AUTHOR=Islam Mahmuda , Rahman Mizanur , Bräuning Achim 

TITLE=Long-Term Hydraulic Adjustment of Three Tropical Moist Forest Tree Species to Changing Climate

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2018.01761

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2018.01761

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Xylem hydraulic adjustment to global climatic changes was reported from temperate, boreal, and Mediterranean tree species. Yet, the long-term hydraulic adjustment in tropical tree species has not been studied so far. Here we developed the first standard chronologies of three hydraulic trait variables for three South Asian moist forest tree species to analyze their long-term hydraulic responses to changing climate. Based on wood anatomical measurements, we calculated Hagen–Poiseuille hydraulically weighted vessel diameter (D<sub>H</sub>), potential specific hydraulic conductivity (K<sub>S</sub>), and vulnerability index (V<sub>X</sub>) and developed standard chronologies of these variables for <italic>Chukrasia tabularis, Toona ciliata</italic>, and <italic>Lagerstroemia speciosa</italic> which are different in their xylem structure, wood density, shade tolerance, growth rates, and habitat preferences. Bootstrap correlation analysis revealed that vapor pressure deficit (VPD) strongly positively influenced the xylem water transport capacity in <italic>C. tabularis</italic>, whereas <italic>T. ciliata</italic> was affected by both temperature and precipitation. The hydraulic conductivity of <italic>L. speciosa</italic> was mainly affected by temperature. Different adjustment strategies were observed among the species, probably due to the differences in life history strategies and xylem properties. No positive relationship of conductivity and radial growth was found, but a trade-off between hydraulic safety and efficiency was observed in all studied species.</p>