Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : 1. Trade-offs among functional traits reveal major plant strategies that can give insight into species distributions and ecosystem processes. However, current identification of plant strategies lacks the integration of root structural traits together with leaf and stem traits. 2. We examined correlations among 14 traits representing leaf, stem and woody root tissues. Traits were measured on 1084 individuals representing 758 Neotropical tree species, across 13 sites representative of the environmental variation encompassed by three widespread habitats (seasonally flooded, clay terra firme and white-sand forests) at opposite ends of Amazonia (French Guiana and Peru). 3. Woody root traits were closely aligned with stem traits, but not with leaf traits. Altogether leaf, stem and woody root traits delineated two orthogonal axes of functional trade-offs: a first axis defined by leaf traits, corresponding to a leaf economics spectrum, and a second axis defined by covarying stem and woody root traits, corresponding to a wood economics spectrum. These axes remained consistent when accounting for species evolutionary history with phylogenetically independent contrasts. 4. Despite the strong species turnover across sites, the covariation among root and stem structural traits as well as their orthogonality to leaf traits were strongly consistent across habitats and regions. 5. We conclude that root structural traits mirrored stem traits rather than leaf traits in Neotropical trees. Leaf and wood traits define an integrated whole-plant strategy in lowland South American forests that may contribute to a more complete understanding of plant responses to global changes in both correlative and modelling approaches. We suggest further meta-analyses in expanded environmental and geographic zones to determine the generality of this pattern.
ISSN: 0269-8463

hal-01032415
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032415
DOI : 10.1111/j.1365-2435.2012.02020.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley
Résumé : International audience
Cross-species analyses of plant functional traits have shed light on factors contributing to differences in performance and distribution, but to date most studies have focused on either leaves or stems. We extend these tissue-specific analyses of functional strategy towards a whole-plant approach by integrating data on functional traits for 13 448 leaves and wood tissues from 4672 trees representing 668 species of Neotropical trees. Strong correlations amongst traits previously defined as the leaf economics spectrum reflect a tradeoff between investments in productive leaves with rapid turnover vs. costly physical leaf structure with a long revenue stream. A second axis of variation, the 'stem economics spectrum', defines a similar tradeoff at the stem level: dense wood vs. high wood water content and thick bark. Most importantly, these two axes are orthogonal, suggesting that tradeoffs operate independently at the leaf and at the stem levels. By simplifying the multivariate ecological strategies of tropical trees into positions along these two spectra, our results provide a basis to improve global vegetation models predicting responses of tropical forests to global change.
ISSN: 1461-023X

hal-00594040
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00594040

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Nordic Ecological Society
Résumé : Niche differentiation and ecological filtering are primary ecological processes that shape community assembly, but their relative importance remains poorly understood. Analyses of the distributions of functional traits can provide insight into the community structure generated by these processes. We predicted the trait distributions expected under the ecological processes of niche differentiation and environmental filtering, then tested these predictions with a dataset of 4672 trees located in nine 1-ha plots of tropical rain forest in French Guiana. Five traits related to leaf function (foliar N concentration, chlorophyll content, toughness, tissue density and specific leaf area), and three traits related to stem function (trunk sapwood density, branch sapwood density, and trunk bark thickness), as well as laminar surface area, were measured on every individual tree. There was far more evidence for environmental filtering than for niche differentiation in these forests. Furthermore, we contrasted results from species-mean and individual-level trait values. Analyses that took within-species trait variation into account were far more sensitive indicators of niche differentiation and ecological filtering. Species-mean analyses, by contrast, may underestimate the effects of ecological processes on community assembly. Environmental filtering appeared somewhat more intense on leaf traits than on stem traits, whereas niche differentiation affected neither strongly. By accounting for within-species trait variation, we were able to more properly consider the ecological interactions among individual trees and between individual trees and their environment. In so doing, our results suggest that the ecological processes of niche differentiation and environmental filtering may be more pervasive than previously believed.
ISSN: 0030-1299

hal-01032397
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032397
DOI : 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.19110.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley-Blackwell
Résumé :  
Cross-species analyses of plant functional traits have shed light on factors contributing to differences in performance and distribution, but to date most studies have focused on either leaves or stems. We extend these tissue-specific analyses of functional strategy towards a whole-plant approach by integrating data on functional traits for 13 448 leaves and wood tissues from 4672 trees representing 668 species of Neotropical trees. Strong correlations amongst traits previously defined as the leaf economics spectrum reflect a tradeoff between investments in productive leaves with rapid turnover vs. costly physical leaf structure with a long revenue stream. A second axis of variation, the 'stem economics spectrum', defines a similar tradeoff at the stem level: dense wood vs. high wood water content and thick bark. Most importantly, these two axes are orthogonal, suggesting that tradeoffs operate independently at the leaf and at the stem levels. By simplifying the multivariate ecological strategies of tropical trees into positions along these two spectra, our results provide a basis to improve global vegetation models predicting responses of tropical forests to global change.
Ecology Letters

hal-01032142
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01032142
DOI : 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2010.01517.x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Gold mineralisation in the Yatela Main gold mine is hosted in a saprolitic residuum situated above Birimian supracrustal rocks, and at depth. The supracrustal rocks comprise metamorphosed calcitic and dolomitic marbles that were intruded by diorite (2106 ± 10 Ma, 207Pb/206Pb), and sandstone-siltstone-shale sequences (youngest detrital zircon population dated at 2139 ± 6 Ma). In-situ gold-sulphide mineralisation is associated with hydrothermal activity synchronous to emplacement of the diorite and forms a sub-economic resource; however, the overlying saprolitic residuum hosts economic gold mineralisation in friable lateritized palaeosols and aeolian sands (loess).Samples of saprolitic residuum were studied to investigate the morphology and composition of gold grains as a proxy for distance from source (and possible exploration vector) because the deposit hosts both angular and detrital gold suggesting both proximal and distal sources. U–Pb geochronology of detrital zircons also indicated a proximal and distal source, with the age spectra giving Archaean (2.83–3.28 Ga), and Palaeoproterozoic (1.95–2.20 Ga) to Neoproterozoic (1.1–1.8 Ga) zircons in the Yatela depocentre. The 1.1–1.8 Ga age spectrum restricts the maximum age for the first deposition of the sedimentary units in the Neoproterozoic, or during early deposition in the Taoudeni Basin. Models for formation of the residuum include distal and proximal sources for detritus into the depocentre, however, it is more likely that material was sourced locally and included recycled material. The creation of a deep laterite weathering profile and supergene enrichment of the residuum probably took place during the mid-Cretaceous-early Tertiary.
ISSN: 0899-5362

hal-01277679
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01277679
DOI : 10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2015.07.017

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Nature Publishing Group
Résumé : International audience
Different marine habitats are characterised by different soundscapes. How or which differences may be representative of the habitat characteristics and/or community structure remains however to be explored. A growing project in passive acoustics is to find a way to use soundscapes to have information on the habitat and on its changes. In this study we have successfully tested the potential of two acoustic indices, i.e. the average sound pressure level and the acoustic complexity index based on the frequency spectrum. Inside and outside marine protected areas of Moorea Island (French Polynesia), sound pressure level was positively correlated with the characteristics of the substratum and acoustic complexity was positively correlated with fish diversity. It clearly shows soundscape can be used to evaluate the acoustic features of marine protected areas, which presented a significantly higher ambient sound pressure level and were more acoustically complex than non-protected areas. This study further emphasizes the importance of acoustics as a tool in the monitoring of marine environments and in the elaboration and management of future conservation plans. Coral reef ecosystems are among the most biologically diverse and complex marine ecosystems worldwide. In addition to their biological and ecological importance, coral reefs support major economic and physical functions (e.g. food production, tourism, biotechnology development and coastal protection) that are essential for many countries 1. Unfortunately, coral reefs are severely threatened: 20% of coral reefs can no longer be defined as such, another 25% are currently endangered and another 25% will be endangered by 2050 2. The frequency and severity of natural perturbations (e.g. cyclone, outbreaks of predators, particularly the crown-of-thorns starfish [COTS] Acanthaster planci) and anthropogenic perturbations (e.g. ocean acidification, pesticides, rising seawater temperatures) on coral reefs have greatly increased worldwide in the last three decades, and, as a consequence, reef communities (fish, coral and benthic invertebrates) have suffered unprecedented levels of decline 3,4
ISSN: 2045-2322

hal-01370610
https://hal-uvsq.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01370610
https://hal-uvsq.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01370610/document
https://hal-uvsq.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01370610/file/2016%20Sci.Rep.pdf
DOI : 10.1038/srep33326

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag/EDP Sciences
Résumé : International audience
The elucidation of relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem processes has been limited by the definition of metrics of biodiversity and their integration into experimental design. Functional trait screening can strengthen the performance of these designs.* We suggest the use of Rao's quadratic entropy to measure both functional diversity and phylogenetic diversity of species mixtures proposed for an experimental design, and demonstrate how they can provide complementary information.* We also present an index assessing the statistical performance of these independent variables in different experimental designs. Measurement of independent variables as continuous vs. discrete variables reduces statistical performance, but improves the model by quantifying species differences masked by group assignments.* To illustrate these advances, we present an example from a tropical forest tree community in which we screened 38 species for nine functional traits. The proposed TropiDEP design is based on the relative orthogonality of two multivariate trait axes defined using principal component analysis.* We propose that independent variables describing functional diversity might be grouped to calculate independent variables describing suites of different traits with potentially different effects on particular ecosystem processes. In other systems these axes may differ from those reported here, yet the methods of analysis integrating functional and phylogenetic diversity into experimental design could be universal.
La compréhension des relations pouvant exister entre biodiversité et fonctionnement des écosystèmes a été longtemps limitée par la définition de méthodes de quantification de la diversité biologique et la mise en œuvre de dispositifs expérimentaux permettant sa mesure. L'identification de syndromes de traits fonctionnels clefs influençant des fonctions écosystémiques particulières peut renforcer la performance de ces dispositifs.* Nous suggérons l'utilisation de l'entropie quadratique de Rao pour mesurer la diversité fonctionnelle et phylogénétique dans des assemblages synthétiques d'espèces, et montrons comment ces mesures de diversité sont complémentaires.* Nous présentons également un indice permettant de tester la performance statistique de ces variables indépendantes dans différents modèles expérimentaux. L'utilisation de variables indépendantes continues plutôt que discrètes réduit la performance statistique mais améliore le modèle en quantifiant les différences fonctionnelles entre espèces; différences généralement masquées lors de leur assignation en groupes fonctionnels.* Pour illustrer ces avancées, nous présentons un exemple d'assemblages synthétiques à partir de 38 espèces d'arbres de forêt tropicale sélectionnées pour 9 traits fonctionnels (TropiDEP). Le plan d'expérience de TropiDEP est basé sur l'orthogonalité relative de deux axes multivariés de traits fonctionnels définis par analyse en composantes principales.* Nous proposons que les variables décrivant la diversité fonctionnelle soient groupées pour calculer des variables indépendantes, divisées en plusieurs axes décrivant des combinaisons de différents traits pouvant influencer des processus différents de l'écosystème (e.g. processus du N et du C). Dans d'autres systèmes, ces axes peuvent différer de ceux présentés ici, mais les méthodes d'analyse peuvent être universelles.
ISSN: 1286-4560

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/OpenAccess
hal-00883621
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00883621
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00883621/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00883621/file/hal-00883621.pdf
DOI : 10.1051/forest/2009110