Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: Leaf mechanical properties strongly influence leaf lifespan, plant–herbivore interactions, litter decomposition and nutrient cycling, but global patterns in their interspecific variation and underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. We synthesize data across the three major measurement methods, permitting the first global analyses of leaf mechanics and associated traits, for 2819 species from 90 sites worldwide. Key measures of leaf mechanical resistance varied c. 500–800-fold among species. Contrary to a long-standing hypothesis, tropical leaves were not mechanically more resistant than temperate leaves. Leaf mechanical resistance was modestly related to rainfall and local light environment. By partitioning leaf mechanical resistance into three different components we discovered that toughness per density contributed a surprisingly large fraction to variation in mechanical resistance, larger than the fractions contributed by lamina thickness and tissue density. Higher toughness per density was associated with long leaf lifespan especially in forest understory. Seldom appreciated in the past, toughness per density is a key factor in leaf mechanical resistance, which itself influences plant–animal interactions and ecosystem functions across the globe.
Authors: Onoda, Yusuke, Westoby, Mark, Adler, Peter B., Choong, Amy M. F., Clissold, Fiona J., Cornelissen, Johannes H. C., Diaz, Sandra, Dominy, Nathaniel J., Elgart, Alison, Enrico, Lucas, Fine, Paul V. A., Howard, Jerome J., Jalili, Adel, Kitajima, Kaoru, Kurokawa, Hiroko, McArthur, Clare, Lucas, Peter W., Markesteijn, Lars, Pérez- Harguindeguy, Natalia, Poorter, Lourens, Richards, Lora, Santiago, Louis S., Sosinski Jr., Enio E., Van Bael, Sunshine A., Warton, David I., Wright, Ian J., Wright, S. Joseph, Yamashita, Nayuta
Institutions: Kyushu University, Macquarie University, Utah State University, Republic Polytechnic, The University of Sydney, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal, Dartmouth College, Florida Gulf Coast University, University of California, Berkeley, LSU New Orleans, Research Institute of Forests and Rangelands, University of Florida, Tohoku University, Kuwait University, Wageningen University & Research, University of California, Riverside, Embrapa Clima Temperado, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, UNSW Sydney, University of Southern California
Language: English
Subfield: Nature and Landscape Conservation
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7145492730