Data from: To recycle or steal? Nutrient resorption in Australian and Brazilian mistletoes from three low-phosphorus sites

Resorption is the process by which nutrients are withdrawn from leaves prior to leaf fall. Mistletoes are generally thought not to rely on nutrient resorption; being xylem-tapping parasites, they instead derive the nutrients required for new growth from their host plant, at little or no cost. We measured nutrient (N, P, K, Ca, Mg) resorption in 18 parasitic mistletoe–host species pairs distributed across three sites with notably low-P soil, also quantifying relationships with leaf lifespan (LL) and specific leaf area (SLA). There was little or no evidence of N, Ca or Mg resorption. By contrast, on average ∼30% of P and ∼20% of K were resorbed prior to leaf fall. Longer LL in mistletoes was associated with lower N and P concentrations in mistletoes and in host leaves. We provide evidence that, even though mistletoes are relatively inefficient in terms of nutrient resorption compared to non-parasite species, on low-P soils their ecological and evolutionary strategies for conserving phosphorous involve modulation of both leaf lifespan and P concentration in senesced leaves.

Usage Notes
Data_Scalon et al. OikosValues of specific leaf area (SLA), and leaf nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium concentrations for mistletoes and host species. Green leaf nutrient concentration are shown for mistletoes ([Nut]_green) and hosts ([Nut]_host). Senescent leaf nutrient concentration are shown for mistletoes only ([Nut]_old).

营养吸收是指植物在叶片脱落前从叶片中提取营养物质的过程。寄生槲寄生通常被认为不依赖营养吸收；作为木质部钻孔的寄生生物，它们从宿主植物中获取新生长所需的营养物质，代价极小或无。我们对分布于三个土壤磷含量显著低的地点的18对寄生槲寄生-宿主物种进行了营养（氮、磷、钾、钙、镁）吸收的测量，并量化了其与叶片寿命（LL）和特定叶面积（SLA）之间的关系。几乎没有关于氮、钙或镁吸收的证据。相比之下，平均而言，在叶片脱落前，大约30%的磷和20%的钾被吸收。槲寄生的较长叶片寿命与槲寄生和宿主叶片中较低的氮和磷浓度相关。我们提供了证据，尽管与非寄生物种相比，槲寄生在营养吸收方面的效率相对较低，但在磷含量低的土壤中，其生态和进化策略以保持磷含量涉及调节叶片寿命和衰老叶片中的磷浓度。

使用说明
数据集包含槲寄生和宿主物种的特定叶面积（SLA）以及叶片氮、磷、钾、镁和钙浓度的值。槲寄生（[Nut]_green）和宿主（[Nut]_host）的绿色叶片营养浓度已显示。槲寄生的衰老叶片营养浓度（[Nut]_old）仅显示。