Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits
ABSTRACT Climate means and variability are shifting rapidly, leading to mismatches between climate and locally adapted plant traits. Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of a plant to respond to environmental conditions within a lifetime, may provide a buffer for plants to persist under increasing tem...
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Wiley
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70683 |
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| author | Iris J. Garthwaite Catherine Lepp Zyled S. R. Maldonado Davis Blasini Kevin C. Grady Catherine A. Gehring Kevin R. Hultine Thomas G. Whitham Gerard J. Allan Rebecca J. Best |
| author_facet | Iris J. Garthwaite Catherine Lepp Zyled S. R. Maldonado Davis Blasini Kevin C. Grady Catherine A. Gehring Kevin R. Hultine Thomas G. Whitham Gerard J. Allan Rebecca J. Best |
| author_sort | Iris J. Garthwaite |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT Climate means and variability are shifting rapidly, leading to mismatches between climate and locally adapted plant traits. Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of a plant to respond to environmental conditions within a lifetime, may provide a buffer for plants to persist under increasing temperature and water stress. We used two reciprocal common gardens across a steep temperature gradient to investigate plasticity in six populations of Fremont cottonwood, an important foundation tree species in arid riparian ecosystems. We investigated two components of leaf hydraulic architecture: Leaf venation and stomatal morphology, both of which regulate leaf water potential and photosynthesis. These traits will likely affect plant performance under climate stressors, but it is unclear whether they are controlled by genetic or environmental factors and whether they respond to the environment in parallel or independent directions. We found that: (1) Populations had divergent responses to a hotter growing environment, increasing or decreasing vein density. (2) Populations showed surprisingly independent responses of venation vs. stomatal traits. (3) As a result of these different responses, plasticity in hydraulic architecture traits was not predictable from historic climate conditions at population source locations and often varied substantially within populations. (4) Hydraulic architecture was clearly linked to growth, with higher vein and stomatal density predicting greater tree growth in the hottest growing environment. However, higher plasticity in these traits did not increase average growth across multiple environments. Thus, P. fremontii populations and genotypes vary in their capacity to adjust their leaf hydraulic architecture and support growth in contrasting environments, but this plasticity is not clearly predictable or beneficial. Identifying genotypes suitable for future conditions will depend on the relative importance of multiple traits and on both evolutionary and ecological responses to changing temperature and water availability. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ce0cdb85f8fe42648e43afb1f6dd8b64 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj-art-ce0cdb85f8fe42648e43afb1f6dd8b642025-08-20T02:53:37ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582024-12-011412n/an/a10.1002/ece3.70683Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf TraitsIris J. Garthwaite0Catherine Lepp1Zyled S. R. Maldonado2Davis Blasini3Kevin C. Grady4Catherine A. Gehring5Kevin R. Hultine6Thomas G. Whitham7Gerard J. Allan8Rebecca J. Best9School of Earth and Sustainability Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USASchool of Earth and Sustainability Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USASchool of Earth and Sustainability Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USASchool of Life Sciences Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USASchool of Forestry Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USADepartment of Biological Science Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USADepartment of Research, Conservation and Collections Desert Botanical Garden Phoenix Arizona USADepartment of Biological Science Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USADepartment of Biological Science Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USASchool of Earth and Sustainability Northern Arizona University Flagstaff Arizona USAABSTRACT Climate means and variability are shifting rapidly, leading to mismatches between climate and locally adapted plant traits. Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of a plant to respond to environmental conditions within a lifetime, may provide a buffer for plants to persist under increasing temperature and water stress. We used two reciprocal common gardens across a steep temperature gradient to investigate plasticity in six populations of Fremont cottonwood, an important foundation tree species in arid riparian ecosystems. We investigated two components of leaf hydraulic architecture: Leaf venation and stomatal morphology, both of which regulate leaf water potential and photosynthesis. These traits will likely affect plant performance under climate stressors, but it is unclear whether they are controlled by genetic or environmental factors and whether they respond to the environment in parallel or independent directions. We found that: (1) Populations had divergent responses to a hotter growing environment, increasing or decreasing vein density. (2) Populations showed surprisingly independent responses of venation vs. stomatal traits. (3) As a result of these different responses, plasticity in hydraulic architecture traits was not predictable from historic climate conditions at population source locations and often varied substantially within populations. (4) Hydraulic architecture was clearly linked to growth, with higher vein and stomatal density predicting greater tree growth in the hottest growing environment. However, higher plasticity in these traits did not increase average growth across multiple environments. Thus, P. fremontii populations and genotypes vary in their capacity to adjust their leaf hydraulic architecture and support growth in contrasting environments, but this plasticity is not clearly predictable or beneficial. Identifying genotypes suitable for future conditions will depend on the relative importance of multiple traits and on both evolutionary and ecological responses to changing temperature and water availability.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70683experimental common gardenphenotypic plasticitystomatal densityvein densityvenation network |
| spellingShingle | Iris J. Garthwaite Catherine Lepp Zyled S. R. Maldonado Davis Blasini Kevin C. Grady Catherine A. Gehring Kevin R. Hultine Thomas G. Whitham Gerard J. Allan Rebecca J. Best Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits Ecology and Evolution experimental common garden phenotypic plasticity stomatal density vein density venation network |
| title | Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits |
| title_full | Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits |
| title_fullStr | Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits |
| title_full_unstemmed | Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits |
| title_short | Plasticity in Hydraulic Architecture: Riparian Trees Respond to Increased Temperatures With Genotype‐Specific Adjustments to Leaf Traits |
| title_sort | plasticity in hydraulic architecture riparian trees respond to increased temperatures with genotype specific adjustments to leaf traits |
| topic | experimental common garden phenotypic plasticity stomatal density vein density venation network |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.70683 |
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