Global photosynthetic capacity is optimized to the environment

Earth system models (ESMs) use photosynthetic capacity, indexed by the maximum Rubisco carboxylation rate (Vcmax), to simulate carbon assimilation and typically rely on empirical estimates, including an assumed dependence on leaf nitrogen determined from soil fertility. In contrast, new theory, base...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ecology letters 2019-03, Vol.22 (3), p.506-517
Main Authors: Smith, Nicholas G., Keenan, Trevor F., Colin Prentice, I., Wang, Han, Wright, Ian J., Niinemets, Ülo, Crous, Kristine Y., Domingues, Tomas F., Guerrieri, Rossella, Yoko Ishida, F., Kattge, Jens, Kruger, Eric L., Maire, Vincent, Rogers, Alistair, Serbin, Shawn P., Tarvainen, Lasse, Togashi, Henrique F., Townsend, Philip A., Wang, Meng, Weerasinghe, Lasantha K., Zhou, Shuang‐Xi, Niu, Shuli
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acclimation
Acclimatization
biochemical-model
Carbon cycle
Carboxylation
co2 assimilation
Computer simulation
conductance
coordination
Dependence
ecophysiology
electron transport
Environment models
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
Jmax
leaf nitrogen
Leaves
Letter
Letters
light availability
Miljövetenskap
nitrogen availability
Optimization
Photosynthesis
quantum yield
Ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylase
Soil fertility
Soils
temperature
temperature response
thermal-acclimation
traits
v-cmax
Vcmax
water
Water costs
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Summary:Earth system models (ESMs) use photosynthetic capacity, indexed by the maximum Rubisco carboxylation rate (Vcmax), to simulate carbon assimilation and typically rely on empirical estimates, including an assumed dependence on leaf nitrogen determined from soil fertility. In contrast, new theory, based on biochemical coordination and co‐optimization of carboxylation and water costs for photosynthesis, suggests that optimal Vcmax can be predicted from climate alone, irrespective of soil fertility. Here, we develop this theory and find it captures 64% of observed variability in a global, field‐measured Vcmax dataset for C3 plants. Soil fertility indices explained substantially less variation (32%). These results indicate that environmentally regulated biophysical constraints and light availability are the first‐order drivers of global photosynthetic capacity. Through acclimation and adaptation, plants efficiently utilize resources at the leaf level, thus maximizing potential resource use for growth and reproduction. Our theory offers a robust strategy for dynamically predicting photosynthetic capacity in ESMs.
ISSN:1461-023X
1461-0248
DOI:10.1111/ele.13210