Higher local intra- than interspecific variability in water- and carbon-related leaf traits among Neotropical tree species

Background and Aims Intraspecific variability in leaf water-related traits remains little explored despite its potential importance in the context of increasing drought frequency and severity. Studies comparing intra- and interspecific variability of leaf traits often rely on inappropriate sampling designs that result in non-robust estimates, mainly owing to an excess of the species/individual ratio in community ecology or, on the contrary, to an excess of the individual/species ratio in population ecology. Methods We carried out virtual testing of three strategies to compare intra- and interspecific trait variability. Guided by the results of our simulations, we carried out field sampling. We measured nine traits related to leaf water and carbon acquisition in 100 individuals from ten Neotropical tree species. We also assessed trait variation among leaves within individuals and among measurements within leaves to control for sources of intraspecific trait variability. Key Results The most robust sampling, based on the same number of species and individuals per species, revealed higher intraspecific variability than previously recognized, higher for carbon-related traits (47–92 and 4–33 % of relative and absolute variation, respectively) than for water-related traits (47–60 and 14–44 % of relative and absolute variation, respectively), which remained non-negligible. Nevertheless, part of the intraspecific trait variability was explained by variation of leaves within individuals (12–100 % of relative variation) or measurement variations within leaf (0–19 % of relative variation) and not only by individual ontogenetic stages and environmental conditions. Conclusions We conclude that robust sampling, based on the same number of species and individuals per species, is needed to explore global or local variation in leaf water- and carbon-related traits within and among tree species, because our study revealed higher intraspecific variation than previously recognized.