DOI: 10.5061/dryad.bnzs7h4qq
title: Lianas and trees exhibit distinct hydraulic and functional traits in a subtropical forest

description: Lianas are woody vines that rely on host trees for support to access the
 forest canopy. Lianas typically occur in tropical and subtropical forests
 and coexist with trees in subtropical secondary forests, where their
 interactions strongly influence forest communities and ecosystem
 functioning. We compared stem and leaf traits of lianas and trees to
 examine the effects of growth form and leaf habit. We measured 20
 functional traits (9 stem anatomical/hydraulic and 11 leaf morphological /
 nutrient) from 10 liana and 14 tree species coexisting in a subtropical
 forest of South China. Lianas exhibited 3.5-fold higher sapwood specific
 conductivity (Ks) than trees, as well as higher predawn leaf water
 potential (Ψpredawn) and hydraulically weighted vessel diameter (Dh).
 Additionally, the maximum vessel diameter (Dmax) of lianas is
 approximately three times higher than that of trees, and the theoretical
 hydraulic conductivity (Kp) was ~20 times higher than trees. Functional
 trait analysis indicated that lianas grouped separately from trees along a
 leaf and stem economics spectrum: lianas were grouped at the fast end of
 the plant economics spectrum, with high hydraulic diameter (Dh) and high
 nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentration, exhibiting an
 acquisition-focused water and nutrient strategy, permitting rapid growth
 and tissue turnover. Trees were grouped at the low end of the plant
 economics spectrum, with a high C: N ratio, high vessel thickness/diameter
 (VT/VD), and high wood density (WD), exhibiting a conservative resource
 acquisition strategy. Moreover, lianas exhibited significantly higher
 modularity in their trait networks compared to trees (0.490 vs. 0.345; P =
 0.043), reflecting stronger local integration of function, with tightly
 coordinated traits that may enhance system adaptability by limiting the
 spread of local drought-induced stress. These findings improve our
 understanding of the mechanisms shaping ecological strategies across woody
 plants with different growth forms and leaf habits, and address the
 limited trait-based knowledge of subtropical forests relative to the
 tropics. This study provides novel insight into how growth form and leaf
 habit shape resource acquisition and niche partitioning in co-occurring
 woody species in subtropical and secondary forests.
description: # Lianas and trees exhibit distinct hydraulic and functional traits in a
 subtropical forest Dataset DOI:
 [10.5061/dryad.bnzs7h4qq](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.bnzs7h4qq) ##
 Description of the data and file structure This dataset contains plant
 trait data and associated metadata used in the publication:  Liu et al.
 (2025) — Lianas and Trees Exhibit Distinct Hydraulic and Functional Traits
 in a Subtropical Forest. Functional Ecology. The data were collected from
 woody species in a subtropical forest in South China. They include key
 hydraulic, morphological, and structural traits used to construct trait
 networks and conduct comparative analyses between trees and lianas. ###
 Files and variables #### File: trait_data_clean.csv Description of the
 variables:  * species: Scientific name of the species * Growth form: Tree
 and Liana * Leaf habits: Deciduous and Evergreen * Ψ predawn: Predawn
 potential, bar * Ψ midday: Midday potential, bar * TLP: Leaf water
 potential at turgor loss point, MPa * C: Carbon concentration, g kg^−1^ *
 N: Nitrogen concentration, g kg^−1^ * P: Phosphorus concentration, g
 kg^−1^ * C.N: Carbon/nitrogen ratio * N.P: Nitrogen/phosphorus ratio *
 WUE: Water use efficiency, μmol mol^−1^ * SLA: Specific leaf area, cm^2^
 g^−1^ * LT: Leaf thickness, μm * Ks: Sapwood specific hydraulic
 conductivity, kg m^−1^ s^−1^ MPa^−1^ * Dh: Hydraulically weighted vessel
 diameter, μm * P50: Potential when hydraulic conductivity was lost
 50%, MPa  * Kp: Potential hydraulic conductivity, kg m^−1^ s^−1^ MPa^−1^ *
 VD: Vessel density, no. mm^−2^ * V T.D: Vessel thickness/diameter, μm/μm 
 * PPA: Paratracheal parenchyma area,% * WD: Wood density, g cm^−3^