Zotz G, Hietz P
Lehrstuhl für Botanik II der Universität Würzburg, Julius-von-Sachs-Platz 3, D-97082 Würzburg, Germany.
J Exp Bot. 2001 Nov;52(364):2067-78. doi: 10.1093/jexbot/52.364.2067.
The current knowledge of the physiological ecology of vascular epiphytes is reviewed here with an emphasis on the most recent literature. It is argued that by far the most relevant abiotic constraint for growth and vegetative function of vascular epiphytes is water shortage, while other factors such as nutrient availability or irradiation, are generally of inferior importance. However, it is shown that the present understanding of epiphyte biology is still highly biased, both taxonomically and ecologically, and it is concluded that any generalizations are still preliminary. Future studies should include a much wider range of taxa and growing sites within the canopy to reach a better understanding how abiotic factors are limiting epiphyte growth and survival which, in turn, should affect epiphyte community composition. Finally, a more integrative approach to epiphyte biology is encouraged: physiological investigations should be balanced by studies of other possible constraints, for example, substrate instability, dispersal limitation, competition or herbivory.
本文回顾了当前关于附生维管植物生理生态学的知识，重点关注最新文献。文中指出，迄今为止，水分短缺是附生维管植物生长和营养功能最相关的非生物限制因素，而其他因素，如养分有效性或光照，通常重要性较低。然而，研究表明，目前对附生植物生物学的理解在分类学和生态学上仍存在很大偏差，并得出结论，任何概括仍处于初步阶段。未来的研究应涵盖更广泛的类群和树冠内的生长地点，以便更好地了解非生物因素如何限制附生植物的生长和生存，进而影响附生植物群落组成。最后，鼓励采用更综合的方法研究附生植物生物学：生理研究应与其他可能的限制因素研究相平衡，例如基质不稳定性、扩散限制、竞争或食草作用。
