Answers to Hone Your Problem-Solving Skills Questions
1. The photosynthesis rate for the C3 plant increases from 32 to 39 μmol∕m2∕s, or an increase of 22% with the increase in CO2 concentrations.
The photosynthesis rate for the C4 plant does not increase at all—the photosynthesis rate is CO2 saturated above an atmospheric concentration of about 200 ppm. If the increase in photosynthesis results in greater growth of the C3 plants but not the C4 plants, the abundance of the C3 plants may increase at the expense of the C4 plants, which would decrease in abundance.2. The observed increase in photosynthesis is greater than predicted for plants of both photosynthetic pathways but unexpectedly so for the C4 plants, for which no increase was expected based on the modeled response. Reasons may be related to benefits to all plants in water savings, due to lower transpiration rates from stomatal closure, and thus less water stress lowering photosynthesis rates. Additionally, plants may be able to acclimatize to the elevated CO2 and more effectively invest in enzymes to increase photosynthesis rates as CO2 concentrations increase. Finally, the photosynthetic CO2 response shown in the model may not be representative for all species. Some C4 plants may have higher CO2 saturation points than what is shown in the figure.
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