Dataset Information

Impact of multiple bird partners on the seed dispersal effectiveness of China's relic trees.

ABSTRACT: Frugivorous birds generally exhibit an unequal contribution to dispersal effectiveness of plant species as a function of their habitat adaptation and body size. In our study, we compared the effectiveness of multiple bird species that contribute to the dispersal of the endangered relic Chinese yew, Taxus chinensis. Seven bird species dispersed T. chinensis seeds, with Picus canus, Turdus hortulorum, and Urocissa erythrorhyncha being the main dispersers. The quantity part of dispersal effectiveness was strongly influenced by two inherent characteristics of disperser species: body size and habitat adaptation. However, the quality part of dispersal effectiveness was only influenced by disperser type. For instance, small generalist birds and large specialist birds removed more seeds than other type dispersers. Moreover, small birds and specialist birds contributed slightly more to the dispersal quality of T. chinensis than large birds and generalist birds respectively; however, these differences were not significant. Our results suggest that dispersal effectiveness is affected by variety in the body size and habitat adaptation of different dispersers. Therefore, such variation should be incorporated into spatial and temporal management actions of relic plant species in patchy, human-disturbed habitats.

SUBMITTER: Li N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4698718 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Impact of multiple bird partners on the seed dispersal effectiveness of China's relic trees.

Li Ning N Li Xin-Hai XH An Shu-Qing SQ Lu Chang-Hu CH

Scientific reports 20160104

Frugivorous birds generally exhibit an unequal contribution to dispersal effectiveness of plant species as a function of their habitat adaptation and body size. In our study, we compared the effectiveness of multiple bird species that contribute to the dispersal of the endangered relic Chinese yew, Taxus chinensis. Seven bird species dispersed T. chinensis seeds, with Picus canus, Turdus hortulorum, and Urocissa erythrorhyncha being the main dispersers. The quantity part of dispersal effectivene ...[more]

PMID: 26725517

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Project description:Animal movement and behaviour is fundamental for ecosystem functioning. The process of seed dispersal by frugivorous animals is a showcase for this paradigm since their behaviour shapes the spatial patterns of the earliest stage of plant regeneration. However, we still lack a general understanding of how intrinsic (frugivore and plant species traits) and extrinsic (landscape features) factors interact to determine how seeds of a given species are more likely to be deposited in some places more than in others. We develop a multi-species mechanistic model of seed dispersal based on frugivore behavioural responses to landscape heterogeneity. The model was fitted to data from three-years of spatially-explicit field observations on the behaviour of six frugivorous thrushes and the fruiting patterns of three fleshy-fruited trees in a secondary forest of the Cantabrian range (N Spain). With such model we explore how seed rain patterns arise from the interaction between animal behaviour and landscape heterogeneity. We show that different species of thrushes respond differently to landscape heterogeneity even though they belong to the same genus, and that provide complementary seed dispersal functions. Simulated seed rain patterns are only realistic when at least some landscape heterogeneity (forest cover and fruit abundance) is taken into account. The common and simple approach of re-sampling movement data to quantify seed dispersal produces biases in both the distance and the habitat at which seeds arrive. Movement behaviour not only affects dispersal distance and seed rain patterns but also can affect frugivore diet composition even if there is no built-in preference for fruiting species. In summary, the fate of seeds produced by a given plant species is strongly affected by both the composition of the frugivore assemblage and the landscape-scale context of the plant location, including the presence of fruits from other plants (from the same or different species).

Dataset Information

Impact of multiple bird partners on the seed dispersal effectiveness of China's relic trees.

Publications

Impact of multiple bird partners on the seed dispersal effectiveness of China's relic trees.

Similar Datasets

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