It gets complicated

Plasticity is the ability of an organism to change its phenotype in response to environmental conditions. This enhances survival and reproductive success.There are two types, developmental plasticity, which occurs during an organism's development, and phenotypic plasticity, which manifests throughout its life. To determine if a trait is plastic, you would first identify the specific trait to study, such as leaf size in a particular plant species. Then select contrasting environmental conditions, such as full sunlight versus shaded areas, and conduct a controlled experiment with identical plants grown under both conditions. Throughout the experiment, regularly measure the trait of interest and utilize photographs or diagrams to visualize growth changes over time. Statistical analyses would help compare the means of the trait between the environments, looking for significant differences that indicate plasticity. Also assessing the genetic background of the organisms can confirm that the observed differences are responses to environmental factors. If significant variation in the trait exists between the two environments, it can be concluded that the trait exhibits plasticity.