Leaf trace element spectrum in woody plants in south Spain.

Poster presentation nº 244. 6th International Symposium on Ecosystem Behaviour BIOGEOMON 2009, 29 June-3 July 2009. The University of Helsinki, Finland. Session 9: Trace element biogeochemistry and ecosystem impact.

Global Change affects directly to plant physiology, growth and fitness, causing changes on communities assembly, and lastly on the dynamics of nutrients and carbon cycles in the ecosystem. In particular, modifications in the proportion of different leaf traits have consequences for ecosystem functioning, through the processes of primary production and litter decomposition. Thus the decomposition rates are determined by the chemical composition of litter (which are strongly determined by the chemical composition of the green leaf), and by the moisture and temperature conditions in the soil. The objectives of this study are 1) to describe the leaf spectrum of variability in the accumulation of trace elements for Mediterranean woody species, 2) to evaluate the use of leaves as bioindicators of soil quality, 3) to analyse the contribution of differential trace element accumulation among woody species to the ecosystem heterogeneity.

We thank research projects SECOVER (Andalusia Region) and INTERBOS (Spanish Ministry of Science) for funding.

Peer reviewed