Impact of habitat heterogeneity on growth dynamics and physiological responses of Dipterygium glaucum

Background and Objective: Dipterygium glaucum, a rangeland plant holds high ecological importance in desert conservation by providing a vegetation cover along with other species. This study investigated the impact of biotic and abiotic factors across different habitats, resulting in intraspecific variations in different ecotypes of Dipterygium glaucum. Materials and Methods: Morphological variations in different habitats were assessed using 2 way MANOVA and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with SPSS 23.0 statistical software. Total phenolics were estimated using Folin and Ciocalteu reagent, chlorophyll content was determined using spectrophotometer method. Antimicrobial activity of the plant extract was assessed against 2 g positive and 2 g negative pathogenic bacterial strains. Results: Variations among populations of three habitats due to adaption to varied environmental conditions were significant. The highland variant showed robust growth compared to coastal and sand dune populations and produced 2 types of flowers white and yellow compared to only yellow flowers in other habitats. Decreased chlorophyll content and increased antimicrobial activity and total phenolics were observed under salt stress. Conclusion: Dipterygium glaucum exhibit phenotypic plasticity across different habitats resulting in intraspecific variations and exist as ecotypes.