AOBPreview originally published online on December 7, 2004
Annals of Botany 2005 95(3):495-506; doi:10.1093/aob/mci048
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Annals of Botany 95/3 © Annals of Botany Company 2004; all rights reserved
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Optimal Photosynthetic Characteristics of Individual Plants in Vegetation Stands and Implications for Species Coexistence
Department of Plant Ecology, Utrecht University, PO Box 800.84, NL-3508 TB, Utrecht, The Netherlands and Chair Group of Plant Production Systems, Wageningen University, Haarweg 333 6709 RZ, The Netherlands
* For correspondence. E-mail N.Anten{at}bio.uu.nl
Received: 12 February 2004 Returned for revision: 17 March 2004 Accepted: 19 May 2004 Published electronically: 7 December 2004
• Aims This paper reviews the way optimization theory has been used in canopy models to analyse the adaptive significance of photosynthesis-related plant characteristics and their consequences for the structure and species composition of vegetation stands.
• Scope In most studies simple optimization has been used with trait values optimal when they lead to maximum whole-stand photosynthesis. This approach is subject to the condition that the optimum for one individual is independent of the characteristics of its neighbours. This seems unlikely in vegetation stands where neighbour plants strongly influence each other's light climate. Not surprisingly, there are consistent deviations between predicted plant traits and real values: plants tend to be taller, distribute nitrogen more evenly among their leaves and produce more leaf area which is projected more horizontally than predicted by models.
• Conclusions By applying game theory to individual plant-based canopy models, other studies have shown that optimal vegetation stands with maximum whole-stand photosynthesis are not evolutionarily stable. They can be successfully invaded by mutants that are taller, project their leaves more horizontally or that produce greater than optimal leaf areas. While these individual-based models can successfully predict the canopy structure of vegetation stands, they are invariably determined at unique optimal trait values. They do not allow for the co-existence of more than one species with different characteristics. Canopy models can contribute to our understanding of species coexistence through (a) simultaneous analysis of the various traits that determine light capture and photosynthesis and the trade-offs between them, and (b) consideration of trade-offs associated with specialization to different positions in the niche space defined by temporal and spatial heterogeneity of resources.
Key words: Agricultural productivity, canopy structure, game theory, leaf area index, light, nitrogen, optimization, photosynthesis, species co-existence
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