Seed Dispersal Thinking like a plant.

Coast redwood tree

May live 2,000 years. May make 1-10 billion seeds in lifetime Sedentary, mindless Often long lifespan, Often high fecundity Sweepstakes reproduction Takes just one seed to replace itself!

Seed dispersal How seeds move from parent plant to safe sites: places suitable for germination and seedling establishment Importance: may determine if species can track climate envelopes as they change due to global climate change Why disperse? 1) Escape competition from parent/siblings

2) Escape from predation/disease (if density-dependent) 3) Discover new suitable habitats 4) Contribute to gene flow/genetic diversity

5) Maintain populations in sink habitats (metapopulations: source vs sink populations) Seed plants: Seed is fertilized ovule in ovary of pistil Seed: baby plant (embryo) in box (seed coat) with lunch (endosperm in flowering plants) Fruit: Mature ovary of flower (contains one or more seeds)

Ovary wall becomes pericarp in fruit. Pericarp may develop specialized layers. At most these are: ectocarp: outer layer mesocarp: middle layer endocarp: inner layer

Fruits vs seeds Dry indehiscent fruits achene: one seed, fused to pericarp at one point Ex, dandelion, sunflower. grain (caryopsis): one seed, fused entirely to pericarp Ex, corn, rice, wheat.

Resolution Solution: diaspore. Single dispersal unit of plant (seed or fruit) Fruit functions 1) Fruit can be protective against: Seed predators Environmental conditions

fruit)

2) Fruit can promote seed dormancy Hard endocarp can seal out water/oxygen Breaking layer called scarification Fleshy fruits can contain germination inhibitors (prevent seed from germinating in

Rotting or digestion by animal gut needed to remove inhibitors so seed will germinate 3) Fruit can aid seed dispersal

Wings, barbs, fleshy reward

Seed coat functions 1) Protect embryo (like pericarp)

2) Promote seed dormancy (like pericarp) 3) Aid in seed dispersal Hairs on some wind-dispersed seeds

Ballistic dispersal Many types of seed dispersal are NOT mutualisms Ex, Ballistic dispersal=Ballistochory: fruit throws or squirts seeds Example, fruits of touch-me-not (Impatiens, right), sorrel (Oxalis, left)

Other non-mutualist examples (physical forces) Anemochory=Wind dispersal (dandelion) Hydrochory=Water dispersal (coconut)

Ectozoochory Some types of biotic seed dispersal are NOT mutualisms Ex, most cases of ectozoochory. Seed or fruit carried by animal outside body (hooks, barbs, glue) Ex, Devils claw (Proboscidea) Makes fruit with large hooked claws (elongated top of capsule).

Many plant species use this technique Table shows the (unofficial) 17 top hitchhiker plants, ranked by SRDUs (Sock Removal Difficulty Units)

Ectozoochory: Some cases are mutualisms. Example, scatter hoarding animals (squirrels, nutcrackers) Collect and hide seeds or fruits in caches Some escape and germinate Pinus albicaulis (white bark pine) and Clarks nutcracker 1 bird can hide as many as 90,000 seeds in one season

Endozoochory: fruit eaten and seeds travel thru gut Common with fleshy fruits (soft, sweet fruits) Fruit pulp is nutritive reward to disperser Endozoochory: sometimes seed scarified Example, dodo Flightless pigeon found only on Mauritius in Indian Ocean Discovered by European visitors around 1600 Had gizzard with stone against which food (seeds) ground Seeds of Calvaria tree have thick endosperm Apparently need scarifying to germinate, and dodo gizzard may have done this Problem: dodo extinct by 1680s! Tree seeds may not have germinated in nature since then

Myrmecochory Seed dispersal by ants (mutualism) Elaiosome: food body on outside of seed coat/fruit Ants collect seed, remove elaiosome, discard seed underground or aboveground Only major seed dispersal mode using an insect!

Common for Eastern forest spring flowering plants.

Pollination vs biotic seed dispersal Trait Pollen dispersal

Seed dispersal Safe site None

Animals Target Motivation

Often insects Mammals/birds Stigma Floral reward

to target Cues to target Floral traits Seeds: Directed dispersal unlikely None

Syndromes Protein rare reward (most plants N limited)

Bird fruits with no odor Ants only major insect group Additional syndrome: mud dispersal (sole botany) 43 species, no specific seed characteristics Includes 5 species of most common weeds: Polygonum (knotweed) Capsella (shepherds purse) Stellaria (chickweed) Chenopodium (lambs quarter) Poa annua (bluegrass) Less taxonomic specificity Guilds: groups of species with similar ecological function Ex, frugivore birds and summer-fruiting fleshy-fruited plants

The Plant View How measure dispersal? Whats the metric?

1) Single species study: absolute distance 2) Comparative study: canopy diameters Ex, grasses vs oaks 3) Self-incompatible clonal plants: genetic neighborhood

Trade-offs Generally, as seed size increases dispersal decreases

But chance of successful establishment increases Danger for Plant: Seeds are yummy! High protein, high lipid to supply embryo

Solution 1: bribery! Use large numbers of seeds (scatter hoarders) Solution 2: bribery! Use non-seed food reward. Fruit pulp, etc Solution 3: poison! Defend seeds with toxins Ex, castor beans contain ricin Lethal dose: 1/5000 gram (twice as deadly as cobra venom! Solution 4: armor! Defend seeds with mechanical protection (stony seed coat, endocarp) Solution 5: advertise so correct animal gets message before seed predators arrive! Cues to fruit ripeness (color, smell, etc) Pre-ripening flags: signals ripening has begun (red color in ripening blueberries) Foliar flags: leaf color change indicates fruits ripening in fall (ex, poison ivy)