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Bulletin of Botanical Research ›› 2023, Vol. 43 ›› Issue (6): 923-931.doi: 10.7525/j.issn.1673-5102.2023.06.014

• Physiology and Ecology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Ecological Stoichiometry and Homeostasis of Alpine Quercus semicarpifolia Leaves in Subalpine Zone of Hengduan Mountains

Hongbo LI1, Shi CHEN1, Yaohua HUANG1, Dingxu KANG1, Jianrong WU2, Huancheng MA1()   

  1. 1.Key Laboratory of Southwest Regional Biodiversity Conservation,National Forestry and Grassland Administration,Southwest Forestry University,Kunming 650224
    2.Key Laboratory of Forest Disaster Warning and Control in Yunnan Universities,School of Biodiversity Conservation,Southwest Forestry University,Kunming 650224
  • Received:2023-05-07 Online:2023-11-20 Published:2023-11-08
  • Contact: Huancheng MA E-mail:mhc@swfu.edu.cn
  • About author:LI Hongbo(1993—),male,postgraduate,mainly engaged in research on vegetation restoration and conservation.
  • Supported by:
    National Key Research and Development Program of China(2019YFD100200X);Yunnan Education Department Scientific Research Fund Industrialization Cultivation Project(2016CYH14);National Natural Science Foundation of China(31860208);Innovation Team of Kapok Fiber Plantation Industrialization Cultivation Province,Southwest Forestry University(2018HC014)

Abstract:

To reveal the ecological adaptation mechanism of Quercus semicarpifolia in the subalpine zone of the Hengduan Mountains, the leaves and growing soil of eight plots were selected, and the C, N and P contents and their stoichiometric characteristics of leaves and growing substrate soil were measured, and the growth-limiting elements were determined. The ecological stoichiometry homeostasis model was used to determine the state of the alpine Quercus leaves. The soil C, N and P contents of the selected eight plots ranged from 38.86-70.19, 3.54-9.46 and 0.61-2.05 g?kg-1, with soil ω(C)∶ω(N) 5.65-16.07, ω(C)∶ω(P) 36.98-74.42 and ω(N)∶ω(P) 4.41-12.90, mean values were 9.48, 51.79 and 6.54, respectively. Leaf C, N and P contents ranged from 428.31-473.86, 21.22-31.68 and 2.21-3.68 g?kg-1, leaf ω(C)∶ω(N), ω(C)∶ω(P), and ω(N)∶ω(P) were 14.16-22.46, 121.41-215.86 and 6.99-12.84, with mean values of 17.36, 164.39 and 9.68, respectively. The alpine Quercus leaf N and P contents were higher than the global average. Leaf N and soil P, leaf N and soil ω(C)∶ω(N), leaf ω(C)∶ω(P) and soil ω(N)∶ω(P), leaf ω(C)∶ω(N) and soil ω(N)∶ω(P), and leaf ω(C)∶ω(P) and leaf ω(N)∶ω(P) were highly significantly and positively correlated in each plot (P<0.01). In addition,the leaf stoichiometric homeostasis index of alpine Quercus were probed in terms of 1/H absolute values, while 1/Hω(N) was -0.181-0.141, 1/Hω(P) was -1.255-1.206, and 1/Hω(N)∶ω(P)] was 0.391-0.960. The results indicated that each alpine Quercus 1/Hω(N) was in the homeostasis state, 1/H ω(P) and 1/Hω(N)∶ω(P)] were mostly in the weakly homeostasis state, weakly sensitive and sensitive state. Leaf ω(N)∶ω(P) ratio was less than or close to 16, illustrating that alpine Quercus in this region tended to be not deficient in both N and P elements. Alpine Quercus might overstore N and P elements to adapt to the changing external habitat, but still had a more conservative strategy for the use of external P elements. The alpine Quercus forests in this region had formed a good nutrient supply and return relationship with the soil in the long-term succession process, which had formed a relatively complete and stable subalpine forest ecosystem.

Key words: alpine Quercus of HengDuan mountain, ecological stoichiometric characteristics, homeostasis, correlation, adaptive mechanisms of ecology

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