2026 Kaoru Kitajima: Plant Science and Agronomy Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Environmental Sciences	57	3363	3213	50	48	120	19531
Plant Science and Agronomy	57	1402	1284	41	41	117	19519

Kaoru Kitajima publication distribution in Plant Science and Agronomy in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Plant Science and Agronomy in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Kaoru Kitajima sits on this spectrum.

36 publications 467+

This scientist: 117 publications — 37th percentile

37% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 467 publications or more.

Kaoru Kitajima D-index placement in Plant Science and Agronomy in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Plant Science and Agronomy scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where Kaoru Kitajima sits on this spectrum.

30 D-Index 109+

This scientist: 57 D-Index — 78th percentile

78% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 109 D-Index or more.

Research.com Recognitions

2023 - Research.com Plant Science and Agronomy in Japan Leader Award
2022 - Research.com Plant Science and Agronomy in Japan Leader Award

Overview

Kaoru Kitajima is affiliated with Kyoto University in Japan and has an extensive research portfolio focused on environmental and biological sciences. Their work prominently intersects areas such as ecology, plant science, and landscape conservation, reflecting a multidisciplinary approach to understanding natural systems.

Their main fields of study include Environmental Science and Agricultural and Biological Sciences, supported by a substantial number of publications. Within these areas, the primary subfields Kitajima has contributed to are Plant Science, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Ecology, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, and Global and Planetary Change.

The core topics that frame their research encompass Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies, Silicon Effects in Agriculture, Aluminum toxicity and tolerance in plants and animals, Plant and animal studies, Geochemistry and Elemental Analysis, Forest ecology and management, and Remote Sensing and LiDAR Applications.

Kitajima's frequent publication venues highlight key journals where their research appears regularly. These venues include Ecological Research, SSRN Electronic Journal, Journal of Plant Research, Forest Ecology and Management, and Frontiers in Microbiology.

Their recent papers offer insight into their research focus, reflecting both empirical studies and broader ecological perspectives. Notable publications include:

Forest canopy height variation in relation to topography and forest types in central Japan with LiDAR (2021, Forest Ecology and Management)
Perspective: sustainability challenges, opportunities and solutions for long-term ecosystem observations (2023, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences)
Traits along the leaf economics spectrum are associated with communities of foliar endophytic symbionts (2022, Frontiers in Microbiology)
Coordination of leaf economics traits within the family of the world's fastest growing plants (Lemnaceae) (2021, Journal of Ecology)
Comparative analysis of borate fusion versus sodium carbonate extraction for quantification of silicon contents in plants (2020, Journal of Plant Research)

Collaboratively, Kitajima frequently works with fellow researchers such as Yusuke Onoda, Md. Farhadur Rahman, Ryosuke Nakamura, Joseph Emile Honour Percival, and Michiko Nakagawa, indicating an active engagement in co-authored scholarly work.

Best Publications

TRY - a global database of plant traits

J. Kattge;S. Díaz;S. Lavorel;I. C. Prentice

2885
Citations
TRY plant trait database : Enhanced coverage and open access

Jens Kattge;Gerhard Bönisch;Sandra Díaz;Sandra Lavorel

1926
Citations
Functional traits and the growth–mortality trade-off in tropical trees

S. Joseph Wright;Kaoru Kitajima;Kaoru Kitajima;Nathan J. B. Kraft;Peter B. Reich

1195
Citations
Relative importance of photosynthetic traits and allocation patterns as correlates of seedling shade tolerance of 13 tropical trees.

Kaoru Kitajima

1112
Citations
Plastic Phenotypic Response to Light of 16 Congeneric Shrubs From a Panamanian Rainforest

Fernando Valladares;S. Joseph Wright;Eloisa Lasso;Kaoru Kitajima

997
Citations
Physiological and structural tradeoffs underlying the leaf economics spectrum.

Yusuke Onoda;Ian J. Wright;John R. Evans;Kouki Hikosaka

674
Citations
Global patterns of leaf mechanical properties

Yusuke Onoda;Mark Westoby;Peter B. Adler;Amy M.F. Choong

570
Citations
Cloud cover limits net CO2 uptake and growth of a rainforest tree during tropical rainy seasons

Eric A. Graham;Stephen S. Mulkey;Kaoru Kitajima;Nathan G. Phillips

482
Citations
Carbohydrate storage enhances seedling shade and stress tolerance in a neotropical forest

Jonathan A. Myers;Kaoru Kitajima

462
Citations
Ecology of seedling regeneration.

K. Kitajima;M. Fenner

457
Citations
Increases of chlorophyll a/b ratios during acclimation of tropical woody seedlings to nitrogen limitation and high light

Kaoru Kitajima;Kevin P. Hogan;Kevin P. Hogan

400
Citations
MULTIPLE TRAIT ASSOCIATIONS IN RELATION TO HABITAT DIFFERENTIATION AMONG 17 FLORIDIAN OAK SPECIES

Jeannine Cavender-Bares;Jeannine Cavender-Bares;Jeannine Cavender-Bares;Kaoru Kitajima;F. A. Bazzaz

393
Citations
Carbohydrate storage and light requirements of tropical moist and dry forest tree species.

Lourens Poorter;Kaoru Kitajima

344
Citations
Tissue-level leaf toughness, but not lamina thickness, predicts sapling leaf lifespan and shade tolerance of tropical tree species

Kaoru Kitajima;Kaoru Kitajima;Lourens Poorter

319
Citations
Experimental Studies of Seedling Recruitment from Contrasting Seed Distributions

Carol K. Augspurger;Kaoru Kitajima

313
Citations
Ecophysiology of Tropical Tree Seedlings

Kaoru Kitajima

304
Citations
Decline of photosynthetic capacity with leaf age in relation to leaf longevities for five tropical canopy tree species.

Kaoru Kitajima;Kaoru Kitajima;Stephen S. Mulkey;S. Joseph Wright

262
Citations
Globally, functional traits are weak predictors of juvenile tree growth, and we do not know why

C.E. Thimothy Paine;Lucy Amissah;Lucy Amissah;Harald Auge;Christopher Baraloto;Christopher Baraloto

248
Citations
Temporal dynamics of microbial communities on decomposing leaf litter of 10 plant species in relation to decomposition rate

Sarah R. Bray;Kaoru Kitajima;Michelle C. Mack

226
Citations
Coordinated changes in photosynthesis, water relations and leaf nutritional traits of canopy trees along a precipitation gradient in lowland tropical forest

Louis S. Santiago;Louis S. Santiago;Kaoru Kitajima;S. Joseph Wright;Stephen S. Mulkey

217
Citations
Decline of photosynthetic capacity with leaf age and position in two tropical pioneer tree species.

Kaoru Kitajima;Kaoru Kitajima;Stephen S. Mulkey;Mirna Samaniego;S. Joseph Wright

206
Citations
Life History Trade-Offs in Tropical Trees and Lianas

Benjamin Gilbert;S. Joseph Wright;Helene C. Muller-Landau;Kaoru Kitajima

189
Citations