Ecophysiology of Mediterranean plants

ISBN-13: 9783639134919 / Angielski / Miękka / 2009 / 376 str.

Jeroni Galmés

Opis

The objectives of this work were to analyze how biodiversity and adaptation to Mediterranean climate is reflected in a diversity of ecophysiological traits and their responses to drought, and to study whether such diversity was related to growth forms and endemicity. The analysis covered the germination capacity, the effects of drought on seedling growth, the leaf ecophysiological responses to drought, and the adaptation of Rubisco specificity, in 24 Mediterranean species from the Balearic Islands. A wide range of variation has been observed among the species, with about half of this variability associated to different growth forms. However, no differentiation was found between endemic and non-endemic species of the Balearic Islands. The high diversity in the ecophysiological traits and their responses to drought found among Mediterranean species must be considered as a resource to identify target adaptive traits for breeding plans, but also as a genetic bank to improve crop productivity.

O autorze

Jeroni Galmés did his PhD on the effects of drought on the
ecophysiology of Mediterranean species, at Universitat de les
Illes Balears (UIB). He performed postdoc stages at Rothamsted
Research, UK, and at the Australian Natl. Univ., working in the
biochemistry of Rubisco. After the postdoc he became associated
professor at UIB.