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Leaf toughness is a better predictor of herbivory and plant performance than leaf mass per area (LMA) in temperate evergreens

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Abstract

The mechanical strengthening of leaves protects seedlings from herbivore damage, particularly in shade-tolerant evergreens. Interspecific studies have shown that leaf mass per area (LMA) and leaf toughness (force-to-punch) can play this role. Here we compared the influence of LMA and leaf toughness on herbivory and plant performance in a temperate rainforest. In seedlings of 14 evergreen species, we addressed the across-species relationship between LMA and force-to-punch, and compared the strength of their associations with herbivory and with species’ light requirements. Moreover, in four understory species we performed a multivariate analysis within-species, analogue to phenotypic selection analysis, evaluating the correlation between seedling performance, estimated as chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm), and force-to-punch, LMA, lamina density and lamina thickness. LMA and force-to-punch were positively associated across species. Herbivory was negatively correlated with both force-to-punch and LMA, but a stepwise multiple regression showed that force-to-punch was a better predictor of herbivory. Neither leaf lamina density nor thickness were associated with herbivore damage. Those species that were more shade-tolerant had leaves with higher force-to-punch and higher LMA, and less slender seedlings. In the within-species analyses in four shade-tolerant species, seedling performance was generally positively associated with force-to-punch, but not with LMA, lamina thickness, or lamina density. Both interspecific and within-species analyses showed that force-to-punch is more strongly related to herbivore damage and plant performance than LMA. This consistency between interspecific patterns of trait covariation and within-species trait-performance associations suggests that natural selection could have shaped the relationships between mechanical traits and ecological roles observed across species.

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Acknowledgements

We thank CONAF (National Forestry Corporation) for granting permits to work in Puyehue National Park. We are grateful to Y. Alcayaga, A. Vigil and K. Madriaza for help with fieldwork. VME was supported by FONDECYT 3200434.

Funding

This study was funded by FONDECYT (Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico) grants 1140070 and 1180334 awarded to EG.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Biología, Universidad de La Serena, Casilla 554, La Serena, Chile

    Ernesto Gianoli

  2. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Investigación en Ciencia y Tecnología, Universidad de La Serena, La Serena, Chile

    Cristian Salgado-Luarte

  3. Instituto de Investigación Interdisciplinaria, Universidad de Talca, Talca, Chile

    Víctor M. Escobedo

  4. Centro de Ecología Integrativa, Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Talca, Talca, Chile

    Víctor M. Escobedo

  5. Centro de Investigación para la Sustentabilidad, Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andrés Bello, Santiago, Chile

    Gisela C. Stotz

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  1. Ernesto Gianoli
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  2. Cristian Salgado-Luarte
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  3. Víctor M. Escobedo
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  4. Gisela C. Stotz
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Conceptualization, EG; methodology, EG, CSL, VME, GCS; formal analysis, EG, VME; data curation, EG, VME; writing—original draft preparation, EG; writing—review and editing, EG, CSL, VME, GCS; funding acquisition, EG.

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Correspondence to Ernesto Gianoli.

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Gianoli, E., Salgado-Luarte, C., Escobedo, V.M. et al. Leaf toughness is a better predictor of herbivory and plant performance than leaf mass per area (LMA) in temperate evergreens. Evol Ecol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10682-024-10298-0

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