Field experiments have enhanced our understanding of drought impacts on terrestrial ecosystems—But where do we go from here?

Functional Ecology, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 38(1), P. 76 - 97

Published: Oct. 31, 2023

Abstract We review results from field experiments that simulate drought, an ecologically impactful global change threat is predicted to increase in magnitude, extent, duration and frequency. Our goal address, primarily ecosystem perspective, the questions ‘What have we learned drought experiments?’ ‘Where do go here?’. Drought are among most numerous climate manipulations been deployed across a wide range of biomes, although conducted short‐statured, water‐limited ecosystems. Collectively, these enabled ecologists quantify negative responses occur for aspects structure function. Multiple meta‐analyses also comparisons relative effect sizes hundreds sites, particularly carbon cycle metrics. Overall, provided strong evidence sensitivity increases with aridity, but plant traits associated aridity not necessarily predictive resistance. There intriguing as magnitude or extreme levels, strategies may shift tolerance escape/avoidance. highlight three areas where more needed advance our understanding. First, because intensifying multiple ways, address alterations versus duration, timing and/or frequency (individually interactively). Second, drivers be shifting—from precipitation deficits rising atmospheric demand water—and disentangling how ecosystems respond changes hydrological ‘supply demand’ critical understanding impacts future. Finally, attention should focussed on post‐drought recovery periods since legacies can affect functioning much longer than itself. conclude call fundamental focus those designed ‘response experiments’, quantifying function, ‘mechanistic experiments’—those explicitly manipulate ecological processes attributes thought underpin responses. Read free Plain Language Summary this article Journal blog.

Language: Английский

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Linking water‐use strategies with drought resistance across herbaceous crops

Physiologia Plantarum, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 176(1)

Published: Jan. 1, 2024

Abstract Woody plants minimize xylem embolism formation during drought essentially by closing stomata at higher water potentials and/or increasing the resistance to embolism. Both of these mechanisms result in a stomatal safety margin (SSM), which is potential difference between closure and formation. Here, we investigated whether SSM represents mechanism for herbaceous how different water‐use strategies impact their survival. For that, exposed four crops with contrasting severe deficit assess drought‐induced damage mortality. Unlike woody species, was not associated plant survival crops. Soybean, presented largest across (1.67 MPa), exhibited earliest mortality leaves whole as well highest rate (100%) end period. Cowpea, an 0.63 MPa, most drought‐resistant latest leaf (100%). The effective traits ensuring under were those related avoidance such (1) early closure, (2) very low residual transpiration post‐stomatal (3) high capacitance pre‐ post‐turgor loss.

Language: Английский

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Functional traits and their plasticity shift from tolerant to avoidant under extreme drought

Ecology, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 103(12)

Published: July 20, 2022

Abstract Under climate change, extreme droughts will limit water availability for plants. However, the species‐specific responses make it difficult to draw general conclusions. We hypothesized that changes in species' abundance response drought can be best explained by a set of economic traits under ambient conditions combination with ability adjust these towards higher resistance. conducted 4‐year field experiment temperate grasslands using rainout shelters 30% and 50% rainfall reduction. quantified as change species between Abundance was their functional adjustment, most likely reflecting plasticity. Smaller leaved decreased less drought. With increasing intensity, we observed shift from tolerance, i.e., an increase leaf dry matter content, avoidance, negative turgor loss point (TLP) constancy TLP stress importance multidimensional approach variation multiple considering range intensities improve predictions change.

Language: Английский

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Genetic dissection of drought resistance for trait improvement in crops

The Crop Journal, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 11(4), P. 975 - 985

Published: June 22, 2023

Reliance on agriculture for food security is a constant in all modern societies. Global climate change and population growth have put immense pressure sustainable agriculture, exacerbating the effects of environmental stresses. Drought one most pressing abiotic stresses that farmers face, presenting an annual threat to crop yield. Crops evolved extensive morphological, physiological, molecular mechanisms combat drought stress. resistance polygenic trait, controlled by complex genetic network array genes working together ensure plant survival. Many studies aimed at dissecting underlying resistance. Recent using linkage association mapping made progress identifying variations affect drought-resistance traits. These loci may potentially be engineered transformation genome editing developing new, stress-resistant cultivars. Here we summarize recent elucidating basis Molecular-breeding technologies such as marker-assisted selection, gene transformation, are currently employed develop drought-resistant germplasm variety crops. advances basic research biotechnology covered this review will facilitate delivery crops with unprecedented efficiency.

Language: Английский

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Enhanced growth resistance but no decline in growth resilience under long‐term extreme droughts

Global Change Biology, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 30(1)

Published: Nov. 21, 2023

Abstract The frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme droughts, with devastating impacts on tree growth survival, have increased climate change over the past decades. Assessing resistance resilience to drought is a crucial prerequisite for understanding responses forest functioning events. However, droughts different durations across climatic zones remain unclear. Here, we investigated spatiotemporal patterns in response during 1901–2015, relying tree‐ring chronologies from 2389 stands mid‐ high‐latitudinal Northern Hemisphere, species‐specific plant functional traits, diverse factors. findings revealed that under 1‐year were higher humid regions than arid regions. Significant was observed 2‐year both regions, while did not show significant difference. Temporally, became less resistant resilient 1980–2015 1901–1979 As lengthened, predominant factors weakened instead foliar economic hydraulic soil properties much more important regions; addition, such trends also temporally. Finally, found most Earth system models (ESMs) used this study overestimated underestimated droughts. A comprehensive ecophysiological longer intensified events urgently needed, specific emphasis should be placed improving performance ESMs.

Language: Английский

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Impact of coppicing on microclimate and understorey vegetation diversity in an ancient Mediterranean oak forest

The Science of The Total Environment, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 918, P. 170531 - 170531

Published: Feb. 2, 2024

Coppicing is one of the oldest silvicultural practices and still widely applied to produce renewable energy from broadleaf forests. However, consequences on microclimate understorey vegetation are poorly understood, especially in Mediterranean oak With ongoing changes climate system global biodiversity loss, a better understanding how forest temperature buffering capacity below-canopy plant community impacted by coppicing crucial. Here we quantify adjacent ancient coppice-with-standards high stands dominated oaks Italy, where these systems have been for long time. Air soil temperatures were recorded 2.5 years, nested plots used analyse effects species composition, taxonomic, phylogenetic, functional diversity. significantly reduced capacity. The mean daily maximum over entire period was 1.45 °C higher coppiced sites, whereas minimum 0.62 lower than forest. increased richness favouring generalist taxa, but decreased proportion specialists. forests consisted more warm-adapted species. Moreover, also led loss phylogenetic evenness shifts diversity weighted Leaf Dry Matter content, pointing habitat filtering acclimation processes. In sum, show that affects understory direction can exacerbate change, negatively affecting specialist flora its evenness.

Language: Английский

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Variations in the plasticity of functional traits indicate the differential impacts of abiotic and biotic factors on the structure and growth of trees in tropical dry forest fragments

Frontiers in Plant Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 14

Published: Jan. 25, 2024

Abiotic and biotic factors have considerable impact on the plasticity of plant functional traits, which influences forest structure productivity; however, their inter-relationships not been quantified for fragmented tropical dry (TDF) ecosystems. We asked following questions: (1) what are variations in traits due to soil moisture availability TDF fragments? (2) roles nutrients disturbances influencing (3) how do influence productivity Based linear mixed-effects results, we observed significant among tree species content (SMC) under canopy selected across fragments. categorized fragments by principal component analysis (PCA) hierarchical clustering components (HCPC) analyses into three types, viz ., low wood density high deciduous (LWHD), medium (HWMD), (HWLD). Assemblage suggested that LWHD type exhibits a drought-avoiding strategy, whereas HWMD HWLD adopt drought-tolerant strategy. Our study showed trait structural attributes trees types exhibit contrasting affinity with SMC, nutrients, disturbances, although was comparatively more influenced resources compared along declining SMC edge distance gradients. Plasticity exhibited greater associated conservation water resources, HWLD, exhibiting were linked higher transport. The cumulative also visible relative abundance large small sized further revealed critical differences responses coexisting TDF, suggests important endemic strategies might be prone strategic exclusion expected rises anthropogenic habitat fragmentation, resource limitations.

Language: Английский

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Introduction of broadleaf tree species can promote the resource use efficiency and gross primary productivity of pure forests

Plant Cell & Environment, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 47(12), P. 5252 - 5264

Published: Aug. 23, 2024

Long-term pure forest (PF) management and successive planting has result resulted in "low-efficiency artificial forests" large areas. However, controversy persists over the promoting effect of introduction broadleaf tree species on production efficiency PF. This study hypothesised that introduced can significantly promote both water-nutrient use gross primary productivity (GPP)of Tree ring chronologies, water source, GPP were analysed coniferous Cunninghamia lanceolata broadleaved Phoebe zhennan growing past three decades. The P. into C. plantations inter-specific competition for water, probably because similarity main source these two species. absorbed more with a higher nutrient level from 40-60-cm soil layer mixed forests (MF). Although co-existing limited basal area increment growth rates MF plots, acquisition dissolved nutrients fertile topsoil enhanced; this increased plots. To achieve better ecological benefits GPP, MFs should be constructed southern China.

Language: Английский

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Climate factors dominate the elevational variation in grassland plant resource utilization strategies

Frontiers in Plant Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 15

Published: Aug. 7, 2024

Specific leaf area (SLA) and dry matter content (LDMC) are key functional traits often used to reflect plant resource utilization strategies predict responses environmental changes. In general, grassland plants at different elevations exhibit varying survival strategies. However, it remains unclear how adapt changes in elevation their driving factors. To address this issue, we utilized SLA LDMC data of from 223 study sites China, along with climate soil data, investigate variations elevational gradients dominant influencing factors employing linear mixed-effects models, variance partitioning method, piecewise Structural Equation Modeling, etc. The results show that increasing elevation, significantly decreases, increases (

Language: Английский

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Belowground niche partitioning is maintained under extreme drought

Ecology, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 105(1)

Published: Oct. 28, 2023

Belowground niche partitioning presents a key mechanism for maintaining species coexistence and diversity. Its importance is currently reinforced by climate change that alters soil hydrological conditions. However, experimental tests examining the magnitude of its under are scarce. We combined measurements oxygen stable isotopes to infer plant water-uptake depths extreme drought manipulation in grasslands. was evidenced different co-occurring ambient conditions despite an increased overlap among due shift shallower layers drought. A co-occurrence contrasting strategies related depth distribution likely be maintain some extent belowground could contribute stabilizing Our results suggest mitigate negative effects on diversity imposed future climate.

Language: Английский

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