Abstract
Seed dispersal is a crucial process in recruitment of plant populations, as well as for pollen dispersal. The location of dispersed seeds affects the survival of seedlings and the spatial distribution pattern of plants. Plants employ various strategies for effective seed dispersal, and diaspores have unique structures that utilize biotic and/or abiotic factors such as fleshy arils for endozoochory, thorny hooks for epizoochory, and membrane wings for anemochory. Most studies on seed dispersal by mammals have concerned endozoochory, that is, when an animal eats the edible fleshy parts surrounding seeds and then disseminates intact seeds by defecating or spitting out the seeds, although a few studies have examined epizoochory (e.g., Mouissie et al. 2005). The viability or survival rate of seeds can be altered at each step of seed dispersal and recruitment process, starting from fruit foraging by animals, followed by seed passage through digestive tracts, seed deposition on the forest floor, germination, and finally seedling establishment (Schupp 1993). Numerous studies have reported that diverse primate species act as effective endozoochorous seed dispersers for tree species in tropical and subtropical forests (Balcomb and Chapman 2003; Russo et al. 2006). We have only one indigenous primate species, Macaca fuscata, in Japan, and previous studies have suggested that Japanese macaques are also effective agents of seed dispersal for tree species that compose the cool- and warm-temperate forests in Japan. In this chapter, I present findings from previous studies on seed dispersal by Japanese macaques.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Agetsuma N, Nakagawa N (1998) Effects of habitat differences on feeding behaviors of Japanese monkeys: comparison between Yakushima and Kinkazan. Primates 39:275–289
Agetsuma N, Noma N (1995) Rapid shifting of foraging pattern by Yakushima macaques (Macaca fuscata yakui) in response to heavy fruiting of Myrica rubra. Int J Primatol 16:247–260
Balcomb SR, Chapman CA (2003) Bridging the gap: influence of seed deposition on seedling recruitment in a primate-tree interaction. Ecol Monogr 73:625–642
Godoy JA, Jordano P (2001) Seed dispersal by animals: exact identification of source trees with endocarp DNA microsatellites. Mol Ecol 10:2275–2283
Hanya G, Noma N, Agetsuma N (2003) Altitudinal and seasonal variations in the diet of Japanese macaques in Yakushima. Primates 44:51–59
Hanya G, Kiyono M, Yamada A, Suzuki K, Furukawa M, Yoshida Y, Chijiiwa A (2006) Not only annual food abundance but also fallback food quality determines the Japanese macaque density: evidence from seasonal variations in home range size. Primates 47:275–278
Herrera CM (2002) Seed dispersal by vertebrates. In: Herrera CM, Pellmyr O (eds) Plant–animal interactions: an evolutionary approach. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 185–208
Hill DA, Lucas PW, Cheng PY (1995) Bite forces used by Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata yakui) on Yakushima Island, Japan to open aphid-induced galls on Distylium racemosum (Hamamelidaceae). J Zool 237:57–63
Izumiyama S, Mochizuki T, Shiraishi T (2003) Troop size, home range area and seasonal range use of the Japanese macaque in the Northern Japan Alps. Ecol Res 18:465–474
Kinzey WG, Norconk MA (1993) Physical and chemical properties of fruit and seeds eaten by Pithecia and Chiropotes in Surinam and Venezuela. Int J Primatol 14:207–227
Koike S, Morimoto H, Goto Y, Kizakai C, Yamazaki K (2008) Frugivory of carnivores and seed dispersal of fleshy fruits in cool-temperate deciduous forests. J For Res 13:215–222
Kominami Y, Sato T, Takeshita K, Manabe T, Endo A, Noma N (2003) Classification of bird-dispersed plants by fruiting phenology, fruit size, and growth form in a primary lucidophyllous forest: an analysis, with implications for the conservation of fruit–bird interactions. Ornithol Sci 2:3–23
Maruhashi T, Saito T, Agetsuma N (1998) Home range structure and inter-group competition for land of Japanese macaques in evergreen and deciduous forests. Primates 39:291–301
Miyawaki A (1980) Vegetation of Japan, Yakushima. Shibundo, Tokyo (in Japanese)
Miyawaki A (1987) Vegetation of Japan, Tohoku. Shibundo, Tokyo (in Japanese)
Mouissie AM, Lengkeek W, van Diggelen R (2005) Estimating adhesive seed-dispersal distances: field experiments and correlated random walks. Funct Ecol 19:478–486
Otani T (2002) Seed dispersal by Japanese marten Martes melampus in the subalpine shrubland of northern Japan. Ecol Res 17:29–38
Otani T (2003) Seed dispersal and predation of fleshy-fruited plants by Japanese macaques in the cool temperate zone of northern Japan. Mammal Study 28:153–156
Otani T (2004) Effects of macaque ingestion on seed destruction and germination of a fleshy-fruited tree, Eurya emarginata. Ecol Res 19:495–501
Otani T (2005) Characteristics of middle-size mammals as a seed disperser of fleshy-plants. Nagoya Univ For Sci Res 24:7–43 (in Japanese with English summary)
Otani T, Shibata E (2000) Seed dispersal and predation by Yakushima macaques, Macaca fuscata yakui, in a warm temperate forest of Yakushima Island, southern Japan. Ecol Res 15:133–144
Russo SE, Portnoy S, Augspurger CK (2006) Incorporating animal behavior into seed dispersal models: implications for seed shadows. Ecol 87:3160–3174
Schabacker J, Curio E (2000) Fruit characteristics as determinants of gut passage in bulbul (Hypsipetes philippinus). Ecotropica 6:157–168
Schupp E (1993) Quantity, quality and effectiveness of seed dispersal by animals. Vegetatio 107(108):15–29
Terakawa M, Matsui K, Hamada T, Noma N, Yumoto T (2008) Reduced seed dispersal effectiveness in the large-seeded tree Myrica rubra in the absence of the Japanese macaque on Tanegashima Island, Japan. Jpn J Conserv Ecol 13:161–167 (in Japanese with English summary)
Terakawa M, Isagi Y, Matsui K, Yumoto T (2009) Microsatellite analysis of the maternal origin of Myrica rubra seeds in the feces of Japanese macaques. Ecol Res 24:663–670
Traveset A (1998) Effect of seed passage through vertebrate frugivores’ guts on germination: a review. Perspect Plant Ecol Evol Syst 1(2):151–190
Tsuji Y, Takatsuki S (2008) Effects of yearly change in nut fruiting on autumn home-range use by Macaca fuscata on Kinkazan Island, northern Japan. Int J Primatol 30:169–181
Tsuji Y, Morimoto M, Matsubayashi K (2010) Effects of the physical characteristics of seeds on gastrointestinal passage time in captive Japanese macaques. J Zool 280:171–176
Tsujino R, Yumoto T (2009) Topography-specific seed dispersal by Japanese macaques in a lowland forest on Yakushima Island, Japan. J Anim Ecol 78:119–125
Willson MF, Irvine AK, Walsh NG (1989) Vertebrate dispersal syndromes in some Australian and New Zealand plant communities, with geographic comparisons. Biotropica 21:133–147
Yagihashi T, Hayashida M, Miyamoto T (1998) Effects of bird ingestion on seed germination of Sorbus commixta. Oecologia (Berl) 114:209–212
Yumoto T, Noma N, Maruhashi T (1998) Cheek-pouch dispersal of seeds by Japanese monkeys (Macaca fuscata yakui) on Yakushima island, Japan. Primates 39:325–338
Acknowledgments
I am grateful to Dr. Y Tsuji for kindly showing unpublished data on seed species dispersed by Japanese macaques in Kinkazan Island. I also thank three editors for their helpful comments on the draft.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Otani, T. (2010). Seed Dispersal by Japanese Macaques. In: Nakagawa, N., Nakamichi, M., Sugiura, H. (eds) The Japanese Macaques. Primatology Monographs, vol 0. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-53886-8_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-53886-8_6
Publisher Name: Springer, Tokyo
Print ISBN: 978-4-431-53885-1
Online ISBN: 978-4-431-53886-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)