Data from: Phenotypic constraints and community structure: linking trade-offs within and among species

Alternatively, trait variation among co-occurring species may reflect historical contingencies during community assembly rather than within-species constraints. Here, we test whether a key trade-off between relative growth rate (RGR) and water-use efficiency (WUE) among Sonoran Desert winter annual plants is apparent within four species representing different strategies in the system. We grew progeny of maternal families from multiple populations in a greenhouse common garden.

One species, Pectocarya recurvata, displayed the expected RGR – WUE trade-off among families within populations. For other species, although RGR and WUE often varied clinally among populations, among-family variation within populations was lacking, implicating a role for past selection on these traits. Our results suggest that a combination of limited genetic variation in single traits and negative trait correlations could pose constraints on the evolution of a high-RGR and high-WUE phenotype within species, providing a microevolutionary explanation for phenotypes that influence community-level patterns of abundance and coexistence.

Usage notes

Angert et al. Desert Annuals Data Phenotypic measurements of relative growth rate (RGR, measured based on change in leaf area per day) and water-use efficiency (as measured by carbon isotope discrimination, Delta, in ppm) for winter annual plants grown in a greenhouse common garden at Colorado State University. Note that Delta is negatively related to water-use efficiency. Design includes replicate individuals of up to 30 maternal families from each of 4-5 populations per each of 4 species.

Species codes: STMI = Stylocline micropoides, PERE = Pectocarya recurvata, ERTE = Erodium texanum, ERLA = Eriophyllum lanosum. Population codes: TUMH = Tumamoc Hill, AZ; OPNM = Organ Pipe National Monument, AZ; SDNM = Sonoran Desert National Monument, AZ; SENT = Sentinel, AZ; RINC = Rincon Mountains, AZ; CALI = Californian populations (see manuscript for exact locations for each species). Climatic values for winter maximum temperature (Tmax_wt), winter minimum temperature (Tmin_wt), and winter precipitation (PPT_wt) were estimated based on latitude and longitude using the program ClimateWNA.

AngertDAGreenhouseDryad.csv