Variation in leaf wettability traits along a tropical montane elevation gradient

ASNER, GREGORY P.; CHAMBI-PORROA, PERCY; BLONDER, BENJAMIN; BENTLEY, LISA PATRICK; ENQUIST, BRIAN J.; CASTRO-CCOSSCO, ROSA; SALINAS, NORMA; GOLDSMITH, GREGORY R.; MALHI, YADVINDER; DIAZ, SANDRA; MARTIN, ROBERTA E.; SHENKIN, ALEXANDER

NEW PHYTOLOGIST

WILEY-BLACKWELL PUBLISHING, INC

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2017 vol. 214 p. 989 - 1001

0028-646X

SummaryLeaf wetting is often considered to have negative effects on plant function, such that wetenvironments may select for leaves with certain leaf surface, morphological, and architecturaltraits that reduce leaf wettability. However, there is growing recognition that leaf wetting canhave positive effects.We measured variation in two traits, leaf drip tips and leaf water repellency, in a series ofnine tropical forest communities occurring along a 3300-m elevation gradient in southernPeru. To extend this climatic gradient, we also assembled published leaf water repellency val-ues from 17 additional sites. We then tested hypotheses for how these traits should vary as afunction of climate.Contrary to expectations, we found that the proportion of species with drip tips did notincrease with increasing precipitation. Instead, drip tips increased with increasing temperature.Moreover, leaf water repellency was very low in our sites and the global analysis indicatedhigh repellency only in sites with low precipitation and temperatures.Our findings suggest that drip tips and repellency may not solely reflect the negative effectsof wetting on plant function. Understanding the drivers of leaf wettability traits can provideinsight into the effects of leaf wetting on plant, community, and ecosystem function