Climate: The dominant factor influencing the spatial distribution pattern of the leaf trait network of Populus euphratica along the main stream of the Tarim River

Abstract

Leaves are the primary interface through which plants interact with the environment, their functional traits (morphology, anatomy, physiology) directly reflecting ecological strategies that mediate species-environment interactions. These traits link plant performance to ecosystem processes, shaping species distributions and coexistence via their complex relationships with climatic and edaphic factors. Based on previous work, we selected 20 P. euphratica trees along the desert riparian forest of the main stream of the Tarim River for leaf sample collection and habitat survey. We used 27 leaf traits of P. euphratica to visualize the leaf trait network (LTN). Through network structure parameters, such as edge density, diameter, average path length, and average clustering coefficient, the spatial pattern of the LTN and its relationships with 19 climatic factors and 11 soil factors were discussed using principal component analysis and correlation analysis. The results showed that: (1) there were significant differences in the parameters of the leaf trait network of P. euphratica along the main stream of the Tarim River. The variation coefficients of the diameter and average path length were the largest, respectively, whereas that of the average clustering coefficient was the smallest. (2) Among the parameters, only Modularity was significantly correlated with STK and SOM. But Average clustering coefficient was significantly positively correlated with Isothermality, Average path length and Diameter were significantly positively correlated with Min temperature of coldest month and the Average clustering coefficient was significantly negatively correlated with Min temperature of coldest month, the Diameter was significantly positively correlated with Precipitation of wettest month. In general, the correlation between climate factors and LTNs was stronger than soil factors. (3) The explanatory power of climatic factors alone on the leaf traits of P. euphratica was generally higher than that of soil factors, indicating that climatic conditions play a more decisive role in shaping the network structure of leaf traits of P. euphratica. However, the influence of soil conditions on some LTNs parameters cannot be ignored.The spatial variability of leaf trait networks is driven by climate and soil factors, with climate dominating along the Tarim River’s main course.