Seasonality of fruiting and food hoarding by rodents in neotropical forests: consequences for seed dispersal and seedling recruitment.

2009 ◽  
pp. 241-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. M. Forget ◽  
D. S. Hammond ◽  
T. Milleron ◽  
R. Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Food Hoarding ◽  
Neotropical Forests

Dispersal ofAcaciaseeds by ungulates and ostriches in an African savanna

1996 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 345-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maxine F. Miller
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Seedling Survival ◽  
Tree Crown ◽  
African Savanna ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Mammalian Herbivores ◽  
Open Environments ◽  
Presence And Absence

ABSTRACTThe dispersal of AfricanAcaciaseeds in the presence and absence of large mammalian herbivores and ostriches was assessed in a savanna ecosystem in South Africa. In the absence of large herbivores,A. tortilisandA. niloticapods were mainly dispersed in the shade, directly beneath the tree crown and seeds remained in pods for over 18 months. In the presence of large herbivores,A. tortilis, A. niloticaandA. karrooseeds were freed from pods and were dispersed into open, non-shaded habitats. Impala dispersed mostA. tortilisseeds (18,900 ha−1), giraffe mostA. niloticaseeds (1060 ha−1) and giraffe and kudu mostA. karrooseeds (452 and 448 ha−1, respectively). Seedling survival in dung in open environments may exceed that of seedlings in soil shaded beneath the tree crown. It appears that seed dispersal by large herbivores may be advantageous to future seedling recruitment.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal Patterns and Mechanisms of Chinese Tallowtree (Triadica sebifera) Spread along Edge Habitat in a Coastal Landscape, Mississippi, USA

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 117-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhaofei Fan ◽  
Shaoyang Yang ◽  
Xia Liu
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Negative Binomial ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Light Availability ◽  
Spatiotemporal Patterns ◽  
Tree Age ◽  
Triadica Sebifera ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Edge Habitat ◽  
Dispersal Mechanism

AbstractChinese tallowtree [Triadica sebifera(L.) Small] has reached unprecedented prevalence in coastal landscapes in the Gulf of Mexico, especially along edge habitat with low competition and abundant resource (e.g., light) availability. This study investigated the spatiotemporal patterns and mechanisms ofT. sebiferaspread along roadways and fire lines.Triadica sebiferaindividuals and landscape and community features were surveyed in equally spaced, spatially mapped plots. AllT. sebiferaindividuals were felled to determine tree age and status (seed trees or non-seed bearing trees), andT. sebiferaseed and seedling (≤2 yr old) densities and community and landscape features (over- and understory conditions, distance to seed trees) were measured. A zero-inflated negative binomial model was used to evaluate factors affectingT. sebiferaseed dispersal and seedling recruitment contributing to the observed spatiotemporal patterns. Introduced into the Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge around 30 yr ago,T. sebiferatrees distribute in clustered patterns along roadways and fire lines and exhibit an exponential growth in density. HighT. sebiferaseed and seedling densities mainly occurred in sites that are ≤250 m from seed trees or have sparse overstory and high understory grass/herb coverage. With respect to the avian seed dispersal mechanism, the spatiotemporal patterns ofT. sebiferaspread along roadways and fire lines could be simply characterized by using landscape and community features that influence avian behaviors, including distance to seed trees, overstory tree density, and ground grass/herb coverage.

scholarly journals Seed Shadows of Northern Pigtailed Macaques within a Degraded Forest Fragment, Thailand

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1184
Author(s):  
Eva Gazagne ◽  
Jean-Luc Pitance ◽  
Tommaso Savini ◽  
Marie-Claude Huynen ◽  
Pascal Poncin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Mechanistic Model ◽  
Cheek Pouch ◽  
Degraded Forest ◽  
Forest Fragment ◽  
Plantation Forests ◽  
Maximum Range ◽  
Seed Deposition ◽  
Seed Shadows

Research Highlights: Frugivores able to disperse large seeds over large distances are indispensable for seedling recruitment, colonization and regeneration of tropical forests. Understanding their effectiveness as seed dispersal agents in degraded habitat is becoming a pressing issue because of escalating anthropogenic disturbance. Although of paramount importance in the matter, animal behaviour’s influence on seed shadows (i.e., seed deposition pattern of a plant population) is difficult to evaluate by direct observations. Background and Objectives: We illustrated a modeling approach of seed shadows incorporating field-collected data on a troop of northern pigtailed macaques (Macaca leonina) inhabiting a degraded forest fragment in Thailand, by implementing a mechanistic model of seed deposition with random components. Materials and Methods: We parameterized the mechanistic model of seed deposition with macaque feeding behavior (i.e., consumed fruit species, seed treatments), gut and cheek pouch retention time, location of feeding and sleeping sites, monthly photoperiod and movement patterns based on monthly native fruit availability using Hidden Markov models (HMM). Results: We found that northern pigtailed macaques dispersed at least 5.5% of the seeds into plantation forests, with a majority of medium- to large-seeded species across large distances (mean > 500 m, maximum range of 2300 m), promoting genetic mixing and colonization of plantation forests. Additionally, the macaques produced complementary seed shadows, with a sparse distribution of seeds spat out locally (mean >50 m, maximum range of 870 m) that probably ensures seedling recruitment of the immediate plant populations. Conclusions: Macaques’ large dispersal distance reliability is often underestimated and overlooked; however, their behavioral flexibility places them among the last remaining dispersers of large seeds in disturbed habitats. Our study shows that this taxon is likely to maintain significant seed dispersal services and promote forest regeneration in degraded forest fragments.

Seed dispersal, spatial distribution and population structure of Brazilnut trees (Bertholletia excelsa) in southeastern Amazonia

1997 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 595-616 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos A. Peres ◽  
Claudia Baider
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Average Distance ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Neotropical Forests ◽  
Bertholletia Excelsa ◽  
Entire Study ◽  
Natural Stands ◽  
Seed Shadows

ABSTRACTSeeds of the Brazilnut tree (Bertholletia excelsa Humb. & Bonpl., Lecythidaceae) sustain one of the most important extractive industries in neotropical forests. Yet little is known about the demography and seed dispersal ecology of Bertholletia, particularly in natural stands which have not been previously harvested. This study presents data on the population density, spatial distribution, and seed dispersal ecology of Brazilnut trees at a pristine stand located within the Kayapó Indian Area of southeastern Amazonia, Pará, Brazil. Brazilnut trees were primarily found within groves (castanhais) of 75 to 149 trees, with a few isolated trees in between. Although the density of trees ≥ 10 cm in diameter at breast height (hereafter, dbh) at two groves was 4.8 to 5.1 trees ha–1, the overall density for the entire study area of c. 950 ha was estimated at 1.3 tree ha–1. Within-grove nearest neighbour distances averaged 21 m and were markedly skewed towards even shorter distances. Seed dispersal experiments using 709 marked seeds indicated that this pattern can be largely explained by the highly restricted seed shadows imparted by the main seed dispersal agents of Bertholletia at this site, the red-rumped agouti (Dasyprocta leporina). Agoutis on average scatterhoard Bertholletia seeds to an average distance of 5 m, and rarely beyond 20 m, from seed stations. We suggest that, once edaphic and climatic conditions are suitable, the highly contagious spatial distribution of Bertholletia trees at the landscape level can be largely accounted for by the quantitatively dominant effect of short-distance dispersal by caviomorph rodents, and rare events of long-distance dispersal provided by other vectors. This mechanism of grove formation need not resort to untested conjectures of human dispersal and intentional planting in prehistoric and historic times as it has often been suggested in the literature.

Negative density dependence of seed dispersal and seedling recruitment in a Neotropical palm

2014 ◽  
Vol 17 (9) ◽  
pp. 1111-1120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick A. Jansen ◽  
Marco D. Visser ◽  
S. Joseph Wright ◽  
Gemma Rutten ◽  
Helene C. Muller-Landau
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Density Dependence ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Negative Density Dependence

scholarly journals Walking on their own legs: unassisted population growth of the agouti Dasyprocta leporina, reintroduced to restore seed dispersal in an Atlantic Forest reserve

Oryx ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 571-578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caio Fittipaldi Kenup ◽  
Raíssa Sepulvida ◽  
Catharina Kreischer ◽  
Fernando A. S. Fernandez
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Medium Term ◽  
Scatter Hoarding ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Neotropical Forests ◽  
Forest Reserve ◽  
Management Actions ◽  
Reintroduced Population ◽  
Log Normal

AbstractReintroduction of locally extirpated species is an increasingly popular conservation tool. However, few initiatives focus on the restoration of ecological processes. In addition, many reintroductions fail to conduct post-release monitoring, hampering both assessment of their success and implementation of adaptive management actions. In 2009 a reintroduction effort was initiated to re-establish a population of the red-rumped agouti Dasyprocta leporina, a scatter-hoarding rodent known to be an important disperser of large seeds, with the aim of restoring ecological processes at Tijuca National Park, south-east Brazil. To assess whether this reintroduced population established successfully we monitored it using mark–resighting during November 2013–March 2015. Population size and survival were estimated using a robust design Poisson-log normal mixed-effects mark–resight model. By March 2015 the number of wild-born individuals fluctuated around 30 and overall growth of the population was positive. As the reintroduced population is capable of unassisted growth, we conclude that the reintroduction has been successful in the medium term. We recommend the cessation of releases, with efforts redirected to continued monitoring, investigation and management of possible threats to the species’ persistence, and to quantification of the re-establishment of ecological processes. Reintroduction of D. leporina populations can be a cost-effective tool to restore ecological processes, especially seed dispersal, in Neotropical forests.

scholarly journals Såli (Micronesian starling – Aplonis opaca) as a key seed dispersal agent across a tropical archipelago

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-64
Author(s):  
Henry S. Pollock ◽  
Evan C. Fricke ◽  
Evan M. Rehm ◽  
Martin Kastner ◽  
Nicole Suckow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Seedling Recruitment ◽  
Forest Monitoring ◽  
Boiga Irregularis ◽  
Island Populations ◽  
Seed Disperser ◽  
Dispersal Agent ◽  
Adult Trees ◽  
The Tropics

AbstractSeed dispersal is an important ecological process that structures plant communities and influences ecosystem functioning. Loss of animal dispersers therefore poses a serious threat to forest ecosystems, particularly in the tropics where zoochory predominates. A prominent example is the near-total extinction of seed dispersers on the tropical island of Guam following the accidental introduction of the invasive brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), negatively impacting seedling recruitment and forest regeneration. We investigated frugivory by a remnant population of Såli (Micronesian starling – Aplonis opaca) on Guam and two other island populations (Rota, Saipan) to evaluate their ecological role as a seed disperser in the Mariana archipelago. Using a combination of behavioural observations, nest contents and fecal samples, we documented frugivory of 37 plant species. Native plants comprised the majority (66%) of all species and 90% of all seeds identified in fecal and nest contents. Diet was highly similar across age classes and sampling years. In addition, plant species consumed by Såli comprised 88% of bird-dispersed adult trees and 54% of all adult trees in long-term forest monitoring plots, demonstrating the Såli’s broad diet and potential for restoring native forests. Overall, we provide the most comprehensive assessment to date of frugivory by the Såli and confirm its importance as a seed disperser on Guam and throughout the Marianas.

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