Leaf morphological and physiological adaptations of a deciduous oak (Quercus faginea Lam.) to the Mediterranean climate: a comparison with a closely related temperate species (Quercus robur L.).
'White oaks'--one of the main groups of the genus Quercus L.--are represented in western Eurasia by the 'roburoid oaks', a deciduous and closely related genetic group that should have an Arcto-Tertiary origin under temperate-nemoral climates. Nowadays, roburoid oak species such as Quercus robur L. are still present in these temperate climates in Europe, but others are also present in southern Europe under Mediterranean-type climates, such as Quercus faginea Lam. We hypothesize the existence of a coordinated functional response at the whole-shoot scale in Q. faginea under Mediterranean conditions to adapt to more xeric habitats. The results reveal a clear morphological and physiological segregation between Q. robur and Q. faginea, which constitute two very contrasting functional types in response to climate dryness. The most outstanding divergence between the two species is the reduction in transpiring area in Q. faginea, which is the main trait imposed by the water deficit in Mediterranean-type climates. The reduction in leaf area ratio in Q. faginea should have a negative effect on carbon gain that is partially counteracted by a higher inherent photosynthetic ability of Q. faginea when compared with Q. robur, as a consequence of higher mesophyll conductance, higher maximum velocity of carboxylation and much higher stomatal conductance (gs). The extremely high gs of Q. faginea counteracts the expected reduction in gs imposed by the stomatal sensitivity to vapor pressure deficit, allowing this species to diminish water losses maintaining high net CO2 assimilation values along the vegetative period under nonlimiting soil water potential values. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates that Q. faginea can be regarded as an example of adaptation of a deciduous oak to Mediterranean-type climates.
Unidad de Recursos Forestales, Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria, Gobierno de Aragón, Avenida Montañana 930, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain.
José Javier
JJ
Peguero-Pina
Unidad de Recursos Forestales, Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria, Gobierno de Aragón, Avenida Montañana 930, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain.
Sergio
S
Sisó
Unidad de Recursos Forestales, Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria, Gobierno de Aragón, Avenida Montañana 930, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain.
Domingo
D
Sancho-Knapik
Irrigation and Crop Ecophysiology Group, Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Sevilla (IRNAS, CSIC), Avenida Reina Mercedes 10, 41012 Sevilla, Spain.
Antonio
A
Díaz-Espejo
Research Group on Plant Biology under Mediterranean Conditions, Departament de Biologia, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Carretera de Valldemossa, 07071 Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
Jaume
J
Flexas
Research Group on Plant Biology under Mediterranean Conditions, Departament de Biologia, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Carretera de Valldemossa, 07071 Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
Jeroni
J
Galmés
Unidad de Recursos Forestales, Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria, Gobierno de Aragón, Avenida Montañana 930, 50059 Zaragoza, Spain egilp@aragon.es.
Eustaquio
E
Gil-Pelegrín
D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism; D002980:Climate; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D058503:Mesophyll Cells / Q000502:physiology; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000378:metabolism; D010788:Photosynthesis; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D054046:Plant Stomata / Q000502:physiology; D029963:Quercus / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D011891:Rain; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase / Q000378:metabolism; D012621:Seasons; D013045:Species Specificity; D013696:Temperature; D055548:Vapor Pressure
D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase; D009584:Nitrogen
leaf area; roburoid oaks; stomatal conductance; vapor pressure deficit