Species variability in growth response to light across climatic regions in northwestern British Columbia

1998 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 871-886 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine F Wright ◽  
K Dave Coates ◽  
Charles D Canham ◽  
Paula Bartemucci
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Shade Tolerance ◽  
Growth Response ◽  
High Light ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Climatic Regions ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species

We characterize variation in radial and height growth of saplings of 11 tree species across a range of light levels in boreal, sub-boreal, subalpine, and temperate forests of northwestern British Columbia. Shade-tolerant species had the greatest response to an increase in light at low-light levels but had low asymptotic growth at high light. Shade-intolerant species had weaker responses to increases at low light but had the highest growth rates at high light. The effects of climate on intraspecific variation in sapling response to light were also related to shade tolerance: across different climatic regions, the most shade-tolerant species varied in their response to low-light but not high light, while shade-intolerant species varied only in their high-light growth. Species with intermediate shade tolerance varied both their amplitude of growth at high light and the slope of the growth response at low light. Despite the interspecific trade-offs between high- and low-light growth, there was a striking degree of overlap in the light response curves for the component species in virtually all of the climatic regions. Successional dynamics in these forests appear to be more strongly governed by interspecific variation in sapling survival than growth.

scholarly journals The Responses of Light Reaction of Photosynthesis to Dynamic Sunflecks in a Typically Shade-Tolerant Species Panax notoginseng

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin-Yan Zhang ◽  
Qiang-Hao Zhang ◽  
Sheng-Pu Shuang ◽  
Zhu Cun ◽  
Hong-Min Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quantum Efficiency ◽  
Heat Dissipation ◽  
Electron Flow ◽  
Panax Notoginseng ◽  
High Light ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Light Reaction ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species ◽  
Quantum Efficiency Of Psii

Light is highly heterogeneous in natural conditions, and plants need to evolve a series of strategies to acclimate the dynamic light since it is immobile. The present study aimed to elucidate the response of light reaction of photosynthesis to dynamic sunflecks in a shade-tolerant species Panax notoginseng and to examine the regulatory mechanisms involved in an adaptation to the simulated sunflecks. When P. notoginseng was exposed to the simulated sunflecks, non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) increased rapidly to the maximum value. Moreover, in response to the simulated sunflecks, there was a rapid increase in light-dependent heat dissipation quantum efficiency of photosystem II (PSII) (ΦNPQ), while the maximum quantum yield of PSII under light (Fv′/Fm′) declined. The relatively high fluorescence and constitutive heat dissipation quantum efficiency of PSII (Φf,d) in the plants exposed to transient high light (400, 800, and 1,600 μmol m–2 s–1) was accompanied by the low effective photochemical quantum yield of PSII (ΦPSII) after the dark recovery for 15 min, whereas the plants exposed to transient low light (50 μmol m–2 s–1) has been shown to lead to significant elevation in ΦPSII after darkness recovery. Furthermore, PSII fluorescence and constitutive heat dissipation electron transfer rate (Jf,d) was increased with the intensity of the simulated sunflecks, the residual absorbed energy used for the non-net carboxylative processes (JNC) was decreased when the response of electron transfer rate of NPQ pathway of PSII (JNPQ) to transient low light is restricted. In addition, the acceptor-side limitation of PSI [Y(NA)] was increased, while the donor-side limitation of photosystems I (PSI) [Y(ND)] was decreased at transient high light conditions accompanied with active cyclic electron flow (CEF). Meanwhile, when the leaves were exposed to transient high light, the xanthophyll cycle (V cycle) was activated and subsequently, the JNPQ began to increase. The de-epoxidation state [(Z + A)/(V + A + Z)] was strongly correlated with NPQ in response to the sunflecks. In the present study, a rapid engagement of lutein epoxide (Lx) after the low intensity of sunfleck together with the lower NPQ contributed to an elevation in the maximum photochemical quantum efficiency of PSII under the light. The analysis based on the correlation between the CEF and electron flow devoted to Ribulose-1, 5-bisphosphate (RuBP) oxygenation (JO) indicated that at a high light intensity of sunflecks, the electron flow largely devoted to RuBP oxygenation would contribute to the operation of the CEF. Overall, photorespiration plays an important role in regulating the CEF of the shade-tolerant species, such as P. notoginseng in response to transient high light, whereas active Lx cycle together with the decelerated NPQ may be an effective mechanism of elevating the maximum photochemical quantum efficiency of PSII under light exposure to transient low light.

Are resources allocated differently to symbiosis and reproduction in Geranium sylvaticum under different light conditions?

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarkko Korhonen ◽  
Minna-Maarit Kytöviita ◽  
Pirkko Siikamäki
Keyword(s):  
Resource Allocation ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Light Availability ◽  
Growing Season ◽  
High Light ◽  
Mycorrhizal Colonization ◽  
Fungal Colonization ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Dark Septate Fungi

Light levels under the forest canopy are low and generally limit plant photosynthetic gains. We hypothesized that in low-light habitats, plant photosynthate acquisition is too low to allow the same magnitude of resource allocation to symbiosis and reproduction as in high-light habitats. We tested this hypothesis in a field study where Geranium sylvaticum L. plants were collected on three occasions during the growing season from shade and light habitats. In addition, we investigated the relationship between mycorrhizal colonization level and soil nutrient levels in shade and high-light habitats over a growing season. We found that light availability affects resource allocation in G. sylvaticum. Plants were intensively colonized with both arbuscular mycorrhizal and dark septate fungi, and the colonization intensities of these two different groups of fungi correlated positively with each other. In comparison with high-light meadows, mycorrhizal colonization levels were as high or higher in low-light forest habitats, but plants produced fewer flowers. This indicates that allocation to symbiosis was of higher priority than allocation to reproduction in low light. Seed size was not affected by light levels and did not correlate with fungal colonization levels. We found no relationship between fungal colonization levels and soil characteristics.Key words: arbuscular mycorrhiza, dark septate fungi, Geranium sylvaticum, reproduction, shade.

Does carbon storage confer waterlogging tolerance? Evidence from four evergreen species of a temperate rainforest

2018 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 74 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Delgado ◽  
A. Zúñiga-Feest ◽  
F. I. Piper
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Storage ◽  
Shade Tolerance ◽  
Soluble Sugars ◽  
Carbon Limitation ◽  
Waterlogging Tolerance ◽  
Evergreen Species ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species ◽  
Structural Carbohydrate ◽  
Leaf Chlorophyll Fluorescence

Deep shade and waterlogging are two common stressors affecting seedling performance in the understorey of evergreen rainforests. It has been hypothesised that high levels of carbon storage confer shade- and waterlogging tolerances by preventing carbon limitation under such stresses. Whether the tolerance to both stresses is positively or negatively related remains unclear. To explore the role of carbon storage in the relationships of waterlogging and shade tolerance, we investigated the responses to waterlogging and the levels of carbon storage in two species pairs with contrasting shade tolerance: Embothrium coccineum J.R.Forst.&G.Forst. and Gevuina avellana Mol. (Proteaceae) and Nothofagus dombeyi (Mirb.) Oerst. and Nothofagus nitida (Phil.) Krasser (Nothofagaceae). We subjected seedlings to waterlogging or control conditions for 30 days and evaluated survival, relative growth rate (RGR), biomass distribution, leaf chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm), and concentrations of total soluble sugars, starch and non-structural carbohydrates in different plant tissues. Waterlogging reduced survival, Fv/Fm and RGR in all species; however, the magnitude of reduction of Fv/Fm and RGR was significantly higher in the shade-intolerant species than in their shade-tolerant counterparts. In general, shade-intolerant species had significantly higher non-structural carbohydrate concentrations in waterlogging than in control conditions. By contrast, shade-tolerant species had similar non-structural carbohydrate concentrations under both conditions. Our results indicate that relatively shade-tolerant species performed better under waterlogging. A reduction in non-structural carbohydrates under waterlogging was not observed in any of studied species; rather, shade-intolerant species exhibited non-structural carbohydrate accumulation suggesting that carbon storage does not confer waterlogging tolerance in these species.

scholarly journals Wide-field motion tuning in nocturnal hawkmoths

2009 ◽  
Vol 277 (1683) ◽  
pp. 853-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie C. Theobald ◽  
Eric J. Warrant ◽  
David C. O'Carroll
Keyword(s):  
Manduca Sexta ◽  
Light Sensitivity ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Visually Guided ◽  
Temporal Acuity ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Spatial Frequencies ◽  
Deilephila Elpenor

Nocturnal hawkmoths are known for impressive visually guided behaviours in dim light, such as hovering while feeding from nectar-bearing flowers. This requires tight visual feedback to estimate and counter relative motion. Discrimination of low velocities, as required for stable hovering flight, is fundamentally limited by spatial resolution, yet in the evolution of eyes for nocturnal vision, maintenance of high spatial acuity compromises absolute sensitivity. To investigate these trade-offs, we compared responses of wide-field motion-sensitive neurons in three species of hawkmoth: Manduca sexta (a crepuscular hoverer), Deilephila elpenor (a fully nocturnal hoverer) and Acherontia atropos (a fully nocturnal hawkmoth that does not hover as it feeds uniquely from honey in bees' nests). We show that despite smaller eyes, the motion pathway of D. elpenor is tuned to higher spatial frequencies and lower temporal frequencies than A. atropos , consistent with D. elpenor 's need to detect low velocities for hovering. Acherontia atropos , however, presumably evolved low-light sensitivity without sacrificing temporal acuity. Manduca sexta , active at higher light levels, is tuned to the highest spatial frequencies of the three and temporal frequencies comparable with A. atropos . This yields similar tuning to low velocities as in D. elpenor , but with the advantage of shorter neural delays in processing motion.

Interspecific variation in the response of growth, crown morphology, and survivorship to light of six tree species in the conifer belt of the Bhutan Himalayas

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 1093-1107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georg Gratzer ◽  
Andras Darabant ◽  
Purna B Chhetri ◽  
Prem Bahadur Rai ◽  
Otto Eckmüllner
Keyword(s):  
Tree Species ◽  
Radial Growth ◽  
Interspecific Variation ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Continuous Growth ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species ◽  
Lower Light ◽  
Crown Morphology ◽  
Changing Light

The responses of radial and height growth, plant architecture, and the probability of mortality of saplings to varying light levels were quantified for six tree species in temperate conifer forests of the Bhutan Himalayas. Increases in growth with increasing light were comparable with those of high latitude tree species but lower than those of tropical tree species and temperate species in North America. The shade-tolerant species Tsuga dumosa (D. Don.) Eichler showed the strongest increase in radial growth at low light and reached asymptotic growth early. It had the deepest crowns in low light and a low decrease of leader growth with decreasing light. It represents a continuous growth type, which invests in height rather than lateral growth under low light conditions. Betula utilis D. Don. showed greater increases in radial growth and a higher mortality at low light than the more shade-tolerant Abies densa Griff., in keeping with the trade-off between survivorship and growth at low light. Picea spinulosa Griff, Larix griffithiana Carriére, and Pinus wallichiana A.B. Jackson showed small increases in growth at low light levels. The latter two species showed no capacity to adapt their morphology in response to changing light levels, which resulted in higher probabilities of mortality at lower light levels. Differences in the probability of mortality at different light levels were more pronounced than differences in the light-growth response, underlining the importance of survivorship at low light for successional dynamics.

A note on shade tolerance and vegetative propagation of woodland species

1976 ◽  
Vol 192 (1107) ◽  
pp. 257-258 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Production ◽  
Vegetative Propagation ◽  
Shade Tolerance ◽  
Habitat Conditions ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species

Evidence is provided to show that, for many ‘shade tolerant’ species vegetative modes of increase may compensate for meagre seed-production which may be imposed by the habitat conditions.

Matched filtering in the visual system of the fly : large monopolar cells of the lamina are optimized to detect moving edges and blobs

1990 ◽  
Vol 240 (1298) ◽  
pp. 279-293 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Receptive Field ◽  
Receptive Fields ◽  
High Light ◽  
Vertical Stripe ◽  
Ambient Light ◽  
Low Light ◽  
Temporal Properties ◽  
Light Levels ◽  
Spatio Temporal ◽  
Temporal Inhibition

At high levels of ambient light, large monopolar cells (LMCS) display spatially antagonistic receptive fields and a biphasic response to a brief flash of light from an axially positioned point source. In low ambient light the response becomes monophasic everywhere within the receptive field. Using the theory of matched filters, we infer that the LMCS are optimal for the detection of moving edges at high light levels, and for ‘blobs’ in low ambient light. The spatio-temporal properties predicted by the theory are in agreement with experimental observation. At high light levels, the strong temporal inhibition, the weak, diffuse lateral inhibition, and the non-separability of the receptive field in space and time are all properties that promote the sensitivity to a moving edge. At low light levels, the lack of spatial or temporal antagonism enhances the sensitivity to a blob. Our hypothesis is reinforced by the observation that flies tend to walk toward the edges of a broad, dark vertical stripe at high light levels, but uniformly toward all regions within the stripe in low ambient light.

Characterizing shade tolerance by the relationship between mortality and growth in tree saplings in a southeastern Texas forest

2001 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-349
Author(s):  
Jie Lin ◽  
Paul A Harcombe ◽  
Mark R Fulton
Keyword(s):  
Survival Analysis ◽  
Mortality Risk ◽  
Shade Tolerance ◽  
Mesic Forest ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species ◽  
Zero Growth ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
The Relationship

We investigated the relationship between shade tolerance and sapling mortality using data collected over 15 years in a mesic forest in southeastern Texas. Seven species representing a range of shade-tolerance classes were included in the study. We used survival analysis to estimate species-specific sapling mortality risk (hazard) as a function of recent growth. We found that shade-intolerant species had higher mortality risk at zero growth than shade-tolerant species. The results strongly support the point that shade tolerance can be characterized by the relationship between sapling mortality and growth.

Effects of suppression and release on sapling growth for 11 tree species of northern, interior British Columbia

2000 ◽  
Vol 30 (10) ◽  
pp. 1571-1580 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine F Wright ◽  
Charles D Canham ◽  
K D Coates
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Populus Tremuloides ◽  
Tree Species ◽  
Light Level ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Partial Cutting ◽  
Tolerant Species ◽  
Shade Tolerant Species ◽  
Sapling Growth ◽  
Over Time

Saplings of canopy tree species frequently undergo alternating periods of suppression and release before reaching canopy size. In this study, we document the effects of periods of suppression and release on current responses to variation in light by saplings of the 11 major tree species of northwestern, interior British Columbia. We were specifically interested in the degree to which increasing length of suppression had long-term effects on subsequent response to release in gaps or following partial cutting, and the degree to which the effects of suppression were ameliorated with time following release. At least some saplings of all 11 species had undergone alternating periods of suppression and release. The most shade-tolerant species generally did not show either a decline in growth over time during suppression or a gradual increase in growth at a given light level over time during release. The least shade-tolerant species exhibited significant declines in growth rate during suppression; however, in all of the species except trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.), the effects of suppression disappeared over time during release. Failure to account for the effects of past suppression and release leads to significant overestimates of the initial responses of shade-intolerant species to release. Our results suggest that competitive balances between species shift substantially over time as a result of growth history and that these shifts have significant effects on successional patterns.

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