Morphological response of leaves of Persian oak (Quercus brantii) and wild pistachio (Pistacia atlantica) to elevation gradient in the Zagros forests, Ilam

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Forest Science and Engineering, Faculty of Natural Resources, University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Sari, Mazandaran, Iran.

2 Department of Forest Sciences, Ilam University, Ilam, Iran.

10.22059/jfwp.2023.358147.1251

Abstract

Plant leaves react to environmental changes with high adaptability. This study investigated the morphological characteristics of Persian oak (Quercus brantii) and wild pistachio (Pistacia atlantica) leaves from 15 forest sites in Ilam province at an elevation range of 1000 m (from 1111 to 2048 m a.s.l.). At each site and for each tree species, five healthy individuals and five healthy and mature leaves were collected from the outside and middle of the crown. The leaf area index, petiole length, main vein length, leaf circumference, blade length, blade width, and the number of leaf margin dentations were measured. The data were analyzed based on the nested research design, and the means of the studied traits were compared using the LSD test. In the Persian oak trees, the results showed that the petiole length (1.72 cm), leaf circumference (20.23 cm), leaf length (8.17 cm), leaf width (4.43 cm), and leaf area (28.16 cm2) at higher elevations had higher averages than at lower elevations. However, the number of leaf left and right dentations were 12.26 and 12.47, respectively, indicating higher average weight at lower altitudes. In pistachio, all measured characteristics like petiole length (0.46 cm), leaf circumference (13.98 cm), leaf length (5.53 cm) and leaf width (3.29 cm), and leaf area (12.31 cm2) at higher elevations had higher averages than the lower elevations as 0.24 cm, 12.26 cm, 5.18 cm, 3.0 cm, and 10.85 cm2. The significant intra-population changes strengthen the idea of intra-population morphological diversity for oak species at the regional level and even in Zagros to some extent. Among the studied features, those that are less sensitive to environmental changes can be used as distinguishing features for species separation.

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References

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Forest and Wood Products
Volume 76, Issue 3 - Serial Number 3
December 2023
Pages 245-256

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