Atmosphere and climate impact photosynthetic pathway advantages
Essential elements from today’s lecture:
Here we will talk about the ecology of C3-C4-CAM photosynthesis plants. While C4 plants represent less than 3% of world's number of plant species, C4 photosynthesis accounts for nearly 25% of the total terrestrial productivity. CAM species contribute a marginal amount to global primary productivity. We discuss CAM as an evolutionary response to limited water in arid climates, a climate type that has existed since plants invaded land some 400 Ma.
In this lecture, we discuss how a changing atmosphere can favor either C3 or C4 plants. We discuss six topics related to the ecophysiology and ecology of C4 plants and to the comparative advantages of C3 versus C4 photosynthesis in different environments. The topics include:
Essential elements from today’s lecture:
Here we will talk about the ecology of C3-C4-CAM photosynthesis plants. While C4 plants represent less than 3% of world's number of plant species, C4 photosynthesis accounts for nearly 25% of the total terrestrial productivity. CAM species contribute a marginal amount to global primary productivity. We discuss CAM as an evolutionary response to limited water in arid climates, a climate type that has existed since plants invaded land some 400 Ma.
In this lecture, we discuss how a changing atmosphere can favor either C3 or C4 plants. We discuss six topics related to the ecophysiology and ecology of C4 plants and to the comparative advantages of C3 versus C4 photosynthesis in different environments. The topics include:
- C3 is the ancestral photosynthetic pathway and is still the most abundant photosynthetic pathway
- Photorespiration as a constraint on photosynthesis in a high O2 and low CO2 world
- Multiple and different lines for the evolution of C4 plant taxa
- Expansion of C4 ecosystems and the advantages of C4 photosynthesis under conditions of low CO2 and high temperature
- Impacts of expansion of C4 ecosystems and evolution of grazing mammals
- On connectivities between photosynthetic pathway and herbivory and the implications in a changing world