Abstract
This study examined the mechanisms of facilitation and importance of seed dispersal during establishment of forest tree species in a tropical woodland. Seedling survival of Syzygium guineense ssp. afromontanum seedling (forest tree species) was monitored for 2.5 years in four different microsites in savannah-woodland in Malawi under Ficus natalensis (a potential nurse plant), Brachystegia floribunda (a woodland tree), and Uapaca kirkiana (a woodland tree), and in a treeless site. S. guineense ssp. afromontanum seed deposition was also monitored in the four sites, and the natural establishment of forest tree species was observed to confirm the importance of seed dispersal. Protection from fire was found to be the most important facilitation mechanism in this area, with a total fire-induced mortality rate of 43%. However, the rate was comparatively low under F. natalensis, where fire is thought to be inhibited due to the lack of light-demanding C4 grasses. B. floribunda also offered protection from fire, and seedling survival did not differ between these two microsites. However, only a few individual forest tree species naturally established under B. floribunda, indicating that the facilitative mechanism of fire suppression is not the only factor affecting establishment in this tropical woodland. A higher rate of seed dispersal was also observed under F. natalensis compared with the other three microsites, suggesting that dispersal processes are also critical for the establishment of forest tree species in woodland in this region.