Executive Summary : | Understanding the processes that shape community composition across environmental gradients is crucial in ecology to predict the response of communities to future environmental change. Functional traits, such as morphological, phenological, or hydraulic traits, play a central role in determining community assembly. However, floral traits, such as flower phenology, number and display area, specific flower area, flower spectra, and flower hydraulics, remain largely neglected in plant ecology. These traits determine interactions with pollinators and regulate reproductive success, which affects plant performance and community structure. This study aims to examine the role of morphological, phenological, and hydraulic traits of flowers in driving assembly of herbaceous plant species across an elevational gradient in the Greater Himalaya. The hypothesis is that plants will delay flowering phenology events, have fewer, smaller, and thicker flowers with lower hydraulic conductance, and have more clustered and colorful flowers with larger display areas. From low to high elevation, floral traits will experience coordinated selection with other traits related to stress-tolerance. The study will test these hypotheses using herbaceous plant species across an elevation gradient in the Western Himalaya (Himachal Pradesh). Permanent plots will be established from 2,000 to 4,500 meters at every 500 meters, and 19 total traits for flowers, seeds, leaves, and organ-level biomass allocation will be measured. The study will help monitor long-term responses of herbaceous species in a changing climate and publish the findings in international peer-reviewed journals. |