Significant Phylogenetic Signal and Climate-Related Trends in Leaf Caloric Value from Tropical to Cold-Temperate Forests.

ABSTRACT: Leaf caloric value (LCV) is a useful index to represent the conversion efficiency of leaves for solar energy. We investigated the spatial pattern of LCV and explored the factors (phylogeny, climate, and soil) that influence them at a large scale by determining LCV standardized by leaf area in 920 plant species from nine forest communities along the 3700 km North-South Transect of Eastern China. LCV ranged from 0.024 to 1.056 kJ cm^-2 with an average of 0.151 kJ cm^-2. LCV declined linearly with increasing latitude along the transect. Altogether, 57.29% of the total variation in LCV was explained by phylogenetic group (44.03% of variation), climate (1.27%), soil (0.02%) and their interacting effects. Significant phylogenetic signals in LCV were observed not only within f

SUBMITTER: Song G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5114554 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature