Traditional plant functional groups explain variation in economic but not size-related traits across the tundra biome.

ABSTRACT:

Aim

Plant functional groups are widely used in community ecology and earth system modelling to describe trait variation within and across plant communities. However, this approach rests on the assumption that functional groups explain a large proportion of trait variation among species. We test whether four commonly used plant functional groups represent variation in six ecologically important plant traits.

Location

Tundra biome.

Time period

Data collected between 1964 and 2016.

Major taxa studied

295 tundra vascular plant species.

Methods

We compiled a database of six plant traits (plant height, leaf area, specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, leaf nitrogen, seed mass) for tundra species. We examined the variation in species-level trait expressio

SUBMITTER: Thomas HJD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6472633 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature