Carolina S. Oliveira, João V. S. Messeder, Tatiana Cornelissen, Fernando A. O. Silveira
{"title":"土壤肥力和叶片性状驱动昆虫食草性在热带草原-稀树草原-森林梯度上的变化","authors":"Carolina S. Oliveira, João V. S. Messeder, Tatiana Cornelissen, Fernando A. O. Silveira","doi":"10.1111/jvs.70074","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div>\n \n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Question</h3>\n \n <p>Understanding the interplay between plant functional traits and abiotic factors in shaping observed differences in herbivory across broad environmental gradients remains a central challenge in plant community ecology. We assessed the relative contributions of environmental factors, such as soil properties and nutrient availability, and leaf functional traits in governing insect herbivory levels across a tropical grassland-savanna-forest gradient.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Location</h3>\n \n <p>Espinhaço Range, southeastern Brazil.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Methods</h3>\n \n <p>We sampled soils and leaf functional traits in 72 species from 30 families in <i>campo rupestre</i> grassland, cerrado, and gallery forests during the end of the rainy season. Our design provides a useful model to study herbivory along environmental gradients because it accounts for and corrects for variations in climate, latitude, and elevation. In each site, 2500 sampled leaves were collected, pressed, oven-dried at 70°C for 72 h, and scanned to obtain the percentage of leaf area removed by chewing insects.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Results</h3>\n \n <p>Grassland species showed the lowest SLA values, followed by the cerrado, while forest plants had the highest values. SLA correlated positively with soil fertility (PC1: high soil N, P, organic matter, and cation-exchange capacity) and negatively with PC2 (associated with lower Ca and base saturation). Consistently, forest plants showed higher insect herbivory compared to those from the cerrado and the grassland, and herbivory levels were also correlated with soil characteristics.</p>\n </section>\n \n <section>\n \n <h3> Conclusions</h3>\n \n <p>Among-habitat differences highlight the influence of soil fertility on plant functional traits and herbivory levels, indicating that plants on more fertile soils, such as in forests, are more likely to grow fast but also experience higher levels of herbivory compared to those in less fertile environments. This relationship underscores the importance of considering soil fertility in studies of plant–herbivore interactions and highlights the role of environmental gradients in shaping these dynamics.</p>\n </section>\n </div>","PeriodicalId":49965,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Vegetation Science","volume":"36 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7000,"publicationDate":"2025-10-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jvs.70074","citationCount":"0","resultStr":"{\"title\":\"Soil Fertility and Leaf Traits Drive Insect Herbivory Variation Across a Tropical Grassland-Savanna-Forest Gradient\",\"authors\":\"Carolina S. Oliveira, João V. S. Messeder, Tatiana Cornelissen, Fernando A. O. Silveira\",\"doi\":\"10.1111/jvs.70074\",\"DOIUrl\":null,\"url\":null,\"abstract\":\"<div>\\n \\n \\n <section>\\n \\n <h3> Question</h3>\\n \\n <p>Understanding the interplay between plant functional traits and abiotic factors in shaping observed differences in herbivory across broad environmental gradients remains a central challenge in plant community ecology. We assessed the relative contributions of environmental factors, such as soil properties and nutrient availability, and leaf functional traits in governing insect herbivory levels across a tropical grassland-savanna-forest gradient.</p>\\n </section>\\n \\n <section>\\n \\n <h3> Location</h3>\\n \\n <p>Espinhaço Range, southeastern Brazil.</p>\\n </section>\\n \\n <section>\\n \\n <h3> Methods</h3>\\n \\n <p>We sampled soils and leaf functional traits in 72 species from 30 families in <i>campo rupestre</i> grassland, cerrado, and gallery forests during the end of the rainy season. Our design provides a useful model to study herbivory along environmental gradients because it accounts for and corrects for variations in climate, latitude, and elevation. In each site, 2500 sampled leaves were collected, pressed, oven-dried at 70°C for 72 h, and scanned to obtain the percentage of leaf area removed by chewing insects.</p>\\n </section>\\n \\n <section>\\n \\n <h3> Results</h3>\\n \\n <p>Grassland species showed the lowest SLA values, followed by the cerrado, while forest plants had the highest values. SLA correlated positively with soil fertility (PC1: high soil N, P, organic matter, and cation-exchange capacity) and negatively with PC2 (associated with lower Ca and base saturation). Consistently, forest plants showed higher insect herbivory compared to those from the cerrado and the grassland, and herbivory levels were also correlated with soil characteristics.</p>\\n </section>\\n \\n <section>\\n \\n <h3> Conclusions</h3>\\n \\n <p>Among-habitat differences highlight the influence of soil fertility on plant functional traits and herbivory levels, indicating that plants on more fertile soils, such as in forests, are more likely to grow fast but also experience higher levels of herbivory compared to those in less fertile environments. 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Soil Fertility and Leaf Traits Drive Insect Herbivory Variation Across a Tropical Grassland-Savanna-Forest Gradient
Question
Understanding the interplay between plant functional traits and abiotic factors in shaping observed differences in herbivory across broad environmental gradients remains a central challenge in plant community ecology. We assessed the relative contributions of environmental factors, such as soil properties and nutrient availability, and leaf functional traits in governing insect herbivory levels across a tropical grassland-savanna-forest gradient.
Location
Espinhaço Range, southeastern Brazil.
Methods
We sampled soils and leaf functional traits in 72 species from 30 families in campo rupestre grassland, cerrado, and gallery forests during the end of the rainy season. Our design provides a useful model to study herbivory along environmental gradients because it accounts for and corrects for variations in climate, latitude, and elevation. In each site, 2500 sampled leaves were collected, pressed, oven-dried at 70°C for 72 h, and scanned to obtain the percentage of leaf area removed by chewing insects.
Results
Grassland species showed the lowest SLA values, followed by the cerrado, while forest plants had the highest values. SLA correlated positively with soil fertility (PC1: high soil N, P, organic matter, and cation-exchange capacity) and negatively with PC2 (associated with lower Ca and base saturation). Consistently, forest plants showed higher insect herbivory compared to those from the cerrado and the grassland, and herbivory levels were also correlated with soil characteristics.
Conclusions
Among-habitat differences highlight the influence of soil fertility on plant functional traits and herbivory levels, indicating that plants on more fertile soils, such as in forests, are more likely to grow fast but also experience higher levels of herbivory compared to those in less fertile environments. This relationship underscores the importance of considering soil fertility in studies of plant–herbivore interactions and highlights the role of environmental gradients in shaping these dynamics.
期刊介绍：
The Journal of Vegetation Science publishes papers on all aspects of plant community ecology, with particular emphasis on papers that develop new concepts or methods, test theory, identify general patterns, or that are otherwise likely to interest a broad international readership. Papers may focus on any aspect of vegetation science, e.g. community structure (including community assembly and plant functional types), biodiversity (including species richness and composition), spatial patterns (including plant geography and landscape ecology), temporal changes (including demography, community dynamics and palaeoecology) and processes (including ecophysiology), provided the focus is on increasing our understanding of plant communities. The Journal publishes papers on the ecology of a single species only if it plays a key role in structuring plant communities. Papers that apply ecological concepts, theories and methods to the vegetation management, conservation and restoration, and papers on vegetation survey should be directed to our associate journal, Applied Vegetation Science journal.
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