scholarly journals How plants manipulate the scatter-hoarding behaviour of seed-dispersing animals

2010 ◽  
Vol 365 (1542) ◽  
pp. 989-997 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen B. Vander Wall
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Reproductive Effort ◽  
Scatter Hoarding ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Metabolic Costs ◽  
Buried Seeds ◽  
Secondary Chemicals ◽  
Physical Barriers ◽  
Cache Recovery ◽  
Seed Coats

Some plants that are dispersed by scatter-hoarding animals appear to have evolved the ability to manipulate the behaviour of those animals to increase the likelihood that seeds and nuts will be stored and that a portion of those items will not be recovered. Plants have achieved this in at least four ways. First, by producing large, nutritious seeds and nuts that are attractive to animals and that stimulate hoarding behaviour. Second, by imposing handling costs that cause animals to hoard rather than to eat items immediately. These handling costs can take one of two forms: physical barriers (e.g. hard seed coats) that take time to remove and secondary chemicals (e.g. tannins) that impose metabolic costs. Third, by masting, where a population of plants synchronizes reproductive effort, producing large nut crops at intervals of several years. Mast crops not only satiate seed predators, but also increase the amount of seed dispersal because scatter-hoarding animals are not easily satiated during caching (causing animals to store more food than they can consume) but are satiated during cache recovery. And fourth, by producing seeds that do not emit strong odours so that buried seeds are less likely to be discovered. These, and perhaps other, traits have increased the relative success of plant species with seeds dispersed by scatter-hoarding animals.

scholarly journals Seed dispersal in Neuwiedia singapureana: novel evidence for avian endozoochory in the earliest diverging clade in Orchidaceae

2021 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Zhang ◽  
Yuan-Yuan Li ◽  
Miaomiao Wang ◽  
Jia Liu ◽  
Fanqiang Luo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seed Coat ◽  
Germination Percentage ◽  
Plant Distribution ◽  
Orchid Species ◽  
Fleshy Fruits ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Avian Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seed Coats ◽  
New Habitats

Abstract Background Seed dispersal allows plants to colonize new habitats that has an significant influence on plant distribution and population dynamics. Orchids produce numerous tiny seeds without endosperm, which are considered to be mainly wind-dispersed. Here, we report avian seed dispersal for an early diverging orchid species, Neuwiedia singapureana, which produces fleshy fruits with hard seed coats in the understory of tropical forests. Results Neuwiedia singapureana produced fleshy fruits that turned red in autumn, and birds were confirmed to be the primary seed dispersers. As compared to its sister species, N. veratrifolia with dehiscent capsular fruits, embryos of N. singapureana were larger and enclosed by thickened and lignified seed coats. After passing through the digestive tracts of birds, the seeds still stayed alive, and the walls of seed coat contained several cracks. The germination percentage increased significantly for digested seeds as compared with seeds from intact fruits. Conclusion The thickened and lignified seed coat may protect seeds as they passed through the digestive tracts of birds. Taken together with a recent report of insect-mediated seed dispersal system in the subfamily Apostasioideae, the animal-mediated seed dispersal may be an adaptive mechanism promoting the success of colonization in dark understory habitats.

scholarly journals A PHYSIOLOGICAL APPROACH TO CONSERVATION OF FOUR PALM SPECIES: ARENGA AUSTRALASICA, CALAMUS AUSTRALIS, HYDRI- ASTELE WENDLANDIANA AND LICUALA RAMSAYI

REINWARDTIA ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 237
Author(s):  
Dian Latifah ◽  
Robert A. Congdon ◽  
Joseph A. Holtum
Keyword(s):  
Economic Value ◽  
Red Light ◽  
Tropical Rainforests ◽  
Light Conditions ◽  
Marginal Lands ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Palm Species ◽  
Physiological Approach ◽  
Physical Treatments ◽  
Seed Coats

Palms (Arecaceae) are an important component of many tropical rainforests. Many have also been cultivated widely for agricultural commodities with high economic value. They are also important components in rehabilitation of disturbed or marginal lands. Knowledge and application of germination strategies are essential in the cultivation of palms. Many species have seeds that do not germinate readily, even when light conditions are favourable. This research determined the effects of seed coats, light and temperature on germination of Arenga australasica (H. Wendl. & Drude) S. T. Blake ex H. E. Moore, Calamus australis Mart., Hydriastele wendlandiana (F. Muell.) H. Wendl. & Drude and Licuala ramsayi var. tuckeri Barford & Dowe. We examined physical treatments to promote germination or break dormancy, as well as different light and temperature conditions. The results showed that the hard seed coats of the four species slowed imbibition. Scarified seeds germinated best for A. australasica, C. australis and L. ramsayi. The germination of all seeds was inhibited by far red light. The red light requirement suggests that these species prefer to colonise open areas. This implies that dispersal agents, canopy gaps and forest margins may play important roles in promoting regeneration as well as conservation of these palm species.

scholarly journals Effect of Organic and Botanicals Priming on Seed Quality Parameter of Pigeonpea (Cajanuscajan (L.) Millspaugh)

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
A. Divij Reddy ◽  
A. K. Chaurasia ◽  
P. K. Shukla ◽  
Ram Pal Singh
Keyword(s):  
Growth Regulators ◽  
Leaf Extract ◽  
Seed Quality ◽  
Quality Parameters ◽  
Quality Parameter ◽  
The Other ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Normal Seedling ◽  
Seed Coats ◽  
Moringa Leaf Extract

Presence of hard seed coats and several seed borne pathogens hinder the normal seedling establishment in legumes. Earlier seed enhancement is mainly achieved though synthetics and growth regulators. To evaluate the effect of organics and botanicals on quality parameters of the seed an experiment was conducted in Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture, Technology and Sciences. Treatments in the experiment comprised of Panchagavya at 3%, 5% and 7% for 12 hrs., Beejamrutha at 5%, 7% and 9% for 12 hrs., Coconut water at 6% and 8% for 12hrs., Moringa leaf extract at 5% and 7% for 12hrs and Sea weed extract at 3% and 5% for 12hrs.Priming with the selected organics and botanicalsis found to enhance the quality parameters compared to untreated control. The treatment Panchagavya at 7% for duration of 12 hours was found to be superior compared to the other treatments in the study.

Canopy openness of individual tree promotes seed dispersal by scatter-hoarding rodents

2022 ◽  
Vol 507 ◽  
pp. 120016
Author(s):  
Jie Chen ◽  
Wenwen Chen ◽  
Zhiyun Lu ◽  
Bo Wang
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Canopy Openness ◽  
Scatter Hoarding ◽  
Individual Tree

Mechanical Scarification of Dodder Seeds with a Handheld Rotary Tool

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 485-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine M. Ghantous ◽  
Hilary A. Sandler
Keyword(s):  
Seed Weight ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Batch Size ◽  
Research Projects ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Rotary Tool ◽  
Reliable Methods ◽  
Seed Coats ◽  
Grinding Stone ◽  
Germinated Seeds

Dodder seeds are physically dormant because of hard seed coats and do not readily germinate without scarification. Reliable methods of scarification for small lots of dodder seed are needed to facilitate laboratory, greenhouse, and field research projects. Dodder seed was scarified for varying times using a handheld rotary tool at the 10,000 rpm setting with a conical grinding-stone bit attached. Percentage of germination and weight change of seeds were assessed using scarification times between 0 and 4 min at 0.5-min increments. Mean seed weight loss and mean number of germinated seeds increased quadratically as scarification time increased. Scarifying for 2.5 min was judged the shortest time with maximal germination. Another study evaluated the effect of seed number (100 to 400 seeds sample−1) on the efficacy of rotary tool scarification when scarification time was held constant at 2.5 min. Percentage of germination decreased linearly as seed batch size increased. The handheld rotary tool provides consistent and repeatable scarification of dodder seed with germination rates greater than 80%.

Seed-dispersal of Vouacapoua americana (Caesalpiniaceae) by caviomorph rodents in French Guiana

1990 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre-Michel Forget
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
French Guiana ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Scatter Hoarding ◽  
Natural Objects ◽  
Seedling Distribution ◽  
Seed Distribution ◽  
Caviomorph Rodents ◽  
Germinated Seeds

ABSTRACTA possible mutualistic dispersal system between a large-seeded tree of French Guiana, Vouacapoua americana (Caesalpiniaceae), and caviomorph rodents, Myoprocta exilis and Dasyprocta leporina, is described. Mast fruiting of Vouacapoua at the beginning of the wet season coincides with scatter-hoarding seed dispersal. During the wet season, almost 100% of marked seeds on three sites were removed: nearly 70% were buried and the rest were eaten by mammals. Unburied seeds were attacked by insects and/or lost their ability to germinate. Rodents preferred ungerminated seeds, and had no interest in germinated seeds. Seeds were buried individually near natural objects such as palms, branches, logs, lianas, roots and trees. After predation by rodents, seedling distribution did not differ from seed distribution. Most seeds were transported less than 5 m from the feeding plots but some were carried as far as 22.4 m. Between 40 and 85% of dispersed seeds were retrieved during the following month by rodents and eaten. The disinterest of caviomorph rodents in germinated seeds, because of rapid exhaustion of endosperm reserves, prevents feeding from hoarded Vouacapoua during the long dry season when resources are scarce. Seedlings emerging from forgotten or abandoned cached seeds appear to increase the recruitment of Vouacapoua americana.

Anatomical structure and nutritive value of lupin seed coats

2001 ◽  
Vol 52 (10) ◽  
pp. 985 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. H. Miao ◽  
J. A. Fortune ◽  
J. Gallagher
Keyword(s):  
Seed Coat ◽  
Nutritive Value ◽  
Crude Fibre ◽  
Hard Seed ◽  
Anatomical Analysis ◽  
Lupin Seed ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Growing Conditions ◽  
Seed Coats

Selection and breeding for yield and adaptation to environmental conditions often changes a number of characteristics of crops, and may influence the value of seed for animals. A series of experiments was conducted to evaluate the effect of breeding and growing conditions on the structure and degradability of lupin seed coats. Breeding has had significant influences on both seed size and seed coat structure of lupins. For instance, cultivars of Lupinus angustifolius released in 1987 and 1988 tended to have smaller seeds with a thicker seed coat than those released in 1971 (P < 0.05). Selection for soft seeds has resulted in a reduction of seed coat thickness in L. angustifolius. Hardseeded and roughseeded lines of L. cosentinii had thicker coats (P < 0.05) than softseeded and smoothseeded, respectively. The main contributor to the thick seed coat of hardseeded lines was a layer of cells known as the hourglass layer, which is located between the outer palisade and inner parenchyma. Anatomical analysis revealed that the soft seed coat tended to have short and round cells, whereas the hard seed tended to have long cells in the palisade layer. Smooth seeds had round cells in the subpalisade, but rough seeds had long cells in this layer. Although the seed coats of lupins contained about 80% crude fibre, with L. cosentinii and L. pilosus having more fibre than L. angustifolius, the fibre in lupin seed coats was highly digestible by sheep.

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.

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