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A functional analysis of the crown architecture of tropical forest Psychotria species: do species vary in light capture efficiency and consequently in carbon gain and growth?

  • Ecophysiology
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Abstract

The crown architectures of 11 Psychotria species native to Barro Colorado Island, Panama were reconstructed from field measurements of leaf and branch geometry with the three-dimensional simulation model Y-plant. The objective was to assess the role of species differences in architecture in light capture and carbon gain in their natural understory environment. When species were grouped according to their putative light environment preference, the shade tolerant species were found to have a small but significantly higher efficiency of light capture for both diffuse and direct light as compared to the light demanding species. Within each grouping, however, there were few significant differences in light capture efficiency among species. The lower efficiencies of light demanding species was due to slightly higher self-shading and slightly lower angular efficiencies. Simulations of whole plant assimilation showed that light demanding species had greater daily assimilation in both direct and diffuse light due to the significantly greater light availability in the sites where light demanding species were found, as compared to those where shade tolerant species occurred. Among light demanding species, the above ground relative growth rate measured over a 1-year period by applying allometric equations for mass versus linear dimensions, was positively correlated with diffuse PFD and with mean daily assimilation estimated from Y-plant. For the shade tolerant plants, there was no significant correlation between RGR and mean daily assimilation or with any measure of light availability, probably because they occurred over a much narrower range of light environments. Overall, the results reveal a strong convergence in light capture efficiencies among the Psychotria species at lower values than previously observed in understory plants using similar approaches. Constraints imposed by other crown functions such as hydraulics and biomechanical support may place upper limits on light capture efficiency.

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Abbreviations

Ea :

Efficiency of light absorption (dimensionless)

Eadir:

Efficiency of direct light absorption (dimensionless)

Eadif:

Efficiency of diffuse light absorption (dimensionless)

DE :

Display efficiency (dimensionless)

PE :

Projection efficiency (dimensionless)

CosI :

Mean cosine of incidence (dimensionless)

aLAR e :

Effective leaf area ratio (m2 g−1)

Atot :

Daily assimilation (mmol m−2 day−1)

Adir :

Daily assimilation in direct PFD (mmol m−2 day−1)

Adif :

Daily assimilation in diffuse PFD (mmol m−2 day−1)

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by NSF Grant IBN 96–04424 and Mellon Foundation/Smithsonian Institution Fellowships to R.W.P. and F.V. We thank Zuleyka Maynard for her assistance in data collection and the staff of the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, Barro Colorado Island Station for their assistance and hospitality. We thank Kaoru Kitajima for helpful comments on an earlier draft.

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Author notes

  1. Eloisa Lasso de Paulis

    Present address: Department of Plant Biology, University of Illinois, 265 Morrill Hall, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Evolution and Ecology, Division of Biological Sciences, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA

    Robert W. Pearcy & Fernando Valladares

  2. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 2072, Balboa, Panama

    Robert W. Pearcy, Fernando Valladares, S. Joseph Wright & Eloisa Lasso de Paulis

  3. Centro de Ciencias Medioambientales, C.S.I.C., Serrano 115 dpdo., 28006, Madrid, Spain

    Fernando Valladares

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  1. Robert W. Pearcy
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  4. Eloisa Lasso de Paulis
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Correspondence to Robert W. Pearcy.

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Pearcy, R.W., Valladares, F., Wright, S.J. et al. A functional analysis of the crown architecture of tropical forest Psychotria species: do species vary in light capture efficiency and consequently in carbon gain and growth?. Oecologia 139, 163–177 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-004-1496-4

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