Variation in photosynthetic traits related to access to water in semiarid Australian woody species

Nolan, RH; Tarin, T; Fairweather, KA; Cleverly, J; Eamus, D

Variation in photosynthetic traits related to access to water in semiarid Australian woody species

Nolan, RH

Tarin, T Fairweather, KA Cleverly, J

Eamus, D

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Functional Plant Biology, 2017, 44 (11), pp. 1087 - 1097
Issue Date:: 2017-01-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Nolan, RH https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9277-5142	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Tarin, T	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Fairweather, KA	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Cleverly, J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2731-7150	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Eamus, D https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2765-8040	en_US
dc.date.issued	2017-01-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Functional Plant Biology, 2017, 44 (11), pp. 1087 - 1097	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	1445-4408	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/123553
dc.description.abstract	© 2017 CSIRO. Low soil water content can limit photosynthesis by reducing stomatal conductance. Here, we explore relationships among traits pertaining to carbon uptake and pre-dawn leaf water potential (as an index of soil water availability) across eight species found in semiarid central Australia. We found that as pre-dawn leaf water potential declined, stomatal limitations to photosynthesis increased, as did foliar nitrogen, which enhanced photosynthesis. Nitrogen-fixing Acacia species had higher foliar nitrogen concentrations compared with non-nitrogen fixing species, although there was considerable variability of traits within the Acacia genus. From principal component analysis we found that the most dissimilar species was Acacia aptaneura Maslin&J.E.Reid compared with both Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. and Corymbia opaca. (D.J.Carr & S.G.M.Carr)K.D.Hill&L.A.S.Johnson, having both the largest foliar N content, equal largest leaf mass per area and experiencing the lowest pre-dawn water potential of all species. A. aptaneura has shallow roots and grows above a hardpan that excludes access to groundwater, in contrast to E. camaldulensis and C. opaca, which are known to access groundwater. We conclude that ecohydrological niche separation is an important factor driving the variability of within-biome traits related to carbon gain. These observations have important implications for global vegetation models, which are parameterised with many of the traits measured here, but are often limited by data availability.	en_US
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP140101150
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/
dc.relation.ispartof	Functional Plant Biology	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1071/FP17096	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Plant Biology & Botany	en_US
dc.title	Variation in photosynthetic traits related to access to water in semiarid Australian woody species	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	11	en_US
utslib.citation.volume	44	en_US
utslib.for	0607 Plant Biology	en_US
utslib.for	0601 Biochemistry and Cell Biology	en_US
utslib.for	0602 Ecology	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Science/School of Life Sciences
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.issue	11	en_US
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	44	en_US

Abstract:

© 2017 CSIRO. Low soil water content can limit photosynthesis by reducing stomatal conductance. Here, we explore relationships among traits pertaining to carbon uptake and pre-dawn leaf water potential (as an index of soil water availability) across eight species found in semiarid central Australia. We found that as pre-dawn leaf water potential declined, stomatal limitations to photosynthesis increased, as did foliar nitrogen, which enhanced photosynthesis. Nitrogen-fixing Acacia species had higher foliar nitrogen concentrations compared with non-nitrogen fixing species, although there was considerable variability of traits within the Acacia genus. From principal component analysis we found that the most dissimilar species was Acacia aptaneura Maslin&J.E.Reid compared with both Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. and Corymbia opaca. (D.J.Carr & S.G.M.Carr)K.D.Hill&L.A.S.Johnson, having both the largest foliar N content, equal largest leaf mass per area and experiencing the lowest pre-dawn water potential of all species. A. aptaneura has shallow roots and grows above a hardpan that excludes access to groundwater, in contrast to E. camaldulensis and C. opaca, which are known to access groundwater. We conclude that ecohydrological niche separation is an important factor driving the variability of within-biome traits related to carbon gain. These observations have important implications for global vegetation models, which are parameterised with many of the traits measured here, but are often limited by data availability.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/123553