Strategies in Ericaceae to acquire phosphorus in phosphorus-impoverished habitats in the southwest Australian biodiversity hotspot

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dc.contributor.authorZhou, X.M.
dc.contributor.authorRanathunge, K.
dc.contributor.authorNge, F.J.
dc.contributor.authorLiu, S.T.
dc.contributor.authorDixon, K.W.
dc.contributor.authorLambers, H.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstract1. In the Southwest Australian Biodiversity Hotspot, the greatest plant species diversity tends to occur on the most phosphorus (P)-impoverished soils. Many plantspecies in this P-impoverished environment release root carboxylates that mobilise soil P which is a more effective mechanism than mycorrhizas in severely P-impoverished habitats. For ericoid mycorrhizal Ericaceae, a prominent and diversefamily in southwest Australia, it is unclear whether they release carboxylates asa P-acquisition strategy. We hypothesised that some Ericaceae exhibit high leafmanganese (Mn) concentrations ([Mn]), a proxy for rhizosphere carboxylates andrelease root carboxylates. 2. Since carboxylates not only mobilise P but also Mn, whose uptake is poorly con-trolled in plants, we used leaf [Mn] in the natural habitat as a proxy for rhizosphere carboxylate concentrations. We compared their leaf [Mn] with that ofpositive and negative reference species, known to release carboxylates or not, respectively. To follow up, we measured the carboxylate exudation rates of targeted species with high and low leaf [Mn] using seedlings grown in low-P nutrient solutions. 3. Using these complementary approaches, we confirmed that Ericaceae in P-impoverished habitats with high leaf [Mn] exhibit a carboxylate-releasing P-mobilising strategy, like non-mycorrhizal Proteaceae. Surprisingly, some specieswith low leaf [Mn], which occurred in habitats with high soil pH, also released carboxylates. Therefore, low leaf [Mn] cannot conclusively indicate the absence of carboxylate exudation. These species may release carboxylates along with cations such as potassium or magnesium, which increase the rhizosphere pH,thereby decreasing Mn availability and accumulation in mature leaves. The lack of a significant phylogenetic signal detected for leaf [P] and leaf [Mn] across sampled taxa indicated these nutrient acquisition traits are not only limited to certain clades but also likely evolved independently multiple times in Ericaceae. Styphelia sensu lato exhibited the widest trait variation (highest to lowest leaf [P] and [Mn])of all genera included in this study. 4. The high diversity and abundance of Ericaceae in southwest Australia may be associated with the presence of carboxylate release to mobilise P, making them successful in these severely P-impoverished habitats without reliance on ericoid mycorrhizas alone.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityXue Meng Zhou, Kosala Ranathunge, Francis J. Nge, Shu Tong Liu, Kingsley W. Dixon, Hans Lambers
dc.identifier.citationFunctional Ecology, 2025; 39(10):2889-2904
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/1365-2435.70142
dc.identifier.issn0269-8463
dc.identifier.issn1365-2435
dc.identifier.orcidNge, F.J. [0000-0002-0361-8709]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/147756
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherWiley
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FT170100195
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP200101013
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DP130100005
dc.rights© 2025 The Author(s). Functional Ecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Ecological Society. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution inany medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2435.70142
dc.subjectAndersonia gracilis; biodiversity hotspot; carboxylate exudation; Ericaceae; ericoid mycorrhiza; leaf manganese concentration; phosphorus; Styphelia conostephioides
dc.titleStrategies in Ericaceae to acquire phosphorus in phosphorus-impoverished habitats in the southwest Australian biodiversity hotspot
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished

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