Rooting depth and xylem vulnerability are independent woody plant traits jointly selected by aridity, seasonality, and water table depth

Laughlin, Daniel C.; Siefert, Andrew; Fleri, Jesse R.; Tumber-Dávila, Shersingh Joseph; Hammond, William M.; Sabatini, Francesco Maria; Damasceno, Gabriella; Aubin, Isabelle; Field, Richard; Hatim, Mohamed Z.; Jansen, Steven; Lenoir, Jonathan; Lens, Frederic; McCarthy, James K.; Niinemets, Ülo; Phillips, Oliver L.; Attorre, Fabio; Bergeron, Yves; Bruun, Hans Henrik; Byun, Chaeho; Ćušterevska, Renata; Dengler, Jürgen; De Sanctis, Michele; Dolezal, Jiri; Jiménez-Alfaro, Borja; Hérault, Bruno; Homeier, Jürgen; Kattge, Jens; Meir, Patrick; Mencuccini, Maurizio; Noroozi, Jalil; Nowak, Arkadiusz; Peñuelas, Josep; Schmidt, Marco; Škvorc, Željko; Sultana, Fahmida; Ugarte, Rosina Magaña; Bruelheide, Helge

Abstract

Evolutionary radiations of woody taxa within arid environments were made possible by multiple trait innovations including deep roots and embolism-resistant xylem, but little is known about how these traits have coevolved across the phylogeny of woody plants or how they jointly influence the distribution of species. We synthesized global trait and vegetation plot datasets to examine how rooting depth and xylem vulnerability across 188 woody plant species interact with aridity, precipitation seasonality, and water table depth to influence species occurrence probabilities across all biomes. Xylem resistance to embolism and rooting depth are independent woody plant traits that do not exhibit an interspecific trade-off. Resistant xylem and deep roots increase occurrence probabilities in arid, seasonal climates over deep water tables. Resistant xylem and shallow roots increase occurrence probabilities in arid, nonseasonal climates over deep water tables. Vulnerable xylem and deep roots increase occurrence probabilities in arid, nonseasonal climates over shallow water tables. Lastly, vulnerable xylem and shallow roots increase occurrence probabilities in humid climates. Each combination of trait values optimizes occurrence probabilities in unique environmental conditions. Responses of deeply rooted vegetation may be buffered if evaporative demand changes faster than water table depth under climate change.

Citation

Laughlin, D. C., Siefert, A., Fleri, J. R., Tumber-Dávila, S. J., Hammond, W. M., Sabatini, F. M., Damasceno, G., Aubin, I., Field, R., Hatim, M. Z., Jansen, S., Lenoir, J., Lens, F., McCarthy, J. K., Niinemets, Ü., Phillips, O. L., Attorre, F., Bergeron, Y., Bruun, H. H., Byun, C., …Bruelheide, H. (2023). Rooting depth and xylem vulnerability are independent woody plant traits jointly selected by aridity, seasonality, and water table depth. New Phytologist, https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.19276

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Aug 29, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Sep 24, 2023
• Publication Date: Sep 24, 2023
• Deposit Date: Oct 11, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 25, 2024
• Journal: New Phytologist
• Print ISSN: 0028-646X
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-8137
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.19276
• Keywords: water availability, species distribution modeling, cavitation, drought resistant, drought avoider, trees, embolism
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/25395541
• Publisher URL: https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/nph.19276
• Additional Information: Received: 2023-07-05; Accepted: 2023-08-29; Published: 2023-09-24