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Morphological and Anatomical Features of Plantago maritima L. as an Adaptive Reaction to the Conditions of Coastal Biotopes

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Abstract

The morphological and anatomical parameters of the vegetative and generative organs of Plantago maritima L. plants were studied in different biotopes of the littoral zone on the coast of the White Sea in the vicinity of the village of Rastnavolok (Belomorskii district, Republic of Karelia). It has been established that plants have developed certain adaptations to the conditions of the littoral zone: two biomorphs are formed (rosette and upper rosette with elongated upper internodes) as an adaptation to covering with soil during tides and storms. Within the littoral zone under different flooding conditions, plants differ in some anatomical features. The thickness of the water-retaining parenchyma correlates directly with the thickness of the leaf. It varies within the littoral zone depending on the time the plants are flooded with salt water. Well-developed integral and mechanical tissues of the root and rosette shoots are an adaptive response to the mobility of the soil substrate and the water mass during tidal surges. The development of aerenchyma in the underground vegetative organs ensures gas exchange under flooding conditions. Significant differences in the studied anatomical and morphological parameters in biotopes of the littoral showed the wide adaptive capabilities of P. maritima, which ensure its dominance in the plant communities of the White Sea coast.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors are grateful to an employee of the Vodlozero National Park M.A. Schreders and a student of the Institute of Biology, Ecology, and Agrotechnologies of Petrozavodsk State University A.N. Svirida for help in preparing illustrations.

Funding

This work was supported by a State Assignment of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, project no. 0752-2020-0007.

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  1. Petrozavodsk State University, 185910, Petrozavodsk, Russia

    A. V. Sonina, T. Yu. Dyachkova & K. V. Morozova

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  1. A. V. Sonina
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Correspondence to A. V. Sonina.

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Sonina, A.V., Dyachkova, T.Y. & Morozova, K.V. Morphological and Anatomical Features of Plantago maritima L. as an Adaptive Reaction to the Conditions of Coastal Biotopes. Biol Bull Russ Acad Sci 50, 586–597 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1134/S106235902370019X

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