Hydroscapes, hydroscape plasticity, and relationships to plant
functional traits and mesophyll photosynthetic sensitivity in Eucalyptus
species
Abstract
The isohydric-anisohydric continuum describes the relative stringency of
stomatal control of leaf water potential ( ψleaf)
during drought. Hydroscape area ( HA) – the water potential
landscape over which stomata regulate ψleaf –
has emerged as a useful metric of the iso/anisohydric continuum because
it is strongly linked to several hydraulic, photosynthetic, and
structural traits. Previous research on HA focused on broad
ecological patterns involving several plant clades. Here we investigate
relationships of HA to climatic conditions and functional traits
across ecologically diverse but closely related species while accounting
for phylogeny. Across a macroclimatic moisture gradient, defined by the
ratio of mean annual precipitation to mean annual pan evaporation (
P/Ep), HA decreased with
P/Ep for ten Eucalyptus species. Greater
anisohydry reflects lower turgor loss points and greater hydraulic
safety, mirroring global patterns. More isohydric species have mesophyll
photosynthetic capacity that is more sensitive to
ψleaf, consistent with an earlier model for
optimal stomatal behavior. Hydroscapes exhibit little plasticity in
response to variation in water supply, and the extent of plasticity does
not vary with P/Ep of native habitats. These
findings strengthen the case that HA is a useful metric for
characterizing drought tolerance and water-status regulation.