Abstract：
Functional trait variation measured on continuous scales has helped ecologists to unravel important ecological processes. However, forest ecologists have recently moved back toward using functional groups. There are pragmatic and biological rationales for focusing on functional groups. Both of these approaches have inherent limitations including binning clearly continuous distributions, poor trait-group matching, and narrow conceptual frameworks for why groups exist and how they evolved. We believe the pragmatic use of functional groups due to data deficiencies will eventually erode. Conversely, we argue that existing conceptual frameworks for why a limited number of tree functional groups may exist is a useful, but flawed, starting point for modeling forests that can be improved through the consideration of unmeasured axes of functional variation.
摘要：
在连续尺度上测量的功能性状变异帮助生态学家解开了重要的生态过程。然而,森林生态学家最近又转向使用功能组。关注功能组有务实和生物学的理由。这两种方法都有固有的局限性，包括分箱清楚地连续分布，特征-群体匹配差，以及关于群体为什么存在以及它们是如何演变的狭窄概念框架。我们认为，由于数据不足而导致的功能组的务实使用最终将受到侵蚀。相反，我们认为，现有的概念框架，为什么有限数量的树功能组可能存在是一个有用的，但有缺陷,森林建模的起点，可以通过考虑未测量的功能变异轴进行改进。
