Global gradients in intraspecific variation in vegetative and floral traits are partially associated with climate and species richness

Aim Intraspecific trait variation (ITV) within natural plant communities can be large, influencing local ecological processes and dynamics. Here, we shed light on how ITV in vegetative and floral traits responds to large-scale abiotic and biotic gradients (i.e. climate and species richness). Specifically, we tested if associations of ITV with temperature, precipitation and species richness were consistent with any of from four hypotheses relating to stress-tolerance and competition. Furthermore, we estimated the degree of correlation between ITV in vegetative and floral traits and how they vary along the gradients. Location Global. Time period 1975-2016. Major taxa studied Herbaceous and woody plants. Methods We compiled a dataset of 18,112 measurements of the absolute extent of ITV (measured as coefficient of variation) in nine vegetative and seven floral traits from 2,774 herbaceous and woody species at 2,306 locations. Results Large-scale associatio...