Abstract
In order to assess the importance of seed dispersal (escape and colonization hypotheses), I used transplant experiments for seeds and seedlings of 5–11 plant species with fleshy fruits in a lowland tropical forest (Tinigua National Park, Colombia). I controlled seed density, distance to parental tree, and habitat type. I monitored seed removal, seedling survival, and seedling growth during the first year of development for an average of 554 seeds and 169 seedlings for each species. I supplemented the experimental results with measurements of natural recruitment. I found little support for the escape hypothesis during the seed and seedling stages. For six species that showed differences in seed removal associated with distance, five showed highest removal away from, than close to parent trees, suggesting predator satiation. Seedling survival during the first year was not consistently associated with low densities and long distances from parent trees. For the majority of species, seedlings did not survive flooding in low basins, and there was growth advantage for most plant species in canopy gaps. These differences imply advantages for seed dispersal to adequate habitats, as predicted by the colonization hypothesis. In contrast to experiments, strong negative distance-dependent effects were evident when analyzing natural recruitment patterns. The ratio between saplings and seedlings was higher away from parent trees for the species with enough recruitment to be analyzed and this suggests that a negative distance-dependent effect may also occur after seedling establishment. This pattern is suspected for several other species, but an analysis with some of the other most common trees showed a variety of negative, neutral, and positive distance dependent effects. This study emphasizes the importance of long-term studies to asses the role of seed dispersal.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all the field assistants who helped in gathering information, especially Alicia Medina, Carolina García, Monica Pineda, Tatiana Samper, Javier Cajiao, and Andrés Link. I thank Charles Janson, Patricia Wright, John G. Fleagle, Anthony DiFiore, Maria Clara Castellanos, Nicole Gibson, and several anonymous reviewers for their comments. This study was possible thanks to logistic support from Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas La Macarena (CIEM) and the permits from Unidad de Parques Nacionales. Financial support came from the following institutions: La Fundación para la Promoción de la Investigación y la Tecnología (Banco de la República), Margot Marsh Foundation, Lincoln Park Zoo, Primate Conservation Inc., and IdeaWild.
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Stevenson, P.R. A test of the escape and colonization hypotheses for zoochorous tree species in a Western Amazonian forest. Plant Ecol 190, 245–258 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-006-9205-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-006-9205-5