A Comparison of the Ecological Wood Anatomy of the Floras of Southern California and Israel

Abstract

A comparison is made between ecological trends in wood anatomy found in southern California and Israel and adjacent regions. Trends for type of vessel perforation, vessel member length and the occurrence of helical thickenings show striking parallels. Characters like vessel diameter and frequency and incidence of (fibre-)tracheids show only weakly similar trends. Vessel grouping and ring-porosity do not show any parallel in the data for southern California and Israel. The differences between the two floras can largely be attributed to different floristic composition and the alternative possibilities for safe and efficient xylem sap transport and drought resistance in different taxa.