  • Contact: Xinzeng Wei

Abstract:

Plant functional traits and stoichiometry characteristics can reflect differences in plant strategies to microenvironmental changes. In this study, we used a one-way ANOVA and Bayesian ANOVA to compare leaf functional traits, intraspecific variation, and leaf stoichiometry of Sinojackia huangmeiensis at three microhabitats (lakeside, population center, and cropland side) next to Longgan Lake, central China. Our results showed that: (1) There were no significant differences in soil C, N and P concentrations among the three microhabitats (P > 0.05), but soil C : N and C : P were significantly different (P < 0.05). (2) The results of one-way ANOVA and Bayesian ANOVA were similar when we compared mean values of leaf functional traits of S. huangmeiensis among the three microhabitats. Leaf length, leaf area, and specific leaf area were all significantly higher at population center than those at lakeside (P < 0.05), while the three leaf traits at cropland side were not different with those at lakeside or population center (P > 0.05); The leaf N content at lakeside was significantly higher than that at population center and cropland side (P < 0.05), but it was not different between population center and cropland side (P > 0.05); Leaf width, ratio of leaf length to leaf width, leaf dry matter content, leaf C content, and leaf P content were not significantly different among the three microhabitats (P > 0.05). (3) Leaf N : P of S. huangmeiensis at lakeside was significantly higher than that at population center and cropland side (P < 0.05). Leaf C : N at lakeside was significantly smaller than that at population center and cropland side (P < 0.05). Both leaf N : P and C : N were not different between population center and cropland side (P > 0.05). Leaf C : P was not different among the three microhabitats (P > 0.05). (4) The overall variation of leaf functional traits of S. huangmeiensis was between 0.02 and 0.28. Bayesian ANOVA showed that both leaf C and N contents had low degrees of intraspecific variation in lakeside and population center. (5) Sinojackia huangmeiensis’ growth was promoted by different factors at the varying microhabitats. Our results indicate that S. huangmeiensis strategies at three microhabitats were different and not single-trait dependent, but trade-off dependent to achieve a better adaptive effect.

Key words: plant functional traits, ecological stoichiometry, Wild Plant with Extremely Small Populations, Sinojackia huangmeiensis, Bayesian ANOVA, lakeshore zone