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Small-scale spatial structure within patterns of seed dispersal

  • Population Ecology - Original Paper
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Abstract

A large proportion of dispersing propagules land near their maternal plant, even in species that have evolved structures which enhance dispersal. For these propagules, their post-dispersal spatial pattern is likely to reflect the overall shape and scale of the parental plant canopy and, especially in poorly dispersing species, aggregation of propagules on the plant prior to dispersal. Localised patterns within seed shadows are also likely to be affected by secondary movement after dispersal, leading to either more or less small-scale aggregation, depending on the mechanism. Our general aim was to study the small-scale spatial structure within patterns of seed dispersal of Raphanus raphanistrum L. to generate hypotheses about the sequence of processes and events leading to the spatial pattern of dispersal in this species. More specifically, we determined the sizes of small-scale structures within the seed shadows on the ground after dispersal and the extent to which these match the sizes of pre-dispersal aggregations within the parental canopy. Variation in plant size and shape was provided by four levels of inter-specific competition resulting from differing wheat crop densities. Positions of propagules were determined using a three-dimensional digitizer, and the data for each plant were analysed using point pattern analysis. Not surprisingly, larger plants, growing at lower plant density, had larger seed shadows, showing an overall influence of maternal plant size. The pattern of propagules exhibited significant small-scale aggregates, with similar sizes on the plant and on the ground. There was no evidence that aggregation size was greater on the ground or increased with time, but the strength of the aggregation increased with length of time on the ground.

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Acknowledgments

We thank: Natalie Kelly, Jim Hanan and Yicai Wang for their help in using the digitizer and software; Mark Dale and two anonymous reviewers for comments on an earlier version of the manuscript; and Alex Campbell for his assistance in managing the field experiment. The research complied with current laws in Australia.

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Author notes

  1. M. S. Taghizadeh

    Present address: Faculty of Agriculture, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Resource Management and Geography, The University of Melbourne, Burnley Campus, 500 Yarra Boulevard, Richmond, VIC, 3121, Australia

    R. D. Cousens & M. S. Taghizadeh

  2. Department of Ecological Modelling, UFZ Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, UFZ, Permoserstrasse 15, 04318, Leipzig, Germany

    T. Wiegand

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  1. R. D. Cousens
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  2. T. Wiegand
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Correspondence to R. D. Cousens.

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Communicated by John Silander.

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Cousens, R.D., Wiegand, T. & Taghizadeh, M.S. Small-scale spatial structure within patterns of seed dispersal. Oecologia 158, 437–448 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-008-1150-7

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