Herbarium-based measurements are reliable predictors of fresh plant traits in Neotropical Myrtaceae

Abstract

Premise: Herbarium specimens are increasingly used to extract morphological traits for ecological and evolutionary studies, yet the effects of tissue desiccation on trait measurements remain poorly understood. Here, we tested whether higher tissue water content leads to greater measurement changes after herborization (H1) and whether fresh trait values can be reliably predicted from herbarium measurements (H2). Methods: We evaluated the reliability of herbarium-based measurements by comparing fresh and dried traits of leaves, flowers, fleshy fruits, and seeds across 262 individuals representing 133 Neotropical Myrtaceae species. Phylogenetic least square models and machine-learning regressions were used to test H1 and H2. Results: Leaves and flowers generally shrank after herborization, fruits size metrics tended to increase, and seeds were largely unaffected. Water content was significantly associated with the magnitude of herborization effects in flowers and some leaf and seed traits. Fresh trait values were accurately predicted from herbarium measurements. Prediction errors were lowest for leaf traits, followed by fruits, flowers, and seeds. Discussion: These results partially support H1 and support H2, indicating that herbarium specimens can be reliably used for trait analyses when organ-specific responses are considered, providing a practical framework to account for potential desiccation bias in functional trait research.

Plant phenotyping relevance

ハーバリウム標本による植物形態形質測定の信頼性評価と、生鮮形質の予測手法が研究の中心であり、植物フェノタイピング手法の検証に該当する。

Code and data availability

The authors explicitly state that the code used for the PGLS and machine-learning analyses is publicly available in a GitHub repository; raw phenotype data is promised only upon acceptance, so the code asset qualifies while the dataset is not yet actionable.