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Cold adaptation drives variability in needle structure and anatomy in Pinus sylvestris L. along a 1,900 km temperate-boreal transect

Jankowski, Artur ; Wyka, Tomasz P. ; Zytkowiak, Roma ; Nihlgård, Bengt LU ; Reich, Peter B. and Oleksyn, Jacek (2017) In Functional Ecology 31(12). p.2212-2223
Abstract

Occupancy of cold habitats by evergreen species requires structural modification of photosynthetic organs for stress resistance and longevity. Such modifications have been described at interspecific level, while intraspecific variation has been underexplored. To identify structural and anatomical traits that may be adaptive in cold environments, we studied intraspecific variability of needles of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), a wide-ranging tree, along a 1,900 km temperate-boreal transect in Europe. Needles from 20 sites representing mean minimum winter temperatures between -4.0 and -19.9°C and mean annual temperatures between 8.3 and -1.7°C were sampled for measurements of leaf mass per area (LMA, g/m2), leaf density (LD,... (More)

Occupancy of cold habitats by evergreen species requires structural modification of photosynthetic organs for stress resistance and longevity. Such modifications have been described at interspecific level, while intraspecific variation has been underexplored. To identify structural and anatomical traits that may be adaptive in cold environments, we studied intraspecific variability of needles of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), a wide-ranging tree, along a 1,900 km temperate-boreal transect in Europe. Needles from 20 sites representing mean minimum winter temperatures between -4.0 and -19.9°C and mean annual temperatures between 8.3 and -1.7°C were sampled for measurements of leaf mass per area (LMA, g/m2), leaf density (LD, g/cm3) and 30 other morpho-anatomical traits. Needles from cold sites lived longer, were shorter, showed higher LMA and LD, had narrower and more collapse-resistant tracheids, thicker epidermal cells with thicker cell walls and wider resin ducts occupying larger fraction of needle volume in comparison to needles from warmer sites. Along the steep climatic gradient, needles presented a coordinated phenotypic spectrum of external and internal traits that are largely interpretable in functional, adaptive terms. This intraspecific pattern of covarying traits provides insight into the adaptive syndrome associated with stress tolerance and extended needle longevity under cold conditions of high latitudes. A plain language summary is available for this article.

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author
; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Anatomical variation, Foliar tracheids, Leaf economic spectrum, Leaf longevity, Resin ducts
in
Functional Ecology
volume
31
issue
12
pages
2212 - 2223
publisher
Wiley-Blackwell
external identifiers
  • wos:000416896700002
  • scopus:85029004899
ISSN
0269-8463
DOI
10.1111/1365-2435.12946
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
22cd5d36-db14-472c-a9ee-3504a2c9895b
date added to LUP
2017-09-28 09:22:52
date last changed
2024-10-14 13:46:38
@article{22cd5d36-db14-472c-a9ee-3504a2c9895b,
  abstract     = {{<p>Occupancy of cold habitats by evergreen species requires structural modification of photosynthetic organs for stress resistance and longevity. Such modifications have been described at interspecific level, while intraspecific variation has been underexplored. To identify structural and anatomical traits that may be adaptive in cold environments, we studied intraspecific variability of needles of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), a wide-ranging tree, along a 1,900 km temperate-boreal transect in Europe. Needles from 20 sites representing mean minimum winter temperatures between -4.0 and -19.9°C and mean annual temperatures between 8.3 and -1.7°C were sampled for measurements of leaf mass per area (LMA, g/m<sup>2</sup>), leaf density (LD, g/cm<sup>3</sup>) and 30 other morpho-anatomical traits. Needles from cold sites lived longer, were shorter, showed higher LMA and LD, had narrower and more collapse-resistant tracheids, thicker epidermal cells with thicker cell walls and wider resin ducts occupying larger fraction of needle volume in comparison to needles from warmer sites. Along the steep climatic gradient, needles presented a coordinated phenotypic spectrum of external and internal traits that are largely interpretable in functional, adaptive terms. This intraspecific pattern of covarying traits provides insight into the adaptive syndrome associated with stress tolerance and extended needle longevity under cold conditions of high latitudes. A plain language summary is available for this article.</p>}},
  author       = {{Jankowski, Artur and Wyka, Tomasz P. and Zytkowiak, Roma and Nihlgård, Bengt and Reich, Peter B. and Oleksyn, Jacek}},
  issn         = {{0269-8463}},
  keywords     = {{Anatomical variation; Foliar tracheids; Leaf economic spectrum; Leaf longevity; Resin ducts}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{12}},
  pages        = {{2212--2223}},
  publisher    = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
  series       = {{Functional Ecology}},
  title        = {{Cold adaptation drives variability in needle structure and anatomy in Pinus sylvestris L. along a 1,900 km temperate-boreal transect}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.12946}},
  doi          = {{10.1111/1365-2435.12946}},
  volume       = {{31}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}