RESUMO
Plant species of the Brazilian Caatinga experience seasonal wet and dry extremes, requiring seasonally different leaf characteristics for optimizing water availability. We investigated if Croton blanchetianus Baill exhibits leaf morphoanatomical traits across seasons and positioning in sunlight/natural shade. Leaves of ten 1-3 m tall plants in full sunlight and ten in natural shade were assessed in May, July (wet season), October and December (dry season) 2015 for gas exchange, leaf size, lamina and midrib cross sections (14 parameters), and chloroplast structure (5 parameters). Net photosynthesis was greater during the wet season (21.6 µm-2 s-1) compared to the dry season (5.8 µm-2 s-1) and was strongly correlated with almost all measured parameters (p < 0.01). Shaded leaves in the wet season had higher specific leaf area (19.9 m2 kg-1 in full-sun and 23.1 m2 kg-1 in shade), but in the dry season they did not differ from those in full sun (7.5 m2 kg-1 and 7.2 m2 kg-1). In the wet season, the expansion of the adaxial epidermis and mesophyll lead to larger and thicker photosynthetic area of leaves. Furthermore, chloroplast thickness, length and area were also significantly larger in full sunlight (2.1 µm, 5.1 µm, 15.2 µm2; respectively) and shaded plants (2.0 µm, 5.2 µm, 14.8 µm2; respectively) during wetter months. Croton blanchetianus exhibits seasonal plasticity in leaf structure, presumably to optimize water use efficiency during seasons of water abundance and deficit. These results suggest that the species is adaptable to the increased drought stress projected by climate change scenarios.
Assuntos
Adaptação Fisiológica , Croton/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Folhas de Planta/crescimento & desenvolvimento , Chuva , Estações do Ano , Brasil , Croton/anatomia & histologia , Secas , Florestas , Folhas de Planta/anatomia & histologiaRESUMO
Arid and semi-arid environments correspond to one-third of the Earth's terrestrial surface. In these environments, precipitation is an essential and limiting element for vegetation growth and ecosystem biomass productivity. The semi-arid region of Brazil comprises around 11.5% of the national territory, where the Caatinga biome originally composed ~ 76% of this area, with water deficit as a prominent feature, annual rainfall lower than 800 mm, temperatures ranging between 25 and 30 °C, and potential evapotranspiration higher than 2000 mm/year. Research on the dynamics of mass and heat fluxes through techniques such as eddy covariance (EC) has contributed to estimate the magnitude and seasonal patterns of turbulent exchanges between ecosystems and the atmosphere. This study was conducted in an area of dense Caatinga (DC) and another of sparse Caatinga (SC) from 2013 to 2014. It was observed that albedo (α) and net radiation (Rn) were higher in the SC compared with DC since the magnitude of incoming shortwave radiation was higher in this area. It was found that most of the Rn is converted to sensible heat flux (H), mainly during the dry period in the SC, about 50% for H and 20% for λE. The energy balance closure showed that the turbulent fluxes (H + λE) were underestimated in comparison to the available energy at the surface (Rn - G). We also observed that this discrepancy was higher in the DC area, corresponding to ~ 30%.
Assuntos
Ecossistema , Monitoramento Ambiental , Brasil , Florestas , Estações do AnoRESUMO
Forest ecosystems sequester large amounts of atmospheric CO2, and the contribution from seasonally dry tropical forests is not negligible. Thus, the objective of this study was to quantify and evaluate the seasonal and annual patterns of CO2 exchanges in the Caatinga biome, as well as to evaluate the ecosystem condition as carbon sink or source during years. In addition, we analyzed the climatic factors that control the seasonal variability of gross primary production (GPP), ecosystem respiration (Reco) and net ecosystem CO2 exchange (NEE). Results showed that the dynamics of the components of the CO2 fluxes varied depending on the magnitude and distribution of rainfall and, as a consequence, on the variability of the vegetation state. Annual cumulative NEE was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in 2014 (-169.0 g C m-2) when compared to 2015 (-145.0 g C m-2) and annual NEP/GPP ratio was 0.41 in 2014 and 0.43 in 2015. Global radiation, air and soil temperature were the main factors associated with the diurnal variability of carbon fluxes. Even during the dry season, the NEE was at equilibrium and the Caatinga acted as an atmospheric carbon sink during the years 2014 and 2015.