Adaptations of Laguncularia racemosa leaves to seasonality and ecosystem
types along the coastline of Guyana
Abstract
Coastline ecosystems are resilient, and the mangrove species that
inhabit them are well-suited to deal with harsh, stresses such as anoxic
soils and fluctuating salinity. Mangrove leaves are specialised plant
structures that enable them to preserve their photosynthetic capability
and functionality despite frequent changes in their habitats. Along the
coastline of Guyana, we studied the morphological characteristics and
chlorophyll content of 400 leaves taken from Laguncularia
racemosa (white mangrove) trees in one degraded and one restored
ecosystem. The closest individual sampling method was used to collect
leaf samples throughout the wet and dry seasons. Our results demonstrate
that L. racemosa leaves are affected by both habitat type and
seasonality. The leaves of L. racemosa are mesophyllous, and leaf
characteristics such as length, width, area, perimeter, mass, leaf
specific area, and relative water content were significantly correlated
(p < 0.05, R > 0.75), with the restored ecosystem
during the dry season and the degraded ecosystem during the wet season
having greater values. Differences in chlorophyll content were seen in
the two types of ecosystems, but not seasonally, with the degraded
ecosystem showing the most variation. The results of PCA and regression
analysis further verified correlations between leaf morphological
characteristics and ecosystem type.