Vegetation Functional Types and Traits at Multiple Scales

Purpose and scale are the two main drivers that influence the description and classification of vegetation. Whereas the former can be relatively well defined, the latter is far more challenging where attributes that carry useful information at one scale often lack utility at another. Issues of scale dependency are widely discussed in theory but much less attention is given to their resolution in practice. This chapter considers how the advent of plant functional types and traits has added a new dimension to the study of scale dependence by replacing traditional, broad structural, species-based attributes with finer-scale trait characteristics and trait assemblages or ‘syndromes’ that reflect response-effect relationships of individuals and communities more explicitly along environmental gradients. Traditional scale-related aspects of vegetation classification are compared with recent advances involving plant functional types and traits, especially those expressed in holistic plant strategies. Case studies using global data sets illustrate a critical need for uniformity in data collection and analysis and address the question of scale dependency among specific sets of singular traits and trait syndromes at local, regional and biome scales.