Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems
Seed survival is of great importance for the performance of plant species and it is strongly affected by post-dispersal seed removal by either different animals such as granivorous species and secondary dispersers or abiotic conditions such as wind or water. The success of post-dispersal seed remova...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PeerJ Inc.
2020-03-01
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| Series: | PeerJ |
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| Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/8769.pdf |
| _version_ | 1797423779863855104 |
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| author | Katja Wehner Lea Schäfer Nico Blüthgen Karsten Mody |
| author_facet | Katja Wehner Lea Schäfer Nico Blüthgen Karsten Mody |
| author_sort | Katja Wehner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Seed survival is of great importance for the performance of plant species and it is strongly affected by post-dispersal seed removal by either different animals such as granivorous species and secondary dispersers or abiotic conditions such as wind or water. The success of post-dispersal seed removal depends on seed specific traits including seed size, the presence of coats or elaiosomes, the mode of seed dispersion, and on the habitat in which seeds happen to arrive. In the present study we asked how seed traits (dehulled vs. intact; size; dispersal mode), habitat (forest vs. grassland), and time of day (night vs. day) influence post-dispersal seed removal of the four plant species Chelidonium majus, Lotus corniculatus, Tragopogon pratensis and Helianthus annuus. Seed removal experiments were performed in three regions in Hesse, Germany. The results showed different, inconsistent influences of time of day, depending on habitat and region, but consistent variation across seed types. C. majus and dehulled H. annuus seeds had the fastest removal rates. The impact of the habitat on post-dispersal seed removal was very low, only intact H. annuus seeds were removed at significantly higher rates in grasslands than in forests. Our study demonstrates consistent differences across seed types across different habitats and time: smaller seeds and those dispersed by animals had a faster removal rate. It further highlights that experimental studies need to consider seeds in their natural form to be most realistic. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:52:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7cb3ca810b9b4a5f9f77731a261d0595 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:52:44Z |
| publishDate | 2020-03-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-7cb3ca810b9b4a5f9f77731a261d05952023-12-03T01:26:38ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592020-03-018e876910.7717/peerj.8769Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystemsKatja Wehner0Lea Schäfer1Nico Blüthgen2Karsten Mody3Ecological Networks, Technical University of Darmstadt, Darmstadt, GermanyEcological Networks, Technical University of Darmstadt, Darmstadt, GermanyEcological Networks, Technical University of Darmstadt, Darmstadt, GermanyEcological Networks, Technical University of Darmstadt, Darmstadt, GermanySeed survival is of great importance for the performance of plant species and it is strongly affected by post-dispersal seed removal by either different animals such as granivorous species and secondary dispersers or abiotic conditions such as wind or water. The success of post-dispersal seed removal depends on seed specific traits including seed size, the presence of coats or elaiosomes, the mode of seed dispersion, and on the habitat in which seeds happen to arrive. In the present study we asked how seed traits (dehulled vs. intact; size; dispersal mode), habitat (forest vs. grassland), and time of day (night vs. day) influence post-dispersal seed removal of the four plant species Chelidonium majus, Lotus corniculatus, Tragopogon pratensis and Helianthus annuus. Seed removal experiments were performed in three regions in Hesse, Germany. The results showed different, inconsistent influences of time of day, depending on habitat and region, but consistent variation across seed types. C. majus and dehulled H. annuus seeds had the fastest removal rates. The impact of the habitat on post-dispersal seed removal was very low, only intact H. annuus seeds were removed at significantly higher rates in grasslands than in forests. Our study demonstrates consistent differences across seed types across different habitats and time: smaller seeds and those dispersed by animals had a faster removal rate. It further highlights that experimental studies need to consider seeds in their natural form to be most realistic.https://peerj.com/articles/8769.pdfSeed traitsPost-dispersal seed removalSeed predationSecondary seed dispersalTemperate ecosystemSeed type |
| spellingShingle | Katja Wehner Lea Schäfer Nico Blüthgen Karsten Mody Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems PeerJ Seed traits Post-dispersal seed removal Seed predation Secondary seed dispersal Temperate ecosystem Seed type |
| title | Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| title_full | Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| title_fullStr | Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| title_full_unstemmed | Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| title_short | Seed type, habitat and time of day influence post-dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| title_sort | seed type habitat and time of day influence post dispersal seed removal in temperate ecosystems |
| topic | Seed traits Post-dispersal seed removal Seed predation Secondary seed dispersal Temperate ecosystem Seed type |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/8769.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT katjawehner seedtypehabitatandtimeofdayinfluencepostdispersalseedremovalintemperateecosystems AT leaschafer seedtypehabitatandtimeofdayinfluencepostdispersalseedremovalintemperateecosystems AT nicobluthgen seedtypehabitatandtimeofdayinfluencepostdispersalseedremovalintemperateecosystems AT karstenmody seedtypehabitatandtimeofdayinfluencepostdispersalseedremovalintemperateecosystems |