UNIVERSITY OF ZURICH
An international research team has succeeded in identifying global factors that explain the diversity of forms and functions in plants. Led by the University of Zurich, the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry in Jena and the University of Leipzig, the researchers collected and analyzed plant data from around the world. For the first time, they show how characteristics such as plant size, structure and lifespan are determined by climate and soil characteristics. Insights from this could be important for improving Earth system models regarding the role of plant diversity.
At first glance, the diversity of forms and functions of plants seems confusing. However, it can be described in terms of morphological, physiological and biochemical features. It has been shown previously that traits between species fall into two main categories in which each plant species must maintain a balance: first, size, and second, the economy of metabolism . In a recent study in Natural ecology and evolution, A team of researchers has confirmed for the first time, using a vastly expanded global dataset for 17 different plant traits, that these two main categories apply to all plant species. studied worldwide.
In size classification, plants were balanced in terms of height, leaf size and seed size, among other traits. These characteristics are also influenced by the hydraulic components of water transport in plants. The economic category describes how quickly and efficiently a plant obtains energy and biomass through photosynthesis, in balance with its lifespan. This type is defined by measurable characteristics such as leaf structure and composition in terms of leaf area, as well as their elemental composition (nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon). The team showed that the survival strategies of plant species collected worldwide in the TRY database are clearly explained by these two main categories.
Features of more than 20,000 species analyzed
Plant traits are influenced by many external factors, such as climate, soil conditions, and human intervention. It is yet to be determined which factors are decisive at the global level. To answer this question, the team, led by Julia Joswig at the University of Zurich and the Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry in Jena, analyzed the characteristics of more than 20,000 species. Information on climatic and soil conditions at the site of each plant was included in the analysis.
“Our study clearly demonstrates that plant characteristics around the world can be explained by joint effects of climate and soil,” says Joswig, adding, “This shows that that aspects of climate change and soil erosion, both of which occur as a result of land use change, for example, should be studied together. ”
Many of the relationships described here are known from small-scale, local studies. Professor Miguel Mahecha of the University of Leipzig added: “But the fact that these processes can now be visualized globally and their significance quantified is an important milestone. “Studies of this type can guide models of global Earth systems representing the complex interactions of climate, soil and biodiversity, which are important prerequisites,” adds Mahecha. for future predictions.
As expected, the study shows how the height of plant species varies along latitudes, due to differences in climate. However, the economic characteristics of the plants do not exhibit this gradient. Similarly, soil quality is only partially affected by climate, so there is a latitude-independent component of the soil information. Joswig and her colleagues show that this soil information is also related to economic characteristics. Besides climate, soil-forming factors include soil organisms, geology, topography and, of course, time. Global change affects climate, organisms and to some extent topography. The study therefore argues that the global risks to plant life need to be explored, particularly in relation to climate change and soil erosion.
JOURNEYS
Natural Ecosystem & Evolution
DOI
RESEARCH METHODS
Data analysis / statistics
RESEARCH SUBJECTS
Do not apply
ARTICLE TITLE
Soil and climate factors explain the two-dimensional spectrum of global plant trait variation
ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE
December 23, 2021
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