DOI: 10.1111/ele.12637
Scopus记录号: 2-s2.0-84977073719
论文题名: The mechanical defence advantage of small seeds
作者: Fricke E.C. ; Wright S.J.
刊名: Ecology Letters
ISSN: 1461023X
EISSN: 1461-0248
出版年: 2016
语种: 英语
英文关键词: Allometric scaling
; Functional traits
; Intraspecific variation
; Optimal foraging
; Seed defence
; Seed predation
Scopus关键词: anatomy and histology
; animal
; germination
; physiology
; plant seed
; species difference
; Animals
; Germination
; Seeds
; Species Specificity
英文摘要: Seed size and toughness affect seed predators, and size-dependent investment in mechanical defence could affect relationships between seed size and predation. We tested how seed toughness and mechanical defence traits (tissue density and protective tissue content) are related to seed size among tropical forest species. Absolute toughness increased with seed size. However, smaller seeds had higher specific toughness both within and among species, with the smallest seeds requiring over 2000 times more energy per gram to break than the largest seeds. Investment in mechanical defence traits varied widely but independently of the toughness-mass allometry. Instead, a physical scaling relationship confers a toughness advantage on small seeds independent of selection on defence traits and without a direct cost. This scaling relationship may contribute to seed size diversity by decreasing fitness differences among large and small seeds. Allometric scaling of toughness reconciles predictions and conflicting empirical relationships between seed size and predation. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd/CNRS. Citation statistics:
资源类型: 期刊论文
标识符: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/107825
Appears in Collections: 气候减缓与适应
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作者单位: Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology Iowa State University Ames 50011IA USA; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Apartado 0843-03092 Balboa Panama
Recommended Citation:
Fricke E.C.,Wright S.J.. The mechanical defence advantage of small seeds[J]. Ecology Letters,2016-01-01