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JXB Advance Access originally published online on July 16, 2003
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Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 54, No. 390, pp. 2007-2014, September 1, 2003
© 2003 Oxford University Press

Mechanics and chemistry of rain forest leaves: canopy and understorey compared*

Received 1 November 2002; Accepted 15 May 2003

Nathaniel J. Dominy{dagger},1, Peter W. Lucas2 and S. Joseph Wright3

1 Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, 1101 East 57th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
2 Department of Anatomy, University of Hong Kong, 21 Sassoon Road, Hong Kong, PR China
3 Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 2072, Balboa, Ancón, Republic of Panamá

* Paper presented at the 5th International Workshop in Field Techniques for Environmental Physiology, Tenerife, Spain, 16-22 March 2003.
{dagger} To whom correspondence should be addressed. Fax: +1 773 702 9740. E-mail: njdominy{at}uchicago.edu

Despite the potential for changes during transit or preservation, the physicochemical properties of leaves are typically measured in a laboratory setting. A suite of laboratory methods adapted for use in the field is described here. The equipment is portable and operable in remote environments. Each technique has been validated against laboratory standards and has been tested throughout the tropics in a variety of ecological contexts. The properties of canopy and understorey leaves from Central Panama are reported here. The results show clear differences between leaves growing in different light regimes. Canopy leaves are tougher and possess greater concentrations of protein, phenols, and tannins. The implication of these results to the resource availability hypothesis, which proposes trade-offs between physiology and defences against herbivory, is discussed.

Key words: Barro Colorado Island, canopy crane, fracture toughness, herbivory, Panama.


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