Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Community seed rain patterns and a comparison to adult community structure in a West African tropical forest

  • Published:
Plant Ecology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We examined the seed rain throughout a twelve month period in a lowlandtropical forest in Cameroon, West Africa, 1996–97. Traps (0.5m2, n = 216) were erected throughout a 25km2 area in 24 randomly placed clusters of nine trapseach. Fruits and seeds that landed in traps were collected every 7–10daysand classified by species and dispersal type. More than 32,000 seeds fromapproximately 200 species fell into the traps, an average of 297 seedsm−2 yr−1 Thirty species represent 82%of the total seed rain while an additional 175 species comprise the remaining18%. When we compared the adult community to the seed rain community within thesame plots, we found no apparent correlation between seed rain patterns andadult community structure for this year of study. Furthermore, only 49% of theadult tree community produced and dispersed seed into traps in this year. Morethan 100 species (52%) found in the seed rain represented long-distanceimmigrant seed rain. Seed rain was highly variable at several scales, bothspatially and seasonally, although seeds arrived in traps during eachcollectionperiod. Cluster analyses showed that traps within plots were seldom moresimilarto one another than traps between plots. While 82% of the tree species in thecommunity are thought to be animal dispersed, only 28% of all seeds that fellinto traps had been obviously “handled” (bitten, chewed, or passed)by animals. Tests for fruit and seed removal by predators or dispersers found5%or less removal rate from traps.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Agresti A. 1996. An Introduction to Categorical Data Analysis. John Wiley and Sons, New York. Alvarez-Buylla E. and Martinez-Barrios M. 1990. Seed bank versus seed rain in the regeneration of a tropical pioneer tree. Oecologia 94: 314-325.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blake J.G., Loiselle B.A., Moermond T.C., Levey D.J. and Denslow J.S. 1990. Quantifying abundance of fruits for birds in tropical habitats. Studies in Avian Biology 13: 73-79.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne M.M. and Levey D.J. 1993. Removal of seeds from frugivore defecations by ants in a Costa Rican rain forest. In: Estrada A. and Fleming T.H. (eds), Frugivores and Seed Dispersal: Ecological and Evolutionary Aspects. Dr W. Junk Publishers, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, pp. 363-374.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman C.R., Wrangham R. and Chapman L. 1994. Indices of habitat-wide fruit abundance in tropical forests. Biotropica 26: 160-171.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark C.J. 2001. Frugivore influence on patterns of seed rain, seed shadows, and forest structure. MA, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark C.J., Poulsen J.R. and Parker V.T. 2001. Impact of frugivores on seed rain patterns in a central African tropical forest. Biotropica 33: 606-620.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark J.S., Fastie C., Hurtt G., Jackson S.T., Johnson C., King G. et al. 1998. Reid’s Paradox of rapid plant migration. BioScience 48: 13-24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark J.S., Silman M., Kern R., Macklin E. and HilleRisLambers J. 1999. Seed dispersal near and far: Patterns across temperate and tropical forests. Ecology 80: 1475-1494.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coates-Estrada R. and Estrada A. 1986. Fruiting and frugivores at a strangler fig in the tropical rain forest of Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. Journal of Tropical Ecology 2: 349-357.

    Google Scholar 

  • Compton S.G., Craig A.J. and Waters I.R. 1996. Seed dispersal in an African fig tree: birds as high quantity low quality dispersers? Journal of Biogeography 23: 553-563.

    Google Scholar 

  • Condit R., Ashton P.S., Baker P., Bunyavejchewin S., Gunatilleke S., Gunatilleke N. et al. 2000. Spatial patterns in the distribu-tion of tropical tree species. Science 288: 1414-1418.

    Google Scholar 

  • Connell J.H. 1971. On the role of natural enemies in preventing competitive exclusion in some marine mammals and in rain forest trees. In: Boer P.J. and Gradwell G. (eds), Dynamics of Populations. PUDOC, Wageningen, pp. 298-312.

    Google Scholar 

  • Connor E.F., Hosfield E., Meeter D.A. and Niu X. 1997. Tests for aggregation and size-based sample-unit selection when sample units vary in size. Ecology 78: 1238-1249.

    Google Scholar 

  • Debussche M. and Isenmann P. 1994. Bird-dispersed seed rain and seedling establishment in patchy Mediterranean vegetation. Oikos 69: 414-426.

    Google Scholar 

  • Denslow J.S. and Diaz A.E. 1990. Seed rain to tree-fall gaps in a Neotropical rain forest. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 20: 642-648.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drake D.R. 1998. Relationships among the seed rain seed bank and vegetation of a Hawaiian forest. Journal of Vegetation Science 9: 103-112.

    Google Scholar 

  • Estrada A., Vasques-Yanes C. and Orozco-Segovia A. 1984. Comparison of frugivory of howling monkeys (Alouatta palliata) and bats (Artibeus jamaicensis) in the tropical rain forest of Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. American Journal of Primatology 7: 3-13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foster R.B. 1982. The seasonal rhythm of fruitfall on Barro Colorado Island. In: Leigh E.G., Rand A.S. and Windsor D.M. (eds), The Ecology of a Tropical Forest: Seasonal Rhythms and Longterm Changes. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC, USA, pp. 151-172.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garwood N.C. 1989. Tropical soil seed banks: a review. In: Leck M.A., Parker V.T. and Simpson R.L. (eds), Ecology of Soil Seed Bank. Academic Press, San Diego, CA, USA, pp. 149-209.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gauch H.G. Jr 1982. Multivariate Analysis in Community Ecology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gauthier-Hion A., Duplaintier J.M., Ouris R., Feer F., Sourd C., DeCoux J.-P. et al. 1985. Fruit characters as a basis of fruit choice and seed dispersal in a tropical forest vertebrate community. Oecologia 65: 324-337.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton M.B. 1999. Tropical tree gene flow and dispersal. Nature 401: 129.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hardesty B.D. 1999. Seed Rain in a West African Tropical Forest. MA, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harms K.E., Wright S.J., Calderon O., Hernandez A. and Herre E.A. 2000. Pervasive density-dependent recruitment enhances seedling diversity in a tropical forest. Nature 404: 493-495.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harper J. 1977. Population Biology of Plants. Academic Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holbrook K.M. and Smith T.B. 2000. Seed dispersal and movement patterns of two species of Ceratogymna hornbills in a West African tropical lowland forest. Oecologia 125: 249-257.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holl K.D. 1998. Do bird perching structures elevate seed rain and seedling establishment in abandoned tropical pasture? Restoration Ecology 6: 253-261.

    Google Scholar 

  • Houle G. 1992. The spatial relationship between seed and seedling abundance and mortality in a deciduous forest of northeastern North America. Journal of Ecology 80: 99-108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howe H.F. 1989. Scatter-and clump-dispersal and seedling demography: hypothesis and implications. Oecologia 79: 417-426.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howe H.F. and Smallwood J. 1982. Ecology of seed dispersal by birds of the tree Casearia nitida(Flacourtiaceae). Biotropica 7: 278-283.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hubbell S.P. 1979. Tree dispersion, abundance, and diversity in a tropical dry forest. Science 203: 1299-1309.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hubbell S.P., Foster R.B., O'Brien S.T., Harms K.E., Condit R., Wechster B. et al. 1999. Light-gap disturbances, recruitment limitation, and tree diversity in a Neotropical forest. Science 283: 554-557.

    Google Scholar 

  • Izhaki I., Walton P.B. and Safriel U.N. 1991. Seed shadows generated by frugivorous birds in an eastern Mediterranean scrub. Journal of Ecology 79: 575-590.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janzen D.H. 1970. Herbivores and the number of tree species in tropical forests. American Naturalist 104: 501-528.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jensen Kai 1998. Species composition of soil seed bank and seed rain of abandoned wet meadows and their relations to aboveground vegetation. Flora 193: 345-359.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jordano P. 1992. Fruits and frugivory. In: Fedder M. (ed.), Seeds: The Ecology and Regeneration in Plant Communities. CAB International, Wallingford, pp. 105-156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jordano P. and Schupp E.W. 2000. Seed disperser effectiveness: the quantity compoenent and patterns of seed rain for Prunus mahaleb. Ecological Monographs 70: 591-615.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan B.A. and Moermond T.C. 1998. Variation in seed handling by two species of forest monkeys in Rwanda. American Journal of Primatology 45: 83-101.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laclavere G. 1980. Atlas of the United Republic of Cameroon. Editions Jeune Afrique, Paris.

    Google Scholar 

  • Letouzey R. 1968. Etudes Phytogeographiques Du Cameroun. Editions Paul Lechevalier, Paris.

    Google Scholar 

  • Levey D.J. 1988. Tropical wet forest treefall gaps and distributions of understory birds and plants. Ecology 69: 1076-1089.

    Google Scholar 

  • Martinez-Ramos M. and Soto-Castro A. 1993. Seed rain and advanced regeneration in a tropical rain forest. Vegetatio 107/108: 299-318.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCullagh P. and Nelder A.A. 1989. Generalized Linear Models. Chapman and Hall, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCune B. and Mefford M.J. 1993. PC-ORD, multivariate analysis of ecological data, version 3.0. M.J.M. Software Design, Gleneden Beach, OR, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muchaal P. and Ngandjui G. 1999. Impact of village hunting on wildlife populations in the western Dja Reserve, Cameroon. Conservation Biology 13: 385-396.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murray K.G. 1988. Avian seed dispersal of three neotropical gapdependent plants. Ecological Monographs 58: 271-298.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nathan R. and Muller-Landau H.C. 2000. Spatial patterns of seed dispersal their determinants and consequences for recruitment. Tree 15: 278-285.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parker V.T., Simpson R.L. and Leck M.A. 1989. Pattern and process in the dynamics of seed banks. In: Leck M.A., Parker V.T. and Simpson R.L. (eds), Ecology of Soil Seed Banks. Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 367-384.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pitelka L.F. 1997. Plant migration and climate change. American Scientist 85: 464-473.

    Google Scholar 

  • Poulsen J.R., Clark C.J. and Smith T.B. 2001. Seed dispersal by a diurnal primate community in the Dja Reserve, Cameroon. Journal of Tropical Ecology 17: 787-808.

    Google Scholar 

  • Poulsen J.R., Clark C.J., Connor E.F. and Smith T.B. 2002. Differential resource use by primates and hornbills: implications for seed dispersal. Ecology 83: 228-240.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schupp E. 1993. Quantity quality and effectiveness of seed dispersal by animals. Vegetatio 107/108: 15-29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schupp E.W., Milleron T. and Russo S. Dispersal limitation and the origin and maintenance of species-rich torpical forests. In: Levey D.J., Silva W.R. and Galetti M. (eds), Frugivory Seed Dispersal: Perspectives of Biodiversity and Conservation. CAB International Press, Cambridge (in press).

  • Terborgh J. 1990. Seed and fruit dispersal-commentary. In: Bawa K.S. and Hadley M. (eds), Reproductive Ecology of Tropical Forest Plants. The Parthenon Publishing Group, Park Ridge, New Jersey, USA, pp. 181-190.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tutin C.E.G. and Fernandez M. 1993. Relationships between minimum temperature and fruit production in some tropical forest trees in Gabon. Journal of Tropical Ecology 9: 241-248.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tutin C.E.G., Ham R.M., White L.J.T. and Harrison M.J.S. 1997.The primate community of the Lope Reserve, Gabon: Diets, responses to fruit scarcity, and effects on biomass. American Journal of Primatology 42: 1-24.

    Google Scholar 

  • van Schaik C.P., Terborgh J.W. and Wright S.J. 1993. The phenology of tropical forests: adaptive significance and consequences for primary consumers. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 24: 353-377.

    Google Scholar 

  • Webb C.O. and Peart D.R. 2001. High seed dispersal rates in faunally intact tropical rain forest: theoretical and conservation implications. Ecology Letters 4: 491-499.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitney K.D., Fogiel M.K., Lamperti A.M., Holbrook K.M., Stauffer D.J., Hardesty B.D. et al. 1998. Seed dispersal by Cer-atogymna hornbills in the Dja Reserve, Cameroon. Journal of Tropical Ecology 14: 351-371.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whitney K.D. and Smith T.B. 1998. Habitat use and resource tracking by African Ceratogymnahornbills; implications for seed dispersal and forest conservation. Animal Conservation 1: 107-117.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willson M.F. 1993. Dispersal mode seed shadows and colonization patterns. Vegetatio 107/108: 261-280.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Tropical Research and Department of Biology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, 94132, USA

    Britta Denise Hardesty & V. Thomas Parker

Authors
  1. Britta Denise Hardesty
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. V. Thomas Parker
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Hardesty, B.D., Parker, V.T. Community seed rain patterns and a comparison to adult community structure in a West African tropical forest. Plant Ecology 164, 49–64 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021251831806

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021251831806

Search

Navigation