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Physiological Ecology of Vascular Plants

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Biodiversity and Conservation of the Yucatán Peninsula

Abstract

The Yucatán Peninsula has opposing gradients of precipitation and evaporation from north to south: as precipitation increases, evaporation rates decrease. Also, due to bedrock composed primarily of limestone, the area presents high porosity and rainfall infiltrates quickly, resulting in no superficial runoff. Natural disturbances such as hurricanes and fires are also common. The interaction of these factors has created a mosaic of environmental conditions that has given rise to a series of physiological adaptations in the plant species of the area. This chapter focuses mainly on the morphophysiological responses and adaptations of native plant species of the Yucatán to natural conditions, and on how plants respond to environmental factors at the level of the individual, species, population and/or functional groups. In this chapter, species were grouped according to their metabolic pathway (C3 species or crassulacean acid metabolism species (CAM)), and discussed based on adaptations to limiting resources: water, nutrients, temperature, and light. For C3 species only trees were included, and studies incorporated in this section spanned from plant establishment, growth, water use and water relations, alternative water sources, and carbon and nutrient flow. For the section on CAM the focus was on the factors that affect CAM plants in the microenvironments in which they occur. Other issues analyzed include plant physiological responses to natural disturbances, the potential impact of climate change on plant populations, and gaps in information as well as additional perspectives of study.

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Acknowledgements

We thank EA Graham, PS Nobel, R Orellana, C Cervera, MF Ricalde, E de la Barrera, E Rengifo, R Barceló, L Simá, M Mandujano, R Us-Santamaría, G Vargas-Soto, K Winter, M Giovanetti, L Santiago, M Cach-Pérez, O Hernández-González, E Chávez-Sahagún, J Palomo-Kumul, T McElroy, A Rosado-Calderón, NC Chilpa-Galván, M. Tamayo-Chim, D Mondragón, E de la Rosa-Manzano, S. Cervantes and undergraduate students from Kennesaw State University (Georgia, USA), for their contribution to our studies. We are grateful for funding from CONAFOR-CONACYT 9765, Fondo Mixto CONACYT-gobierno del estado de Yucatán YUC-2003-C02-042, SEP-CONACYT 36931, UC Mexus-CONACYT, SEP-CONACYT 48344/24588, CONABIO GU002, SEP-CONACYT 177842, SEP-CONACYT 80181, SEMARNAT-CONACYT 107916 and NSF RUI 0516387.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Herbarium, El Colegio de la Frontera Sur Unidad Chetumal, Avenida Centenario km. 5.5, 77014, Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

    Mirna Valdez-Hernández

  2. Ciencias Ambientales, Instituto Potosino de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica, Camino a la Presa San Jose 2055, Col. Lomas 4ta sección, 78216, San Luis Potosí, San Luis Potosí, Mexico

    Claudia González-Salvatierra

  3. Unidad de Recursos Naturales, Centro de Investigación Científica de Yucatán, Calle 43 No. 130, Col. Chuburná de Hidalgo, 97200, Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico

    Casandra Reyes-García & José Luis Andrade

  4. Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, Kennesaw State University, 370 Paulding Avenue Bldg.12, Rm.308, Kennesaw, 30144, GA, USA

    Paula C. Jackson

Authors
  1. Mirna Valdez-Hernández
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  2. Claudia González-Salvatierra
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  3. Casandra Reyes-García
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  4. Paula C. Jackson
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  5. José Luis Andrade
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mirna Valdez-Hernández .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. El Colegio de la Frontera Sur ECOSUR, Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

    Gerald Alexander Islebe

  2. Université de Sherbrooke, sherbrooke, Québec, Canada

    Sophie Calmé

  3. San Cristóbal de las Casas, El Colegio de la Frontera Sur ECOSUR, Chiapas, Mexico

    Jorge L. León-Cortés

  4. El Colegio de la Frontera Sur ECOSUR, Chetumal, Quintana Roo, Mexico

    Birgit Schmook

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Valdez-Hernández, M., González-Salvatierra, C., Reyes-García, C., Jackson, P.C., Andrade, J.L. (2015). Physiological Ecology of Vascular Plants. In: Islebe, G., Calmé, S., León-Cortés, J., Schmook, B. (eds) Biodiversity and Conservation of the Yucatán Peninsula. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-06529-8_5

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