Vertebrate Dispersal Syndromes in Some Australian and New Zealand Plant Communities, with Geographic Comparisons

摘要: Fleshy fruits, which are apparently adapted for consumption by vertebrate seed-dispersal agents, very common (often >70% of the species) in most tropical and subtropical rain forests, despite taxonomic, historical, ecological differences among regions. fruits moderately some north-temperate forests (up to 50% south-temperate moist (N.Z. 27-60%, Chile 45-70%). Less than 30 percent species Australian sclerophyll woodlands, heaths, alpine communities have fleshy fruits. Wooded vegetation types New Zealand average 19 56 with Shrublands many regions vary greatly, grasslands commonly low frequencies fruited species. Fruits suitable volant dispersers much more those suited nonvolant North American, Chilean, Queensland, South African forests; Neotropical carried flying vertebrates somewhat others, Gabon, consumed outnumber eaten dispersal agents. The proportion frequently correlates moisture availability, but correlations other factors (latitude, soil nutrients, succession) also been reported. about as on trees smaller woody plants wet forests. produced shrubs, sometimes vines, or herbs American European scrublands, drier Thus, patterns beginning emerge, they represent only a starting place our understanding variation different floras types. Most bird-dispersed appear red black (to human eyes); yellow blue occasionally so far examined. Mammal-dispersed often brown, green, orange, yellow. Large Queensland that morphologically cassowaries mammals red, orange/yellow, black, green/brown thus span range colors typical bird mammal However, two samples actual cassowary diets, orange/yellow predominated. Few fruit color spectra yet emerged. MANY PLANT SPECIES produce vertebrates, who then disperse enclosed seeds. This mode seed was termed "endozoochory" van der Pijl (1972), fleshy, edible pulp is generally considered be adaptive fostering vertebrates. Although natural historians intrigued seeds decades (e.g., Darwin 1859, Kerner 1895, Wallace 1923, Ridley 1930), past decade has attention begun focus quantifying "syndromes" (van 1972) traits associated particular kinds animals Janson 1983, Knight & Siegfried Gautier-Hion et al. 1985), various (op. cit., Wheelwright I Received 21 April 1987, revision accepted 4 November 1987. habitat geographic commonness Snow 1981, Webb Tracey Gentry 1982, Howe Smallwood Foster 1986, Willson 1986). purposes this paper (1) survey frequency syndromes variety types, (2) selected (3) compare these surveys data