对产于青藏高原东缘的风毛菊属植物柳叶菜风毛菊(Saussurea epilobioides)、尖苞风毛菊(S.subulisquama)和钝苞雪莲(S.nigrescens)的30个居群的繁殖分配及其与海拔间的相关性进行了初步研究。通过采样调查法和烘干重量法,检测了不同海拔3种风毛菊属植物的繁殖分配。结果显示:1)海拔与植株个体大小呈负相关关系;2)海拔与繁殖分配呈正相关关系,将个体大小作为协变量,去除其影响,海拔与繁殖分配仍呈正相关关系;3)个体大小与繁殖分配呈负相关关系,将海拔作为协变量,去除其影响,个体大小和繁殖分配的相关性消失。研究表明,海拔作为外界因子对繁殖分配有显著的影响,这种影响不依赖于植物的内部因素(如个体大小的差异)。
Aims The study of reproductive allocation is important to understand the environmental factors that contribute to population differences and species evolution. Our objective is to examine variation in reproductive allocation among 30 populations representing three Saussurea species across an elevation gradient on China's Qinghai- Tibetan Plateau. Methods We used population means to evaluate sources of variation in reproductive allocation within species. In addition, we used the sample investigation method and dry weight to evaluate biomass. Important findings Reproductive allocation is negatively correlated with mean plant size; however, this rela- tionship is not statistically significant when the effect of elevation is controlled statistically. Among populations within species, reproductive allocation increases with elevation, and this relationship persists even when the effect of mean plant size is controlled statistically. Altitude is a main influence on reproductive allocation.