Influence of seasonal variation to the population growth and ecophysiology of Typha domingensis (Typhaceae)

Abstract

Precipitation is an important climatic element that defines the hydrological regime, and its seasonal variation produces annual dry and wet periods in some areas. This seasonality changes wetland environments and leverages the growth dynamics of macrophytes present, including Typha domingensis Pers. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of seasonal variation on the growth, anatomy and ecophysiology of T. domingensis in a natural wetland. Biometric, anatomical and ecophysiological traits of T. domingensis were evaluated over one year at four-month intervals. Reductions in photosynthesis were evidenced at the end of the wet periods and during the dry periods, and these reductions were associated with thinner palisade parenchymas. Increased stomatal indexes and densities as well as thinner epidermis observed at the beginning dry periods can be associated with higher transpiration rates during this period. The plants maintained their water contents during the dry periods, which may be related to the storage of water in leaf trabecular parenchyma, as this is the first time that results indicate the function of this tissue as a seasonal aquiferous parenchyma. In addition, increasing proportions of aerenchymas were evident during the wet periods, which may be related to a compensation mechanism for soil waterlogging. Therefore, the growth, anatomy and ecophysiology of T. domingensis plants change throughout the year to adjust to both the dry and wet periods, providing conditions for the survival of the plants and modulating population growth.