Traits controlling shade tolerance in tropical montane trees.

ABSTRACT: Tropical canopies are complex, with multiple canopy layers and pronounced gap dynamics contributing to their high species diversity and productivity. An important reason for this complexity is the large variation in shade tolerance among different tree species. At present, we lack a clear understanding of which plant traits control this variation, e.g., regarding the relative contributions of whole-plant versus leaf traits or structural versus physiological traits. We investigated a broad range of traits in six tropical montane rainforest tree species with different degrees of shade tolerance, grown under three different radiation regimes (under the open sky or beneath sparse or dense canopies). The two distinct shade-tolerant species had higher fractional biomass in leaves and branches wh

SUBMITTER: Ntawuhiganayo EB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7048680 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature