Abstract
The amphibious plant species Sagittaria sagittifolia and Ranunculus lingua here serve as model systems to study differences in leaf optical properties of different leaf types that develop in aquatic and terrestrial environments. We aimed to determine leaf traits that explain most of the variability in the reflectance and transmittance spectra in the range from 280 to 880 nm. Comparisons of leaves of the same form revealed marked differences in their structures and particularly in the content of total methanol-soluble UV-absorbing compounds. Submerged leaves transmit radiation over the whole range measured, but emerged leaves transmit only at wavelengths from 500 to 650 nm, and above 690 nm. Redundancy analysis shows that biochemical leaf traits, namely the UV-absorbing compounds chlorophyll a and b, together with the specific leaf area (SLA), significantly affect the reflectance spectra, explaining 60% of the spectra variability. Pigment levels negatively affect reflectance, while the effect of SLA is positive. Physical traits like thickness of the palisade mesophyll, SLA, and thickness of the lower and upper epidermis, along with anthocyanin content, explain 62% of the transmittance spectra variability. This study provides new insight into the understanding of data collected for aquatic and semi-aquatic plants based on spectral analyses.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Asner, G. P. & R. E. Martin, 2008. Spectral and chemical analysis of tropical forests: scaling from leaf to canopy levels. Remote Sensing of Environment 112: 3958–3970.
Baldini, E., O. Facini, F. Nerozzi, F. Rossi & A. Rotondi, 1997. Leaf characteristics and optical properties of different wood species. Trees 12: 73–81.
Baltzer, J. L. & S. C. Thomas, 2005. Leaf optical responses to light and soil nutrient availability in temperate deciduous trees. American Journal of Botany 92: 223–241.
Boeger, M. R. T. & M. E. Poulson, 2003. Morphological adaptations and photosynthetic rates of amphibious Veronica anagallis-aquatica L. (Schropulariaceae) under different flow regimes. Aquatic Botany 75: 123–135.
Braendle, R. & R. M. M. Crawford, 1999. Plants as amphibians. Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 2(1): 56–78.
Caldwell, M. M., 1968. Solar ultraviolet radiation as an ecological factor for alpine plants. Ecological Monographs 38: 243–268.
Capon, S. J. & M. A. Brock, 2006. Flood variability, soil seed bank dynamics and vegetation resilience in a desert floodplain. Freshwater Biology 51: 206–223.
Castro, K. L. & G. A. Sanchez-Azofeifa, 2008. Changes in spectral properties, chlorophyll content and internal mesophyll structure of senescing Populus balsamifera and Populus tremuloides leaves. Sensors 8: 51–69.
Dorken, M. E. & S. C. H. Barrett, 2003. Gender plasticity in Sagittaria sagittifolia (Alismataceae), a monoecious aquatic species. Plant Systematics and Evolution 237: 99–106.
Drumm, H. & H. Mohr, 1978. The mode of interaction between blue (UV) light photoreceptor and phytochrome in anthocyanin formation of the Sorghum seedling. Photochemistry and Photobiology 27: 241–248.
Ehleringer, J., 1980. Leaf morphology and reflectance in relation to water and temperature stress. In Turner, N. C. & P. J. Kramer (eds), Adaptation of Plants to Water and High Temperature Stress. Wiley, New York: 295–308.
Enríquez, S. & K. Sand-Jensen, 2003. Variation in light absorption properties of Mentha aquatica L. as function of leaf form: implications for plant growth. International Journal of Plants Sciences 164: 125–136.
Frost-Christensen, H. & K. Sand-Jensen, 1995. Comparative kinetics of photosynthesis in floating and submerged Potamogeton leaves. Aquatic Botany 51: 121–134.
Gaberščik, A., 1993. Measurements of apparent CO2 flux in amphibious plant Polygonum amphibium L. growing over environmental gradient. Photosynthetica 29: 473–476.
Gaberščik, A., O. Urbanc-Berčič, N. Kržič, G. Kosi & A. Brancelj, 2003. The intermittent lake Cerknica: various faces of the same ecosystem. Lakes and Reservoirs: Research and Management 8: 159–168.
Germ, M. & A. Gaberščik, 2003. Comparison of aerial and submerged leaves in two amphibious species, Myosotis scorpioides and Ranunculus trichophyllus. Photosynthetica 41: 91–96.
Germ, M., Z. Mazej, A. Gaberščik & D. P. Häder, 2002. The influence of enhanced UV-B radiation on Batrachium trichophyllum and Potamogeton alpinus—aquatic macrophytes with amphibious character. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology 66: 37–46.
Germ, M., Z. Mazej, A. Gaberščik & T. Trošt Sedej, 2006. The response of Ceratophyllum demersum L. and Myriophyllum spicatum L. to reduced, ambient, and enhanced ultraviolet-B radiation. Hydrobiologia (Den Haag) 1: 47–51.
Gitelson, A. A., Y. Zur, O. B. Chivkunova & M. N. Merzlyak, 2002. Assessing carotenoid content in plant leaves with reflectance spectroscopy. Photochemistry and Photobiology 75: 272–281.
Holmes, M. G. & D. R. Keiller, 2002. Effects of pubescence and waxes on the reflectance of leaves in the ultraviolet and photosynthetic wavebands: a comparison of a range of species. Plant, Cell & Environment 25: 85–93.
Hostrup, O. & G. Wiegleb, 1991. Anatomy of leaves of submerged and emerged forms of Litorella uniflora (L.). Oecologia 68: 615–622.
Hroudová, Z., L. Hrpuda, P. Zákravský & I. Ostrý, 1988. Ecobiology and Distribution of Sagittaria sagittifolia L. In Czechoslovakia. Folia geobotanica et phytotaxonomica 23: 225–336.
Johansson, M. E. & C. Nilsson, 1993. Hydrochory, population dynamics and distribution of the clonal aquatic plant Ranunculus lingua. Journal of Ecology 81: 81–91.
Klančnik, K., M. Mlinar & A. Gaberščik, 2012. Heterophylly results in a variety of “spectral signatures” in aquatic plant species. Aquatic Botany 98: 20–26.
Knapp, A. K. & G. A. Carter, 1998. Variability in leaf optical properties among 26 species from a broad range of habitats. American Journal of Botany 85: 940–946.
Kuwabara, A. & T. Nagata, 2002. Views on developmental plasticity of plants through heterophylly. Recent Research Development in Plant Physiology 3: 45–59.
Larcher, W., 2003. Physiological Plant Ecology, Ecophysiology and Stress Physiology of Functional Groups, 4th ed. Springer, Berlin.
Lee, D. W., S. F. Oberbauer, P. Johnson, B. Krishnapilay, M. Manson, H. Mohamed & S. K. Yap, 2000. Effects of irradiance and spectral quality on leaf structure and function in seedlings of two southeast Asian Hopea (Dipterocarpaceae) species. American Journal of Botany 87: 447–455.
Les, D. H. & D. J. Sheridan, 1990. Biochemical heterophylly and flavonoid evolution in North American Potamogeton (Potamogetonaceae). American Journal of Botany 4: 453–465.
Levizou, E., P. Drilias, G. K. Psaras & Y. Manetas, 2005. Nondestructive assessment of leaf chemistry and physiology through spectral reflectance measurements may be misleading when changes in trichome density co-occur. New Phytologist 165: 463–472.
Lichtenthaler, H. K. & C. Buschmann, 2001a. Extraction of photosynthetic tissues: chlorophylls and carotenoids. In Current Protocols in Food Analytical Chemistry. Wiley, New York: F4.2.1–F4.2.6.
Lichtenthaler, H. K. & C. Buschmann, 2001b. Chlorophylls and carotenoids: measurement and characterisation by UV-VIS. In Current Protocols in Food Analytical Chemistry. Wiley, New York: F4.3.1–F4.3.8.
Meusel, H., 1965. Vergleichende Chorologie der zentraleuropaische Flora. Fischer Verlag, Jena.
Rascio, N., F. Cuccato, F. Dalla Vechia, N. La Rocca & W. Larcher, 1999. Structural and functional features of the leaves of Ranunculus trichophyllus Chaix., a freshwater submerged macrophyte. Plant, Cell and Environment 22: 205–212.
Robe, W. E. & H. Griffiths, 1998. Adaptations for an amphibious life: changes in leaf morphology, growth rate, carbon and nitrogen investment, and reproduction during adjustment to emersion by the freshwater macrophyte Littorella uniflora. New Phytologist 140: 9–23.
Rozema, J., L. O. Björn, J. F. Bornman, A. Gaberščik, D. P. Häder, T. Trošt, M. Germ, M. Klisch, A. Gröniger, R. P. Sinha, M. Lebert, Y. Y. He, R. Buffoni-Hall, N. V. de Bakker, J. van de Staaij & B. B. Meijkamp, 2002. The role of UV-B radiation in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems—an experimental and functional analysis of the evolution of UV-absorbing compounds. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B: Biology 66: 2–12.
Rybka, V. & M. Duchoslav, 2007. Influence of water depth on growth and reproduction of Ranunculus lingua. Belgian Journal of Botany 140: 130–135.
Slaton, M. R., E. R. Hunt & W. K. Smith, 2001. Estimating near-infrared leaf reflectance from leaf structural characteristics. American Journal of Botany 88: 278–284.
Šraj-Kržič, N. & A. Gaberščik, 2005. Photochemical efficiency of amphibious plants in an intermittent lake. Aquatic Botany 83: 281–288.
ter Braak, C. J. F. & P. Šmilauer, 2002. CANOCO Reference Manual and CanoDraw for Windows User’s Guide. Software for Canonical Community Ordination (version 4.5). Microcomputer Power, Ithaca.
Titus, J. E. & M. S. Adams, 1979. Coexistence and the comparative light relations of the submerged macrophytes Myriophyllum spicatum L. and Vallisneria americana Michx. Oecologia 40: 273–286.
Ustin, S. L., S. Jacquemoud & Y. Govaerts, 2001. Simulation of photon transport in a three-dimensional leaf: implications for photosynthesis. Plant, Cell and Environment 24: 1095–1103.
Warwick, N. W. M. & M. A. Brock, 2003. Plant reproduction in temporary wetlands: the effects of seasonal timing, depth, and duration of flooding. Aquatic Botany 77: 153–167.
Woodman, R. L. & G. W. Fernandes, 1991. Differential mechanical defense: herbivory, evapotranspiration and leaf-hairs. OIKOS 60: 11–19.
Woolley, J. T., 1971. Reflectance and transmittance of light by leaves. Plant Physiology 47: 656–662.
Zimmerman, R. L., 2006. Light and photosynthesis in seagrass meadows, IV. Leaf optical properties. In Larkum, A. W. D., R. J. Orth & C. M. Duarte (eds), Seagrasses: Biology, Ecology and Conservation. Springer, Dordrecht: 307–309.
Acknowledgements
The work was supported by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport, Republic of Slovenia, through the programmes ‘Biology of plants’ (P1-0212) and ‘Young researchers’ (33135). The authors thank Anja Štular for assistance in practical work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Guest editors: M. T. Ferreira, M. O'Hare, K. Szoszkiewicz & S. Hellsten / Plants in Hydrosystems: From Functional Ecology to Weed Research
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Klančnik, K., Pančić, M. & Gaberščik, A. Leaf optical properties in amphibious plant species are affected by multiple leaf traits. Hydrobiologia 737, 121–130 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-013-1646-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-013-1646-y