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Cold temperature increases winter fruit removal rate of a bird-dispersed shrub

  • Plant Animal Interactions
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Abstract

We tested the hypothesis that winter removal rates of fruits of wax myrtle, Myrica cerifera, are higher in colder winters. Over a 9-year period, we monitored M. cerifera fruit crops in 13 0.1-ha study plots in South Carolina, U.S.A. Peak ripeness occurred in November, whereas peak removal occurred in the coldest months, December and January. Mean time to fruit removal within study plots was positively correlated with mean winter temperatures, thereby supporting our hypothesis. This result, combined with the generally low availability of winter arthropods, suggests that fruit abundance may play a role in determining winter survivorship and distribution of permanent resident and short-distance migrant birds. From the plant’s perspective, it demonstrates inter-annual variation in the temporal component of seed dispersal, with possible consequences for post-dispersal seed and seedling ecology.

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Acknowledgements

We thank John I. Blake and the U.S. Forest Service for long term logistical and finanacial support of this study, and the Department of Energy for supplying weather data. Support was also provided by the Department of Energy-Savannah River Operations Office through the U.S. Forest Service Savannah River under Interagency Agreement DE-IA09–76SR00056. K. Borgmann, A. Brinton, R. Busser, C. Deppe, N. Khalil, M. Reiskind, C. Renk, T. Roof, and E. Uramkin assisted with fruit censuses, and C. Whelan and two anonymous reviewers provided valuable comments and suggestions.

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Author notes

  1. Charles Kwit

    Present address: Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29802, USA

  2. Scott F. Pearson

    Present address: Washington Natural Areas Program, Washington Department of Natural Resources, 1111 Washington Street S.E., Olympia, Washington 98504, USA

  3. John P. McCarty

    Present address: Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska 68182, USA

  4. Sarah Sargent

    Present address: Department of Biology, Allegheny College, Meadville, Pennsylvania 16335, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Box 118525, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA

    Charles Kwit, Douglas J. Levey, Scott F. Pearson, John P. McCarty & Sarah Sargent

  2. Southern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, Asheville, NC 28806, USA

    Cathryn H. Greenberg

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  1. Charles Kwit
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  2. Douglas J. Levey
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  3. Cathryn H. Greenberg
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  5. John P. McCarty
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Correspondence to Charles Kwit.

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Kwit, C., Levey, D.J., Greenberg, C.H. et al. Cold temperature increases winter fruit removal rate of a bird-dispersed shrub. Oecologia 139, 30–34 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-003-1470-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-003-1470-6

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