Table 3.
Leaf carbon isotopic composition (δ13C), SLA, leaf nitrogen concentration per unit mass (Nmass), leaf nitrogen concentration per unit area (Narea) and leaf PNUE of the three plants growing at lower and higher elevations (elevations detailed in Table 1). Means of a parameter followed by the same letter were not statistically different using a one-way ANOVA (P > 0.05) with LSD post hoc test.
| Q. spinosa | S. atopantha | R. dentatus | F5,30 | P-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| δ13C (‰) | |||||
| Low elevation | −28.04 ± 0.03 c | −29.28 ± 0.19 b | −30.63 ± 0.09 a | 35.525 | 9.894 × 10−12 |
| High elevation | −26.23 ± 0.34 d | −27.74 ± 0.06 c | −27.52 ± 0.18 c | ||
| SLA (cm2 g−1) | |||||
| Low elevation | 92.82 ± 2.01 b | 145.95 ± 5.68 c | 288.31 ± 11.34 d | 29.869 | 2.109 × 10−10 |
| High elevation | 80.71 ± 3.22 a | 145.68 ± 2.68 c | 197.59 ± 2.24 e | ||
| Narea (g m−2) | |||||
| Low elevation | 1.87 ± 0.09 c | 1.51 ± 0.04 b | 1.21 ± 0.05 a | 147.774 | 3.182 × 10−19 |
| High elevation | 2.23 ± 0.11 d | 1.74 ± 0.02 c | 1.90 ± 0.02 cd | ||
| PNUE (μmol mol−1 s−1) | |||||
| Low elevation | 63.65 ± 4.64 b | 65.56 ± 2.44 b | 134.82 ± 1.71 d | 210.276 | 2.101 × 10−22 |
| High elevation | 19.61 ± 1.65 a | 117.64 ± 8.36 c | 157.38 ± 4.25 d | ||