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First published online January 9, 2009; doi:10.3732/ajb.0800164 American Journal of Botany 96: 431-438 (2009) © 2009 Botanical Society of America, Inc.

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Ephemeral clonal integration in Calathea marantifolia (Marantaceae): Evidence of diminished integration over time¹

² Department of Biology, University of Miami, P.O. Box 249118, Coral Gables, Florida 33124 USA

ABSTRACT

A major advantage of clonal growth forms is the intergenerational transfer of resources through vascular connections (clonal integration). Connections linking ramets can be persistent or ephemeral. For species with ephemeral connections, whether the extent of clonal integration changes over time is unclear. To address this issue, we tracked water movement using an isotopic label and assessed the demographic performance of parent and offspring ramets over time in a severing experiment. Our study system was the understory herb Calathea marantifolia, which has parent ramets that produce vegetative bulbils (clonal offspring) that pass through distinct pre- and post-rooting stages. Little water was transported between parents and offspring, and the direction of movement was primarily from parent to pre-rooting offspring. Anatomical observations of inter-ramet connections showed that vascular bundles were twice as abundant in parent stems compared to inter-ramet connections. Severing inter-ramet connections reduced the growth of offspring ramets but not parents. Survival of pre-rooting offspring was reduced by 10% due to severing, but post-rooting offspring were not affected. Our results suggest that offspring ramets of C. marantifolia are weaned from their parent as they progress from pre- to post-rooting stages.

Key Words: bulbil • Calathea marantifolia • clonal integration • clonal phenology • deuterium labeling • Marantaceae • physiological integration • stable isotopes • water transport

Received for publication 11 May 2008. Accepted for publication 9 October 2008.

FOOTNOTES

¹ L. Bowerman, I. Boittin, and T. Hawley assisted with data collection in the field; C. Garcia-Robledo and E. Kuprewicz provided field equipment; J. Horn took photos of the vascular anatomy; J. Fisher helped with anatomical observations; and P. Ellsworth assisted with sample preparation for isotope analysis. Material for anatomical observations was obtained at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden. T. Hawley, C. Horvitz, D. Janos, H. de Kroon, L. Sevillano, and B. Whitlock commented on earlier versions of this manuscript. Funds were provided by the Organization for Tropical Studies, Heliconia Society International, and the Curtis Plant Sciences Scholarship at the Department of Biology, University of Miami. D.P.M. was supported during writing and analysis by a University of Miami Cooper Fellowship awarded to C. C. Horvitz. This is contribution no. 660 in the University of Miami Program in Tropical Biology, Ecology, and Behavior.

³ Author for correspondence (e-mail: dmatlaga{at}bio.miami.edu)

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