scholarly journals Endozoochory by mallard in New Zealand: what seeds are dispersed and how far?

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Riley D. Bartel ◽  
Jennifer L. Sheppard ◽  
Ádám Lovas-Kiss ◽  
Andy J. Green
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Dispersal Distance ◽  
Terrestrial Plants ◽  
Indigenous Status ◽  
Plant Seeds ◽  
Faecal Samples ◽  
Viable Seeds ◽  
Study Sites

In Europe and North America waterfowl are major dispersers of aquatic and terrestrial plants, but in New Zealand their role has yet to be investigated. Mallards were introduced to New Zealand in the late 1800s, and today they are the most abundant and widespread waterfowl in the country. To assess seed dispersal, we radiomarked 284 female mallards from two study sites during the pre-breeding (June–August) and breeding (August–December) periods in 2014–2015, and examined movements that occurred within 24, 48 or 72 h when seed dispersal by endozoochory is considered likely. During June and July 2015, we collected 29 faecal samples from individual female mallards during radiomarking and 24 samples from mallard flocks. We recovered 69 intact seeds from the faecal samples and identified 12 plant taxa. Of the plant seeds identified and dispersed by mallards in this study, 40% were members of the Asteraceae family, nine plant species were alien to New Zealand, and the indigenous-status of three unidentified taxa could not be determined. Two taxa (and 9% of seeds) were germinated following gut passage: an unidentified Asteraceae andSolanum nigrum. During the pre-breeding and breeding periods, movement of females within 24 h averaged 394 m (SD = 706 m) and 222 m (SD = 605 m) respectively, with maximum distances of 3,970 m and 8,028 m. Maxima extended to 19,230 m within 48 h. Most plant species recorded are generally assumed to be self-dispersed or dispersed by water; mechanisms that provide a much lower maximum dispersal distance than mallards. The ability of mallards to disperse viable seeds up to 19 km within 48 h suggests they have an important and previously overlooked role as vectors for a variety of wetland or grassland plant species in New Zealand.

scholarly journals Interspecific Difference in Seed Dispersal Characteristics between Japanese Macaques (Macaca fuscata) and Sympatric Japanese Martens (Martes melampus)

2020 ◽  
Vol 91 (6) ◽  
pp. 711-720
Author(s):  
Yamato Tsuji ◽  
Risma Yanti ◽  
Atsushi Takizawa ◽  
Toshio Hagiwara
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Macaca Fuscata ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Japanese Macaques ◽  
Interspecific Difference ◽  
Herbaceous Plant ◽  
Plant Seeds ◽  
Faecal Samples ◽  
Martes Melampus

We compared the characteristics of seeds within faeces between semi-terrestrial Japanese macaques (<i>Macaca fuscata</i>) and sympatric arboreal Japanese martens (<i>Martes melampus</i>) in Shiga Heights, central Japan. We collected faecal samples of the two mammalian species for 1 year (<i>n</i> = 229 for macaques and <i>n</i> = 22 for martens). We then compared the proportion of seed occurrence, life-form composition, number of seeds and species richness within single faecal samples, and the seed intact ratio between the two mammalian species. We detected seeds from 20 and 7 species from macaque and marten faeces, respectively. Macaque faeces contained seeds of multiple strata, while marten faeces contained no herbaceous plant seeds. Seed sizes within faeces showed no interspecific difference. For macaques, seeds were found within faecal samples collected in late spring to late fall, while for martens, seeds were found between summer and winter. The proportion of seed occurrence was greater in summer (both species) and fall (macaques), which implied that the seed dispersal roles of macaques and martens was greater in these seasons. The mean seed number (across species), intact ratio of seeds (high for both species) and seed species richness within single faecal samples of macaques and martens showed no significant differences, but for several species, martens defecated more seeds than macaques and showed higher intact ratio. Our study indicates that sympatric mammals in the temperate regions of Japan contribute differently to seed dispersal in forest ecosystems.

scholarly journals Estimating seed dispersal distance: A comparison of methods using animal movement and plant genetic data on two primate‐dispersed Neotropical plant species

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (16) ◽  
pp. 8965-8977 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tiziana A. Gelmi‐Candusso ◽  
Ronald Bialozyt ◽  
Darja Slana ◽  
Ricardo Zárate Gómez ◽  
Eckhard W. Heymann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Animal Movement ◽  
Genetic Data ◽  
Dispersal Distance ◽  
Comparison Of Methods ◽  
Seed Dispersal Distance

scholarly journals Special delivery: scavengers direct seed dispersal towards ungulate carcasses

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 20180388 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. M. J. G. Steyaert ◽  
S. C. Frank ◽  
S. Puliti ◽  
R. Badia ◽  
M. P. Arnberg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Distribution ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Vegetative Reproduction ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Alpine Tundra ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Plant Seeds ◽  
Plant Life ◽  
Viable Seeds

Cadaver decomposition islands around animal carcasses can facilitate establishment of various plant life. Facultative scavengers have great potential for endozoochory, and often aggregate around carcasses. Hence, they may disperse plant seeds that they ingest across the landscape towards cadaver decomposition islands. Here, we demonstrate this novel mechanism along a gradient of wild tundra reindeer carcasses. First, we show that the spatial distribution of scavenger faeces (birds and foxes) was concentrated around carcasses. Second, faeces of the predominant scavengers (corvids) commonly contained viable seeds of crowberry, a keystone species of the alpine tundra with predominantly vegetative reproduction. We suggest that cadaver decomposition islands function as endpoints for directed endozoochory by scavengers. Such a mechanism could be especially beneficial for species that rely on small-scale disturbances in soil and vegetation, such as several Nordic berry-producing species with cryptic generative reproduction.

Can fruiting plants control animal behaviour and seed dispersal distance?

Behaviour ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 152 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 359-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Beaune ◽  
François Bretagnolle ◽  
Loïc Bollache ◽  
Gottfried Hohmann ◽  
Barbara Fruth
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Fruit Quality ◽  
Population Biology ◽  
Dispersal Distance ◽  
Feeding Time ◽  
Fruit Traits ◽  
Dispersal Distances ◽  
Dispersal Vector ◽  
Seed Dispersal Distance

In an Afrotropical forest, we tested the hypothesis that fleshy-fruit plants with interspecific differences in fruit quality and quantity affect ranging behaviour of their seed dispersal vector. If fruiting plants could affect their dispersal vector, the plants also affect their seed dispersal distance and eventually their plant population biology. From 2007 to 2011, we measured seed transport by georeference daily bonobo group movements via GPS. Seed dispersal distance was estimated with mechanistic model, using 1200 georeferenced dispersal events and the average seed transit time through bonobo (24.00 h). We compared dissemination for eight plant species that deal with this trade-off: attracting dispersers by means of fruit quality/quantity versus retaining them in the patch because of the same quality/quantity value that attracted them. Because fruit traits of these eight species were different, we expected a difference in seed dispersal distance. Surprisingly, seed dispersal distances induced by bonobos were not affected by fruit traits. Although fruit nutrient contents, abundance and average patch feeding duration differed between plant species, patch feeding time was not related to subsequent dispersal distances. The apes’ dispersal distance survey gave an average dispersal distance estimated of 1332 ± 24 m from the parent plant (97.9% > 100 m). To conclude, feeding time invested in the patch, fruit quality and abundance had no apparent effect on bonobo seed dispersal distance. The possible effects in plant population biology are discussed.

scholarly journals Primary seed dispersal by a sigmodontine rodent assemblage in a Peruvian montane forest

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Teresa Sahley ◽  
Klauss Cervantes ◽  
Edith Salas ◽  
Diego Paredes ◽  
Victor Pacheco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Seed Viability ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Rodent Species ◽  
Faecal Samples ◽  
Plant Families ◽  
Viable Seeds ◽  
Montane Tropical Forest ◽  
Rodent Abundance ◽  
Disperser Effectiveness

Abstract:We examined quantity and quality components of primary seed dispersal for an assemblage of sigmodontine rodents in a high-elevation montane tropical forest in Peru. We collected faecal samples from 134 individuals belonging to seven rodent species from the subfamily Sigmodontinae (Cricetidae) over a 2-y period. We conducted seed viability tests for seeds found in faecal samples. We identified seeds from eight plant families (Bromeliaceae, Annonaceae, Brassicaceae, Ericaceae, Melastomatacae, Myrtaceae, Rosaceae, Solanaceae), nine genera and 13 morphospecies. The most abundant seeds belonged toGaultheriasp. 1 (46% of total) andMiconiasp. 1 (31% of total), while the most viable seeds belonged toGreigiasp. (84% viability) andGuatteriasp. (80% viability). We utilized relative rodent abundance, seed species diversity, seed abundance and seed viability per rodent species to calculate an index of rodent disperser effectiveness, and found thatThomasomys kalinowskiiwas the most effective disperser, followed byAkodon torques,Calomys sorellus,Thomasomys oreas,Oligoryzomys andinusandMicroryzomys minutus. Plant genera dispersed by sigmodontine rodents overlapped more with bird- and terrestrial-mammal-dispersed plants than with bat-dispersed plants. Future neotropical seed dispersal studies should consider small rodents as potential seed-dispersers, especially in tropical habitats where small-seeded, berry-forming shrubs and trees are present.

scholarly journals An avian seed dispersal paradox: New Zealand's extinct megafaunal birds did not disperse large seeds

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1877) ◽  
pp. 20180352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna K. Carpenter ◽  
Jamie R. Wood ◽  
Janet M. Wilmshurst ◽  
Dave Kelly
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Extinct Species ◽  
Fine Grained ◽  
Experimental Support ◽  
Gut Passage ◽  
Avian Seed Dispersal

Often the mutualistic roles of extinct species are inferred based on plausible assumptions, but sometimes palaeoecological evidence can overturn such inferences. We present an example from New Zealand, where it has been widely assumed that some of the largest-seeded plants were dispersed by the giant extinct herbivorous moa (Dinornithiformes). The presence of large seeds in preserved moa gizzard contents supported this hypothesis, and five slow-germinating plant species ( Elaeocarpus dentatus, E. hookerianus, Prumnopitys ferruginea, P. taxifolia, Vitex lucens ) with thick seedcoats prompted speculation about whether these plants were adapted for moa dispersal. However, we demonstrate that all these assumptions are incorrect. While large seeds were present in 48% of moa gizzards analysed, analysis of 152 moa coprolites (subfossil faeces) revealed a very fine-grained consistency unparalleled in extant herbivores, with no intact seeds larger than 3.3 mm diameter. Secondly, prolonged experimental mechanical scarification of E. dentatus and P. ferruginea seeds did not reduce time to germination, providing no experimental support for the hypothesis that present-day slow germination results from the loss of scarification in moa guts. Paradoxically, although moa were New Zealand's largest native herbivores, the only seeds to survive moa gut passage intact were those of small-seeded herbs and shrubs.

scholarly journals Terrestrial Morphotypes of Aquatic Plants Display Improved Seed Germination to Deal with Dry or Low-Rainfall Periods

Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 741
Author(s):  
Rocío Fernández-Zamudio ◽  
Pablo García-Murillo ◽  
Carmen Díaz-Paniagua
Keyword(s):  
Seed Germination ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Aquatic Plants ◽  
Aquatic Plant ◽  
Population Persistence ◽  
Temporary Ponds ◽  
Percent Germination ◽  
Plant Assemblages ◽  
Viable Seeds

In temporary ponds, seed germination largely determines how well aquatic plant assemblages recover after dry periods. Some aquatic plants have terrestrial morphotypes that can produce seeds even in dry years. Here, we performed an experiment to compare germination patterns for seeds produced by aquatic and terrestrial morphotypes of Ranunculus peltatus subsp. saniculifolius over the course of five inundation events. During the first inundation event, percent germination was higher for terrestrial morphotype seeds (36.1%) than for aquatic morphotype seeds (6.1%). Seed germination peaked for both groups during the second inundation event (terrestrial morphotype: 47%; aquatic morphotype: 34%). Even after all five events, some viable seeds had not yet germinated (terrestrial morphotype: 0.6%; aquatic morphotype: 5%). We also compared germination patterns for the two morphotypes in Callitriche brutia: the percent germination was higher for terrestrial morphotype seeds (79.5%) than for aquatic morphotype seeds (41.9%). Both aquatic plant species use two complementary strategies to ensure population persistence despite the unpredictable conditions of temporary ponds. First, plants can produce seeds with different dormancy periods that germinate during different inundation periods. Second, plants can produce terrestrial morphotypes, which generate more seeds during dry periods, allowing for re-establishment when conditions are once again favorable.

scholarly journals Species delimitation and phylogeny of a New Zealand plant species radiation

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heidi M Meudt ◽  
Peter J Lockhart ◽  
David Bryant
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Species Delimitation ◽  
Species Radiation

Myrmecochory in the Zingiberaceae: seed removal of Globba franciscii and G. propinqua by ants (Hymenoptera – Formicidae) in rain forests on Borneo

2004 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 705-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Pfeiffer ◽  
Jamili Nais ◽  
K. Eduard Linsenmair
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Rain Forest ◽  
Dispersal Distance ◽  
Ant Dispersal ◽  
Important Benefit ◽  
Plant Families ◽  
Species Richness And Abundance ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
Ant Diversity ◽  
Old World Tropics

The Old-World tropics encompass one of the floristically richest zones of the world and some of the hot spots of ant diversity. This results in a large variety of ecological interactions between both groups. One of them is the phenomenon of myrmecochory, seed dispersal by ants, which is also well known from temperate forests (Gorb & Gorb 2003, Ulbrich 1919), and which is most prominent in sclerophyll shrublands of Australia and southern Africa (Andersen 1988). Beattie (1983), who reviewed the distribution of ant-dispersed plants (at least 80 plant families worldwide) proposed that species richness and abundance of myrmecochores and diaspore-dispersing ants increases with decreasing latitude and thus predicted a greater variety of ant-dispersal systems in the tropics. However, up to now, few tropical myrmecochores have been described (Horvitz 1981, Horvitz & Schemske 1986), especially in the palaeotropics (Kaufmann et al. 2001). Here we report myrmecochory in two species of rain-forest herb of the Zingiberaceae, give the first evidence for seed dispersal by ants in this plant family and present a list of seed-dispersing ant species. An important benefit of myrmecochory is the dispersal distance of the ant-transported seeds (Andersen 1988), that has been found to be positively correlated with ant size (Gomez & Espadaler 1998a, Pudlo et al. 1980). In this study, we checked whether this correlation is also true for the conditions of the tropical rain forest, where Globba plants occur.

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