Zhiqiang Wang1, Haiyan Bu2, Mingcheng Wang1, Heng Huang3, Karl J Niklas4. 1. Institute for Advanced Study, Chengdu University, Chengdu, China. 2. State Key Laboratory of Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China. 3. Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States. 4. Plant Biology Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States.
Abstract
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) play important roles in many aspects of plant biology. The allocation of N and P in plant vegetative organs (i.e., leaves, stems, and fine roots) is critical to the regulation of plant growth and development. However, how these elements are allocated in seeds is unclear. The aim of this study was to explore the N and P allocation strategies of seeds in an alpine meadow along an altitudinal gradient. We measured the seed N and P contents of 253 herbaceous species in 37 families along an altitudinal gradient (2,000-4,200 m) in the east Tibetan alpine meadow. The geometric means of seed N and P concentrations and N:P ratios were 34.81 mg g-1, 5.06 mg g-1, and 6.88, respectively. Seed N and P concentrations varied across major taxonomic groups and among different altitude zones. N:P ratios showed no significant variations among different taxonomic groups with the exception of N-fixing species. The numerical value of the scaling exponent of seed N vs. P was 0.73, thus approaching 3/4, across the entire data set, but varied significantly across major taxonomic groups. In addition, the numerical value of the scaling exponent of N vs. P declined from 0.88 in the high altitude zone to 0.63 in the low altitude zone. These results indicate that the variations in the numerical value of the scaling exponent governing the seed N vs. P scaling relationship varies as a function of major taxonomic groups and among different altitude zones. We speculate that this variation reflects different adaptive strategies for survival and germination in an alpine meadow. If true, the data presented here advance our understanding of plant seed allocation strategies, and have important implications for modeling early plant growth and development.
Nitrogen (N) and n>an class="Chemical">phosphorus (P) play important roles in many aspects of plant biology. The allocation of N and P in plant vegetative organs (i.e., leaves, stems, and fine roots) is critical to the regulation of plant growth and development. However, how these elements are allocated in seeds is unclear. The aim of this study was to explore the N and P allocation strategies of seeds in an alpine meadow along an altitudinal gradient. We measured the seed N and P contents of 253 herbaceous species in 37 families along an altitudinal gradient (2,000-4,200 m) in the east Tibetan alpine meadow. The geometric means of seed N and P concentrations and N:P ratios were 34.81 mg g-1, 5.06 mg g-1, and 6.88, respectively. Seed N and P concentrations varied across major taxonomic groups and among different altitude zones. N:P ratios showed no significant variations among different taxonomic groups with the exception of N-fixing species. The numerical value of the scaling exponent of seed N vs. P was 0.73, thus approaching 3/4, across the entire data set, but varied significantly across major taxonomic groups. In addition, the numerical value of the scaling exponent of N vs. P declined from 0.88 in the high altitude zone to 0.63 in the low altitude zone. These results indicate that the variations in the numerical value of the scaling exponent governing the seed N vs. P scaling relationship varies as a function of major taxonomic groups and among different altitude zones. We speculate that this variation reflects different adaptive strategies for survival and germination in an alpine meadow. If true, the data presented here advance our understanding of plant seed allocation strategies, and have important implications for modeling early plant growth and development.
Authors: James J Elser; Matthew E S Bracken; Elsa E Cleland; Daniel S Gruner; W Stanley Harpole; Helmut Hillebrand; Jacqueline T Ngai; Eric W Seabloom; Jonathan B Shurin; Jennifer E Smith Journal: Ecol Lett Date: 2007-10-06 Impact factor: 9.492