Phytolith Morphology in Culm Sheaths of Three Sympodial Bamboos: Interspecific Variations and Their Coupled Responses to Climatic Factors and Soil Geochemistry

This dataset provides comprehensive morphological measurements of phytoliths extracted from the culm sheaths of three sympodial bamboo species (Gigantochloa verticillata, Bambusa longispiculata, and Dendrocalamus bambusoides). Samples were collected from three climatically distinct sites in China: Guangzhou (subtropical monsoon climate), Chengdu (subtropical humid climate), and Xishuangbanna (tropical monsoon climate). The dataset comprises: Phytolith Morphology Data:​ Quantitative measurements (length, width, count, proportion) of 46 phytolith subtypes classified into 8 major morphotypes (saddle, elongate, acute, rondel, blocky, stomatal, dumbbell, and circular). Data includes environmental plasticity indices for length vs. width. Environmental Variables:​ Site-specific climatic data (Mean Annual Precipitation, Mean Annual Temperature, Annual Sunshine Hours) and soil elemental concentrations (Total Al, Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, P, S, Zn, Si). Statistical Analysis Outputs:​ Results from Spearman correlation analyses, Two-way ANOVA (species vs. site interactions), Random Forest feature importance rankings, and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) scores. This dataset elucidates the differential responses of bamboo phytoliths to climatic and soil factors, highlighting G. verticillata as a sensitive bio-indicator for environmental change. It supports the development of novel ecological indicators for paleoecological reconstruction and sustainable bamboo plantation management.