Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest
We know surprisingly little about the fate of seeds of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) under natural conditions. Here we investigate seed removal, predation and caching of Brazil nuts by scatter-hoarding rodents in the wet and dry seasons, based on an experimental approach using 900 threa...
| Autor principal: | Haugaasen, Joanne M.Tuck |
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| Outros Autores: | Haugaasen, Torbjørn, Peres, Carlos A., Gribel, Rogério, Wegge, Per |
| Grau: | Artigo |
| Idioma: | English |
| Publicado em: |
Journal of Tropical Ecology
2020
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| Acesso em linha: |
https://repositorio.inpa.gov.br/handle/1/18319 |
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oai:repositorio:1-18319 |
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oai:repositorio:1-18319 Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest Haugaasen, Joanne M.Tuck Haugaasen, Torbjørn Peres, Carlos A. Gribel, Rogério Wegge, Per Caching Dry Season Experimental Study Food Availability Harvesting Neotropical Region Nut Regeneration Resource Availability Rodent Seasonality Seed Dispersal Seed Predation Tracking Amazonia Agouti Animalsia Bertholletia Excelsa Dasyprocta Fuliginosa Myoprocta Pratti Rodentia We know surprisingly little about the fate of seeds of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) under natural conditions. Here we investigate seed removal, predation and caching of Brazil nuts by scatter-hoarding rodents in the wet and dry seasons, based on an experimental approach using 900 thread-marked seeds. We tracked the fate of seeds handled by these animals to examine how seasonal food availability may influence caching rates, dispersal distances and cache longevity. Most seeds exposed to dispersal trials were removed by scatter-hoarders during the first week in both seasons and seeds were generally buried intact in single-seeded caches within 10 m of seed stations. Seeds were removed significantly faster and buried at greater distances during the dry season. The proportion of seeds buried intact was considerably higher in the wet season (74.4%) than in the dry season (38.2%). Most (99.4%) of the 881 primary caches monitored were recovered, but these had a significantly shorter lifetime in the dry season. Our results show that rodents are highly skilled at retrieving buried Brazil nuts and that caching behaviour appears to be affected by seasonal resource abundance. Reduced seed availability due to intensive harvest could potentially create a dry-season scenario where most seeds succumb to pre-dispersal predation, thereby adversely affecting the natural regeneration of Brazil nut trees. Copyright © 2010 Cambridge University Press. 2020-06-15T21:53:39Z 2020-06-15T21:53:39Z 2010 Artigo https://repositorio.inpa.gov.br/handle/1/18319 10.1017/S0266467410000027 en Volume 26, Número 3, Pags. 251-262 Restrito Journal of Tropical Ecology |
| institution |
Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia - Repositório Institucional |
| collection |
INPA-RI |
| language |
English |
| topic |
Caching Dry Season Experimental Study Food Availability Harvesting Neotropical Region Nut Regeneration Resource Availability Rodent Seasonality Seed Dispersal Seed Predation Tracking Amazonia Agouti Animalsia Bertholletia Excelsa Dasyprocta Fuliginosa Myoprocta Pratti Rodentia |
| spellingShingle |
Caching Dry Season Experimental Study Food Availability Harvesting Neotropical Region Nut Regeneration Resource Availability Rodent Seasonality Seed Dispersal Seed Predation Tracking Amazonia Agouti Animalsia Bertholletia Excelsa Dasyprocta Fuliginosa Myoprocta Pratti Rodentia Haugaasen, Joanne M.Tuck Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| topic_facet |
Caching Dry Season Experimental Study Food Availability Harvesting Neotropical Region Nut Regeneration Resource Availability Rodent Seasonality Seed Dispersal Seed Predation Tracking Amazonia Agouti Animalsia Bertholletia Excelsa Dasyprocta Fuliginosa Myoprocta Pratti Rodentia |
| description |
We know surprisingly little about the fate of seeds of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) under natural conditions. Here we investigate seed removal, predation and caching of Brazil nuts by scatter-hoarding rodents in the wet and dry seasons, based on an experimental approach using 900 thread-marked seeds. We tracked the fate of seeds handled by these animals to examine how seasonal food availability may influence caching rates, dispersal distances and cache longevity. Most seeds exposed to dispersal trials were removed by scatter-hoarders during the first week in both seasons and seeds were generally buried intact in single-seeded caches within 10 m of seed stations. Seeds were removed significantly faster and buried at greater distances during the dry season. The proportion of seeds buried intact was considerably higher in the wet season (74.4%) than in the dry season (38.2%). Most (99.4%) of the 881 primary caches monitored were recovered, but these had a significantly shorter lifetime in the dry season. Our results show that rodents are highly skilled at retrieving buried Brazil nuts and that caching behaviour appears to be affected by seasonal resource abundance. Reduced seed availability due to intensive harvest could potentially create a dry-season scenario where most seeds succumb to pre-dispersal predation, thereby adversely affecting the natural regeneration of Brazil nut trees. Copyright © 2010 Cambridge University Press. |
| format |
Artigo |
| author |
Haugaasen, Joanne M.Tuck |
| author2 |
Haugaasen, Torbjørn Peres, Carlos A. Gribel, Rogério Wegge, Per |
| author2Str |
Haugaasen, Torbjørn Peres, Carlos A. Gribel, Rogério Wegge, Per |
| title |
Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| title_short |
Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| title_full |
Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| title_fullStr |
Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Seed dispersal of the Brazil nut tree (Bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| title_sort |
seed dispersal of the brazil nut tree (bertholletia excelsa) by scatter-hoarding rodents in a central amazonian forest |
| publisher |
Journal of Tropical Ecology |
| publishDate |
2020 |
| url |
https://repositorio.inpa.gov.br/handle/1/18319 |
| _version_ |
1787142969530253312 |
| score |
11.653393 |