Abstract
Phytoliths were extracted from 14 woody plants collected on the northern slope of the Changbai Mountain, including 10 broad-leaved species and 4 conifers. A total of 14 morphotypes of phytoliths were identified, including 3 types first examined in this study. Phytoliths in broad-leaved species were mostly silicified epidermal cells, cell walls, and vascular tissues; phytoliths in conifers were mainly silicified epidermal cells, cell walls, hypodermal cells, and parenchyma cells. Phytoliths produced by broad-leaved species in this region were usually not well silicified, and were fragile, whereas those produced by conifers were better silicified; this might be because of the different lengths of the growth periods. Phytoliths were found have potential in studies of fluctuations of the tree line in this region, and this study also provided a reference for further study of phytoliths in this region and the regional contrast of phytolith assemblages.
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Acknowledgments
We are very thankful to Song Chuantao for his identification of plants and Professor Lu Jinfu for his valuable suggestions on this manuscript, and the constructive comments from the reviewer. This study was supported by the National Nature Science Foundation of China (No. 40971116).
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Ge, Y., Jie, D.M., Sun, Y.L. et al. Phytoliths in woody plants from the northern slope of the Changbai Mountain (Northeast China), and their implication. Plant Syst Evol 292, 55–62 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-010-0406-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00606-010-0406-y