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Effects of insect predation on hypocotyl survival and germination success of maturequercus variabilis acorns

  • Original Articles
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Journal of Forest Research

Abstract

The rates of hypocotyl and radicle survival and of germination success were investigated in mature acorns ofQuercus variabilis Blume in relation to endosperm loss due to seed insects. The acorns were damaged by curculio weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and moths, including tortricid moths (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae); the former were more abundant than the latter. Acorns damaged by curculio weevils showed a significantly lower germination rate when there was a large endosperm loss than the rate for sound acorns. The survival rate of the hypocotyl and radicle also decreased as endosperm loss increased. These results suggest that acorn germination is directly inhibited by damage to the hypocotyl and radicle, which depends on the amount of endosperm eaten by the weevils. However, the germination rate of acorns with hypocotyl and radicle was consistently high, irrespective of the degree of endosperm loss, which suggests that weevil-damaged acorns probably germinate, provided the hypocotyl and radicle survive until the cessation of damage.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Forest Protection, School of Agricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Chikusa-ku, 464-8601, Nagoya, Japan

    Hiroshi Fukumoto & Hisashi Kajimura

Authors
  1. Hiroshi Fukumoto
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  2. Hisashi Kajimura
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Research Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

This study was supported in part by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (No. 09001647, No. 10660144, and No. 11460068) and the Nippon Life Insurance Foundation.

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Fukumoto, H., Kajimura, H. Effects of insect predation on hypocotyl survival and germination success of maturequercus variabilis acorns. J For Res 5, 31–34 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02762760

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02762760

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