The Physiological Effect of a Holoparasite Over a Cactus Along an Environmental Gradient.

ABSTRACT: Echinopsis chiloensis is an endemic cactus from Chile, distributed in a temperature and rainfall gradient between 30° and 35° South latitude, with mean temperatures increasing and precipitation decreasing toward the north. It is the main host of the mistletoe Tristerix aphyllus, a holoparasite completely dependent on the cactus for water, carbon, and minerals. In this study, we investigated the consequences of parasitism over the fitness and physiology of this cactus throughout its distribution range and how it is affected by the environment. We measured five functional traits in eight populations latitudinally distributed, the first three only for the host: reproductive fitness, stomatal traits (density and size), and photosynthesis (during winter and summer); and the last t

SUBMITTER: Ossa CG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8636672 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature