Carrie,
I don't have the reference at hand, but your memory matches mine. They were
unable to show that cypress knees provided oxygen. Some think they may help to
add ballast. Perhaps they are a response with no adaptive value, like tumors.
Janice
Carrie DeJaco wrote:
> Anyone out there know the function of the "knees" of cypress trees in
> swamps? I had thought they were to relieve oxygen stress on the
> waterlogged roots, but seem to remember hearing that that had been
> disproven. Any thoughts?
--
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Dr. Janice Glime, Professor
President of IAB; Manager of Bryonet
Department of Biological Sciences
Michigan Technological University
1400 Townsend Dr.
Houghton, MI 49931 USA
email: jmglime from mtu.edu
phone: 906-487-2546
fax: 906-487-3167
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