Title
Globally, tree fecundity exceeds productivity gradients
Date Issued
2022
Access level
open access
Resource Type
letter
Author(s)
Journé V.
Andrus R.
Aravena M.C.
Ascoli D.
Berretti R.
Berveiller D.
Bogdziewicz M.
Boivin T.
Bonal R.
Caignard T.
Calama R.
Camarero J.J.
Chang-Yang C.H.
Courbaud B.
Courbet F.
Curt T.
Das A.J.
Daskalakou E.
Davi H.
Delpierre N.
Delzon S.
Dietze M.
Donoso Calderon S.
Dormont L.
Maria Espelta J.
Fahey T.J.
Gehring C.A.
Gilbert G.S.
Gratzer G.
Greenberg C.H.
Guo Q.
Hacket-Pain A.
Hampe A.
Han Q.
Lambers J.H.R.
Hoshizaki K.
Ibanez I.
Johnstone J.F.
Kabeya D.
Kays R.
Kitzberger T.
Knops J.M.H.
Kobe R.K.
Kunstler G.
Lageard J.G.A.
LaMontagne J.M.
Leininger T.
Limousin J.M.
Lutz J.A.
Macias D.
McIntire E.J.B.
Moore C.M.
Moran E.
Motta R.
Myers J.A.
Nagel T.A.
Noguchi K.
Ourcival J.M.
Parmenter R.
Pearse I.S.
Perez-Ramos I.M.
Piechnik L.
Poulsen J.
Poulton-Kamakura R.
Qiu T.
Redmond M.D.
Reid C.D.
Rodman K.C.
Rodriguez-Sanchez F.
Sanguinetti J.D.
Scher C.L.
Marle H.S.V.
Seget B.
Sharma S.
Silman M.
Steele M.A.
Stephenson N.L.
Straub J.N.
Swenson J.J.
Swift M.
Thomas P.A.
Uriarte M.
Vacchiano G.
Veblen T.T.
Whipple A.V.
Whitham T.G.
Wright B.
Wright S.J.
Zhu K.
Zimmerman J.K.
Zlotin R.
Zywiec M.
Clark J.S.
Washington University in Saint Louis
Publisher(s)
John Wiley and Sons Inc
Abstract
Lack of tree fecundity data across climatic gradients precludes the analysis of how seed supply contributes to global variation in forest regeneration and biotic interactions responsible for biodiversity. A global synthesis of raw seedproduction data shows a 250-fold increase in seed abundance from cold-dry to warm-wet climates, driven primarily by a 100-fold increase in seed production for a given tree size. The modest (threefold) increase in forest productivity across the same climate gradient cannot explain the magnitudes of these trends. The increase in seeds per tree can arise from adaptive evolution driven by intense species interactions or from the direct effects of a warm, moist climate on tree fecundity. Either way, the massive differences in seed supply ramify through food webs potentially explaining a disproportionate role for species interactions in the wet tropics.
Start page
1471
End page
1482
Volume
25
Issue
6
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Forestal
Ciencias de las plantas, Botánica
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85128772226
PubMed ID
Source
Ecology Letters
ISSN of the container
1461023X
Sponsor(s)
The authors thank the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) for access to sites and vegetation structure data; W. Koenig and F. Lefèvre for additional data; and S. Sitch for access to TRENDY products. The project has been funded by grants to JSC from the National Science Foundation, most recently DEB-1754443, and by the Belmont Forum (1854976), NASA (AIST16-0052, AIST18-0063) and the Programme d’Investissement d’Avenir under project FORBIC (18-MPGA-0004) (Make Our Planet Great Again). Jerry Franklin’s data remain accessible through NSF LTER DEB-1440409. Puerto Rico data were funded by NSF grants, most recently, DEB 0963447 and LTREB 11222325. Data from the Andes Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research Group were funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and NSF LTREB 1754647. MB was supported by grant no. 2019/35/D/NZ8/00050 from the (Polish) National Science Centre, and Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange Bekker programme PPN/BEK/2020/1/00009/U/00001. Research by the USDA Forest Service and the USGS was funded by these agencies. Any use of trade, firm or product names does not imply endorsement by the US Government.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus