Leaf Functional Traits of Invasive Grasses Conferring High-Cadmium Adaptation Over Natives.

ABSTRACT: Heavy metal (HM) contamination resulting from industrialization and urbanization during the Anthropocene along with plant invasion can severely threaten the growth and adaptation of local flora. Invasive alien plant species generally exhibit a growth pattern consistent with their functional traits in non-contaminated environments in the introduced range. However, it remains unclear whether invasive alien plants have an advantage over native plants in contaminated environments and whether this growth pattern is dependent on the adaptation of their leaf functional traits. Here, we selected two congeneric pairs of invasive alien and native grasses that naturally co-exist in China and are commonly found growing in contaminated soil. To evaluate the effect of cadmium (Cd) on the structural and

SUBMITTER: Ilyas M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9202595 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature