Abstract
Plant growth at high elevations necessitates physiological and morphological plasticity to enable photosynthesis (A) under conditions of reduced temperature, increased radiation and the lower partial pressure of atmospheric gases, in particular carbon dioxide (pCO2). Previous studies have observed a wide range of responses to elevation in plant species depending on their adaptation to temperature, elevational range and growth habit. Here, we investigated the effect of an increase in elevation from 2500 to 3500 m above sea level (a.s.l.) on three montane species with contrasting growth habits and leaf economic strategies. While all of the species showed identical increases in foliar δ(13)C, dark respiration and nitrogen concentration with elevation, contrasting leaf gas exchange and photosynthetic responses were observed between species with different leaf economic strategies. The deciduous shrub Salix atopantha and annual herb Rumex dentatus exhibited increased stomatal (Gs) and mesophyll (Gm) conductance and enhanced photosynthetic capacity at the higher elevation. However, evergreen Quercus spinosa displayed reduced conductance to CO2 that coincided with lower levels of photosynthetic carbon fixation at 3500 m a.s.l. The lower Gs and Gm values of evergreen species at higher elevations currently constrains their rates of A. Future rises in the atmospheric concentration of CO2 ([CO2]) will likely predominantly affect evergreen species with lower specific leaf areas (SLAs) and levels of Gm rather than deciduous species with higher SLA and Gm values. We argue that climate change may affect plant species that compose high-elevation ecosystems differently depending on phenotypic plasticity and adaptive traits affecting leaf economics, as rising [CO2] is likely to benefit evergreen species with thick sclerophyllous leaves.