Uso del Georadar como herramienta de fenotipado del sistema radical de especies forestales

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Circadian rhythms have significant effects on leaf-to-canopy scale gas exchange under field conditions

Background Molecular clocks drive oscillations in leaf photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, and other cell and leaf-level processes over ∼24 h under controlled laboratory conditions. The influence of such circadian regulation over whole-canopy fluxes remains uncertain; diurnal CO2 and H2O vapor flux dynamics in the field are currently interpreted as resulting almost exclusively from direct physiological responses to variations in light, temperature and other environmental factors. We tested whether circadian regulation would affect plant and canopy gas exchange at the Montpellier European Ecotron. Canopy and leaf-level fluxes were constantly monitored under field-like environmental conditions, and under constant environmental conditions (no variation in temperature, radiation, or other environmental cues). Results We show direct experimental evidence at canopy scales of the circadian regulation of daytime gas exchange: 20–79 % of the daily variation range in CO2 and H2O fluxes occurred under circadian entrainment in canopies of an annual herb (bean) and of a perennial shrub (cotton). We also observed that considering circadian regulation improved performance by 8–17 % in commonly used stomatal conductance models. Conclusions Our results show that circadian controls affect diurnal CO2 and H2O flux patterns in entire canopies in field-like conditions, and its consideration significantly improves model performance. Circadian controls act as a ‘memory’ of the past conditions experienced by the plant, which synchronizes metabolism across entire plant canopies

Climate at the onset of western Mediterranean agriculture expansion: Evidence from stable isotopes of sub-fossil oak tree rings in Spain

Climate conditions during the early Holocene may have contributed to the spread of Old World agriculture from its area of birth, in the Fertile Crescent (Near East), west through the Mediterranean Basin. Reconstructing the specific environmental conditions existing in early agricultural settlements of the western Mediterranean may help to elucidate this point. The aim of this work was to gain information on past climate of one of the earliest agricultural settlements of the Iberian Peninsula, La Draga, a lacustrine site dating back to the 2nd half of the 8th millennium BP, in which post fragments of deciduous oak have been exceptionally well preserved in an anaerobic environment (sub-fossil wood). We studied the relationship between climate factors and carbon isotope discrimination (Δ13C) and oxygen isotope composition (δ18O) in wood α-cellulose from modern tree-ring series of Quercus humilis Mill. and Quercus petraea (Matt) Liebl. recovered from the area. Climatic responses observed in extant material were used to interpret the isotopic signal of wood α-cellulose extracted from sub-fossil wood. Results showed that water availability of late spring, early summer and September influences Δ13C and δ18O, which allows their use as proxies for palaeoclimatic reconstruction. Differences between sub-fossil and extant samples in Δ13C (19.35 vs. 18.02‰) and δ18O (26.32 vs. 29.28‰) records suggest slightly lower temperatures and higher plant water availability than at present during the establishment of agriculture at the site. These results seem to disprove the existence of an environmental limitation preventing continuation of hunting and gathering activities as a cause for the adoption of agriculture in this early agricultural site on the Iberian Peninsula

Plasticidad fenotípica y variación genética en eficiencia en uso del agua en Pinus sylvestris

En poblaciones forestales la importancia de la plasticidad fenotípica y la adaptación genética como mecanismos de respuesta intra-específica frente a cambios ambientales resulta de compleja cuantificación. Se ha estudiado dicha relevancia en Pinus sylvestris para una característica funcional de trascendencia en ambientes con limitación hídrica: la eficiencia en el uso del agua (EUA, carbono fijado por unidad de agua transpirada). La plasticidad fenotípica se determinó mediante muestreo de 28 rodales próximos al límite meridional de distribución de la especie (Pirineos) característicos de la variabilidad edafoclimática presente en la zona y supuestamente similares en propiedades adaptativas. La variación adaptativa se evaluó en un ensayo de procedencias con poblaciones españolas y alemanas (Aragüés, Huesca). EUA se estimó mediante isótopos (δ13C). En el primer caso se detectaron diferencias en δ13C entre rodales cercanas al 3‰, lo que sugiere una plasticidad en EUA superior al 25%. En el segundo, se observaron diferencias genéticas únicamente entre los dos grupos de poblaciones, con valores ligeramente superiores de EUA en los orígenes alemanes (~5%). Estos resultados sugieren que la plasticidad en la regulación del carbono fijado respecto al agua transpirada supera ampliamente a la variación intra-específica como estrategia de respuesta en Pinus sylvestris frente a fluctuaciones ambientales.Este trabajo se ha desarrollado en el marco del proyecto FUTURPIN (AGL2015-68274-C3-3-R). Los autores agradecen la asistencia técnica de M.J. Pau, M. Sala, P. Sopeña y A. Teixidó.Variación intra-específicaPino silvestreAdaptaciónEconomía del carbonoIsótopos estable

Pre- and post-drought conditions drive resilience of Pinus halepensis across its distribution range

International audienceSevere droughts limit tree growth and forest productivity worldwide, a phenomenon which is expected to aggravate over the next decades. However, how drought intensity and climatic conditions before and after drought events modulate tree growth resilience remains unclear, especially when considering the range-wide phenotypic variability of a tree species.We gathered 4632 Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis Mill.) tree-ring width series from 281 sites located in 11 countries across the Mediterranean basin, representing the entire geographic and bioclimatic range of the species. For each site and year of the period 1950–2020, we quantified tree-growth resilience and its two components, resistance and recovery, to account for the impact of drought and the capacity to recover from it. Relative drought intensity of each year was assessed using SPEI (Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index), a climatic water deficit index. Generalized additive mixed models were used to explore the non-linear relationships between resilience and its two components and drought intensity, preceding and following years climatic conditions.We found that P. halepensis radial growth was highly dependent on the SPEI from September of the previous year to June of the current year. Trees growing under more arid bioclimates showed higher inter-annual growth variability and were more sensitive to drought, resulting in an increased response magnitude to pre-, during and post-drought conditions. In contrast to our expectations, drought intensity only slightly affected resilience, which was rather negatively affected by favorable preceding conditions and improved by favorable following conditions.Resilience and its components are highly dependent on preceding and following years climatic conditions, which should always be taken into account when studying growth response to drought. With the observed and predicted increase in drought frequency, duration and intensity, favorable conditions following drought episodes may become rare, thus threatening the future acclimation capacity of P. halepensis in its current distribution