Leaf macro-and micro-morphological altitudinal variability of Carpinus betulus in the Hyrcanian forest (Iran)

编号 zgly0000818197

文献类型 期刊论文

文献题名 Leaf macro-and micro-morphological altitudinal variability of Carpinus betulus in the Hyrcanian forest (Iran)

作者 Iman  Chapolagh  Paridari  Seyed  Gholamali  Jalali  Ali  Sonboli  Mehrdad  Zarafshar  Piero  Bruschi 

作者单位 Department  of  Forestry  Department  of  Biology 

母体文献 林业研究: 英文版 

年卷期 2013(2)

页码 301-307

年份 2013 

分类号 S 

关键词 adaptation  elevational  transect  leaf  mountain  forest  stomata 

文摘内容 We investigated the altitudinal variation of Carpinus betulus L. in the Hyrcanian forest using leaf macro-morphological and micro-morphological traits. We collected a total of 1600 leaves from two locations. In each location, we sampled six populations along an altitudinal gradient ranging from 100 m to 1,150 m. We found that trees in the higher elevations have smaller leaf lamina than those in the lower elevations. In contrast, leaf mass per area was high at low altitudes and increased newly at the higher ones. Stomatal dimension was negatively correlated with elevation, while stomatal density was positively correlated with elevation. We also found that two transects showed the same plasticity trend. Leaf area showed the highest plasticity, while the number of veins showed the lowest plasticity. This study shows that altitude, and related temperature and rainfall, represents an important driving force in Carpinus betulus leaf morphological variation. Moreover, our results suggest that leaf area, leaf mass per area and stomatal density could influence the species responses to different ecological conditions.