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cje ›› 2011, Vol. 30 ›› Issue (01): 145-154.

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Epiphytic plants: Their responses to global change and roles in bioindication.

SONG Liang1,2, LIU Wen-yao1,3**   

  1. 1Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China;2Graduate University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China;3Curtin University of Technology, Perch WA 6845, Australia
  • Online:2011-01-08 Published:2011-01-08

Abstract: Epiphytic plants are a group of plants that live on host plants without absorbing nutrients and water from the hosts. Because of their specific morphological and structural features and ecological habits, epiphytic plants are very sensitive and vulnerable to environmental changes. To study the response of epiphytic plants to global change and their roles in bioindication has important guiding significance and application value. This paper reviewed the research progress in the possible responses of epiphytic plants to global change events, including atmospheric composition change, climate change, and land use/cover change, and summarized the related research methods. It was suggested that in the future, field control experiment and simulation study should be carried out by using standard and quantitative methods combined with the development and application of new instruments, the effective database should be built from long-term and systematic monitoring in global range, and the quantitative indices and corresponding models relating to the response of epiphytic plants to climate change should be developed.

Key words: Red tide, Heterosigma akashiwo, Iron limitation, Fluorescence characteristics