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Seed dispersal patterns in a temperate forest during a mast event: performance of alternative dispersal kernels

  • Community Ecology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Seed dispersal patterns were studied in a north-western Spain temperate forest community to assess the performances of alternative dispersal kernels during two years with ecologically contrasting scenarios; a non-mast year, and a mast year of the dominant canopy species, beech Fagus sylvatica. Dispersal kernels were fitted under a Bayesian modeling framework. Both simple and mixture kernels were considered for the five more abundant tree species (Corylus avellana, Crataegus monogyna, F. sylvatica, Ilex aquifolium and Taxus baccata). Mixture kernels provided a better fit for almost all species, and the log-normal performed best for T. baccata. No relationship between dispersal syndromes and the best dispersal kernel function emerged. However, we found temporal changes in the shape of the dispersal kernels that seemed to be related to variation in relative fruit production among species and the resulting changes in the responses of dispersal vectors. This reveals a potential role for disperser-mediated indirect effects in terms of introducing temporal variation in species spread. In this sense, our results highlight the need to consider single species seed dispersal as a community process.

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Acknowledgments

Bea Blanco, Chus Oliveros and Xurde Sánchez helped with tree mapping, and Alicia Valdés assisted us with the lab work. Deborah Connolly revised the English. Comments by Eric Ribbens and an anonymous referee greatly improved the quality of this manuscript. E. Ribbens improved our writing style and provided many interesting suggestions and ideas that are especially acknowledged. Advice and comments by the associate editor John Silander were also useful and greatly appreciated. IM was supported by a PFPU grant (MEC), the project [CGL2004-2936/MEC], and a postdoctoral contract from the UFZ Department of Ecological Modelling; and FGT was supported by a FICYT “Severo Ochoa” grant (PCTI 2006-2009, Gobierno del Principado de Asturias). Both thank the COSTAS project [CTM2006-05588/MAR], which provided support in terms of a Dell Precision Workstation on which all of the simulations were run. This work was carried out in accordance with the laws of Spain.

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  1. Department of Ecological Modelling, UFZ, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Permoser Str. 15, 04318, Leipzig, Germany

    Isabel Martínez

  2. Área de Ecología, Departamento de Biología de Organismos y Sistemas, Universidad de Oviedo, C/ Catedrático Rodrigo Uría s/n, 33071, Oviedo, Spain

    Fernando González-Taboada

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  1. Isabel Martínez
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Correspondence to Isabel Martínez.

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Communicated by John Silander.

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Martínez, I., González-Taboada, F. Seed dispersal patterns in a temperate forest during a mast event: performance of alternative dispersal kernels. Oecologia 159, 389–400 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-008-1218-4

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