Development of ecological research on silicon utilisation by tropical tree species

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26650163
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Ecology/Environment
• Research Institution: Kyoto University
• Principal Investigator: KITAJIMA KAORU 京都大学, (連合)農学研究科(研究院), 教授 (40721379)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): KITAYAMA KANEHIRO 京都大学, 農学研究科, 教授 (20324684)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: 熱帯林樹種 / ケイ素循環 / 植物機能形質 / 森林生態系 / 土壌風化 / 生態系元素循環 / マレーシア / 熱帯低地林

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In order to understand the mechanism at which natural forests in the tropics sustainably maintain ecosystem processes, we studied the interaction between dominant tree species and silicon, a critically important element in the process of soil weathering, in lowland and mountain forests in Malaysia. We quantified silicon concentrations in live leaves of dominant tree species and leaf litters periodically sampled from litter traps, and also assessed silicon availability in the upper A-horizon soil. The results showed for the first time that silicon cycling via plants is much more active in lowland compared to mountain forests, suggesting that many lowland tree species have evolved silicon uptake and accumulation as their functional traits, which in turn strongly influence soil weathering and mineralogy.

Free Research Field

植物生態学