Dissertation Research: Recruitment in a Large-Seeded Tropical Tree

论文研究：大种子热带树的招募

• 批准号: 9321553
• 负责人: Douglas Levey
• 金额: $ 1.7万
• 依托单位: University of Florida
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 1994
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 1994-05-01 至 1996-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9321553&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Dissertation; Research; Recruitment; Large; Seeded

9321553 lLevey Plant recruitment is the process by which plants produce offspring (seeds) to replace themselves and thus produce a self- regenerating habitat. Seed dispersal is the process that allows plants to "move" by distributing the seeds throughout the surrounding area. Most plants produce many more seeds than can survive because after dispersal, mice and other rodents eat (and therefore kill) many of the seeds. Sometimes, if seeds are abundant, rodents may store some extra seeds to be eaten later in the year. A few of these stored seeds may be forgotten and may germinate, in which case the rodents are acting as "secondary" dispersers. Those seeds that survive and germinate face many other dangers, such as plant-eating insects and mammals, mold and disease, and falling branches and trees. Thus, plant recruitment is a complicated process of many stages and involves interactions with many other species. In tropical forests, which are being rapidly destroyed, we know very little about plant recruitment, and therefore we lack the information necessary to make recommendations about how to save and restore these forests.%%% Ocotea endresiana (related to avocados) is a common tree in the mountain forests near Monteverde, Costa Rica. The large fruits are eaten and the seeds dispersed by relatively few species of birds. Despite several studies on seeds dispersal of some related trees, the post-dispersal fate of these seeds is not well understood. In this study, recruitment of O.endresiana seedings will be examined to determine the importance of primary dispersal, secondary dispersal, and seed predation on seedling establishment.%%% This research will provide some of the first information on the degree of complexity involved in the seed dispersal process. Such information will prove useful to wildlife managers who hope to rebuild -- or even simply to maintain -- natural habitats. The interrelationships among a complex array of seed dispers ers and predators will be examined. Each one plays a role in determining plant survival -- the question is, how critical is that role? If the roles of various primary and secondary dispersers are known, then one can predict the effects of animal extinctions on seed dispersal. Increasing knowledge of seed dispersal and plant recruitment will provide another piece in the puzzle of understanding how tropical forests "work."***

小行星9321553 植物补充是植物产生后代（种子）以取代自身并由此产生自我再生栖息地的过程。 种子传播是通过将种子分布在周围区域来允许植物“移动”的过程。 大多数植物产生的种子比能够存活的要多得多，因为在传播之后，老鼠和其他啮齿动物会吃掉（因此杀死）许多种子。 有时，如果种子丰富，啮齿动物可能会储存一些额外的种子，以便在今年晚些时候食用。 一些储存的种子可能会被遗忘，并可能发芽，在这种情况下，啮齿动物是作为“二级”传播者。 那些存活和发芽的种子面临着许多其他的危险，如食草昆虫和哺乳动物，霉菌和疾病，以及掉落的树枝和树木。 因此，植物补充是一个复杂的过程，涉及许多阶段，并与许多其他物种的相互作用。 在热带森林中，我们对植物的补充知之甚少，因此我们缺乏必要的信息，无法就如何拯救和恢复这些森林提出建议。 Ocotea endresiana（与鳄梨有关）是哥斯达黎加蒙特韦尔德附近山区森林中的一种常见树木。 大的果实被吃掉，种子被相对较少的鸟类传播。 尽管一些相关的树木的种子传播的研究，这些种子的传播后的命运是不是很清楚。 在这项研究中，将检查O.endresiana sediment的补充，以确定初级传播，次级传播和种子捕食对幼苗建立的重要性。 这项研究将提供一些关于种子传播过程复杂程度的第一批信息。 这些信息将被证明对希望重建-甚至仅仅是维持-自然栖息地的野生动物管理者有用。 一个复杂的种子传播者和捕食者之间的相互关系将被检查。 每一个都在决定植物的生存方面发挥着作用--问题是，这个作用有多重要？ 如果各种初级和次级传播者的作用是已知的，那么人们就可以预测动物行为对种子传播的影响。 增加种子传播和植物补充的知识将为理解热带森林如何运作提供另一个拼图。"***