Coupling stress physiology with ecosystem analysis
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Date
2007
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Abstract
To improve our understanding of how ecosystems operate, identify whether they are under external or self-induced stress, and prescribe appropriate cures, a marriage between stress physiology and ecosystem analysis is advocated. How carbon products are distributed within plants is a sensitive measure of stress; similarly, the quality of detrital carbon reflects the nutritional status of its source and the rate at which it may be processed by heterotrophic organisms. Biochemical indicators such as adeno-phosphate ratios and levels of stored metabolites also may provide insight into the early development of stress. Subtle stress experiments in ecosystems are presented as alternatives to conventional analyses.