Xue Shuwen, Jiashalaiti Atawula, Zhang Dongdong, Zhang Zhihao, Li Lei, Zhang Bo, Zeng Fanjiang, Lu Yan
State Key Laboratory of Ecological Safety and Sustainable Development in Arid Lands Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences Urumqi Xinjiang People's Republic of China.
Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Desert Plant Roots Ecology and Vegetation Restoration Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences Urumqi People's Republic of China.
Ecol Evol. 2025 Aug 29;15(9):e72083. doi: 10.1002/ece3.72083. eCollection 2025 Sep.
Leaf stoichiometry and nutrient resorption are key indicators for assessing nutrient-use status and predicting nutrient limitation in plant growth. However, the patterns of variation in plant community nutrient-use traits along elevational gradients remain unclear. To address this, we measured leaf nutrient contents of plant communities across six elevational gradients (1960 to 3548 m) on the northern slope of the Kunlun Mountains. We systematically analyzed variations in leaf stoichiometric traits, nutrient homeostasis, and nutrient resorption efficiency (NuRE), with a particular focus on the control strategies of nutrient resorption and their responses to environmental variables. The results showed that plant communities across all elevations in the study area exhibited co-limitation by nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). NuRE and PRE were higher than the global average, indicating that in nutrient-poor environments, plants adopt adaptive strategies by enhancing nutrient resorption to reduce nutrient loss. Both NuRE and PRE declined significantly at high elevations (3248-3548 m), while the NuRE:PRE ratio tended to stabilize, suggesting a reduced dependence on nutrient resorption and a more balanced N and P availability in soils at higher altitudes. NuRE was mainly regulated by plant community diversity, whereas PRE was primarily driven by climatic factors. Under the nutrient-poor conditions of the study area, plant communities tended to adopt stoichiometric control strategies to optimize nutrient resorption, thereby enhancing the efficiency of energy and resource allocation. Furthermore, we propose that the combined use of NuRE:PRE and LTN:LTP serves as a more robust framework for assessing nutrient limitation. This study improves our understanding of the patterns of nutrient limitation and nutrient resorption processes along elevational gradients in arid mountain regions and provides new insights into nutrient regulation mechanisms underlying plant adaptation to environmental heterogeneity.
叶片化学计量学和养分重吸收是评估植物生长中养分利用状况和预测养分限制的关键指标。然而，植物群落养分利用性状沿海拔梯度的变化模式仍不清楚。为了解决这个问题，我们测量了昆仑山脉北坡六个海拔梯度（1960至3548米）上植物群落的叶片养分含量。我们系统地分析了叶片化学计量性状、养分稳态和养分重吸收效率（NuRE）的变化，特别关注养分重吸收的控制策略及其对环境变量的响应。结果表明，研究区域内所有海拔的植物群落均表现出受氮（N）和磷（P）的共同限制。NuRE和PRE高于全球平均水平，表明在养分贫瘠的环境中，植物通过增强养分重吸收来减少养分损失，从而采取适应性策略。在高海拔地区（3248 - 3548米），NuRE和PRE均显著下降，而NuRE:PRE比值趋于稳定，这表明在更高海拔地区，对养分重吸收的依赖性降低，土壤中氮和磷的有效性更加平衡。NuRE主要受植物群落多样性的调节，而PRE主要受气候因素驱动。在研究区域养分贫瘠的条件下，植物群落倾向于采用化学计量控制策略来优化养分重吸收，从而提高能量和资源分配效率。此外，我们建议将NuRE:PRE和LTN:LTP结合使用，作为评估养分限制的更稳健框架。本研究增进了我们对干旱山区沿海拔梯度的养分限制模式和养分重吸收过程的理解，并为植物适应环境异质性的养分调节机制提供了新的见解。
