Herbivory may modify functional responses to shade in seedlings of a light-demanding tree species

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dc.contributor.authorSalgado-Luarte, Cristian
dc.contributor.authorGianoli, Ernesto
dc.date.accessioned2025-01-21T00:02:00Z
dc.date.available2025-01-21T00:02:00Z
dc.date.issued2011
dc.description.abstractP>1. The ability to display functional responses to shading, i.e. phenotypic changes that enhance plant performance in low light, is fundamental for plant success in forest communities. Herbivory may constrain plant functional responses to shading and this could explain the often observed lower plant tolerance of herbivore damage in the shade.
dc.description.abstract2. We carried out a field trial and a greenhouse experiment to evaluate whether simulated herbivory (i) causes greater fitness losses in the shade, and (ii) modifies plant functional responses to shading. Changes in functional traits were measured at the biochemical, leaf, shoot and whole-plant levels, in seedlings of the light-demanding evergreen tree Aristotelia chilensis (Elaeocarpaceae), which is endemic to South American austral forests.
dc.description.abstract3. We hypothesized that plant responses to shade would be constrained by herbivory due to within-plant limitations in resource availability and/or antagonistic interactions between responses to shade and herbivory. We further expected that this limitation would result in a greater field mortality of damaged plants in forest understory as compared to open sites.
dc.description.abstract4. Simulated herbivory (50% defoliation) on field seedlings decreased 8-month plant survival in the shade (forest understory) but not in the sun (canopy gaps) in a temperate rainforest. Likewise, simulated herbivory in the greenhouse decreased plant growth rate and final biomass in the shade treatment but not in the sun treatment.
dc.description.abstract5. The phenotypic responses to shading of seven traits were constrained by simulated herbivory: chlorophyll, leaf shape, leaf blade angle, petiole angle, SLA (specific leaf area), internodes length and total leaf area. A path-analysis showed that most of these constrained responses were uncorrelated to each other. Some of these results might be explained by antagonistic interactions between molecules or pathways involved in plant responses to shading and herbivory. Four functional traits exhibited greater responses to shading in damaged plants: A(max) (Photosynthetic rate), foliar carbon, shoot : root ratio and LMR (leaf mass ratio); but most of them resulted from correlated changes in SLA.
dc.description.abstract6. The present study undertook a mechanistic approach to the often observed pattern of greater impact of herbivore damage on plant performance in low light environments. The central finding of this study is that the unraveling of herbivory-constrained plant functional responses to shading may explain the often observed greater fitness losses due to herbivory in the shade. It is also suggested that herbivory pressure is an underestimated factor in pioneer species distribution along the light gradient.
dc.fuente.origenWOS
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/j.1365-2435.2010.01763.x
dc.identifier.issn0269-8463
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2435.2010.01763.x
dc.identifier.urihttps://repositorio.uc.cl/handle/11534/95405
dc.identifier.wosidWOS:000290174500007
dc.issue.numero3
dc.language.isoen
dc.pagina.final499
dc.pagina.inicio492
dc.revistaFunctional ecology
dc.rightsacceso restringido
dc.subjectAristotelia chilensis
dc.subjectconstraints
dc.subjectdistribution
dc.subjectfoliar damage
dc.subjectlight gradient
dc.subjectlow light
dc.subjectphenotypic plasticity
dc.subjecttemperate rainforest
dc.subject.ods15 Life on Land
dc.subject.ods14 Life Below Water
dc.subject.odspa15 Vida de ecosistemas terrestres
dc.subject.odspa14 Vida submarina
dc.titleHerbivory may modify functional responses to shade in seedlings of a light-demanding tree species
dc.typeartículo
dc.volumen25
sipa.indexWOS
sipa.trazabilidadWOS;2025-01-12
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