Tropical tree diversity enhances light capture through crown plasticity and spatial and temporal niche differences

Light partitioning is often invoked as a mechanism for positive plant diversity effects on ecosystem functioning. Yet evidence for an improved distribution of foliage in space or time in diverse plant communities remains scarce, and restricted mostly to temperate grasslands. Here we identify the mec...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Ecology (Durham) 2014-09, Vol.95 (9), p.2479-2492
Main Authors:	Sapijanskas, Jurgis, Paquette, Alain, Potvin, Catherine, Kunert, Norbert, Loreau, Michel
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Architecture Biodiversity Biodiversity and Ecology biomass production crown ecosystem functioning Ecosystems Environmental Sciences Forest ecology Forest ecosystems Genotype & phenotype Grasslands intraspecific diversity leaves light competition mechanistic models methodology niche differences overyielding Phenology phenotypic plasticity Plant biodiversity plant communities Plant ecology plantation Rainforests Sardinilla project, Panama space and time Species Species diversity tree Trees tropical forests
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Summary:	Light partitioning is often invoked as a mechanism for positive plant diversity effects on ecosystem functioning. Yet evidence for an improved distribution of foliage in space or time in diverse plant communities remains scarce, and restricted mostly to temperate grasslands. Here we identify the mechanisms through which tree species diversity affects community-level light capture in a biodiversity experiment with tropical trees that displays overyielding, i.e., enhanced biomass production in mixtures. Using a combination of empirical data, mechanistic models, and statistical tools, we develop innovative methods to test for the isolated and combined effects of architectural and temporal niche differences among species as well as plastic changes in crown shape within species. We show that all three mechanisms enhanced light capture in mixtures and that temporal niche differences were the most important driver of this result in our seasonal tropical system. Our study mechanistically demonstrates that niche differences and phenotypic plasticity can generate significant biodiversity effects on ecosystem functioning in tropical forests.
ISSN:	0012-9658 1939-9170