Abstract
A community study of seed germination in light-gap and shaded understory habitats indicated that the timing of germination differed significantly between the two habitats. The number of seedlings germinating in light-gaps was greater than that in the understory and the time of maximum germination was earlier in the rainy season. Within light-gaps, earlier germinating seedlings had significantly higher survival and were larger than later germinating seedlings. Analysis of the nine most abundant species indicated that earlier germinating seedlings were larger than later germinating seedlings in seven species, but future survival was correlated with time of germination in only four species. Seedling survival was very low in the shaded understory; therefore, the consequences of differences in timing of germination could not be examined. Factors influencing the among and within year variation in seed germination are discussed.
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
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Literature cited
Angevine, M.W. and B.F. Chabot. 1979. Seed germination syndromes in higher plants. In: Topics in Plant Population Biology (eds. O.T. Solbrig, S. Jain, G.B. Johnson, and P.H. Raven), pp. 188–206. Columbia University Press, New York.
Augspurger, C.K. 1979. Irregular rain cues and the germination and seedling survival of a Panamanian shrub (Hybanthus prunifolius). Oecologia (Bed.) 44:53–59.
Croat, T.B. 1978. Flora of Barro Colorado Island. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California.
Dietrich, W.E., D.M. Windsor and T. Dunne. 1982. Geology, climate and hydrology of Barro Colorado Island. In: The Ecology of a Tropical Forest: Seasonal Rhythms and Longterm Changes (eds. E.G. Leigh, A.S. Rand and D.M. Windsor), pp. 21–46. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Foster, R.B. and N.V.L. Brokaw. 1982. Structure and history of the vegetation of Barro Colorado Island. In: The Ecology of a Tropical Forest: Seasonal Rhythms and Long-term Changes (eds. E.G. Leigh, A.S. Rand and D.M. Windsor), pp. 67–81. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Garwood, N.C. 1979. Seed germination in a seasonal tropical forest in Panama. Dissertation. University of Chicago, Chicago, IL.
Garwood, N.C. 1983. Seed germination in a seasonal tropical forest in Panama: a community study. Ecological Monographs 53: 159–181.
Heydecker, W. Editor. 1973. Seed Ecology. Proceedings of the 19th Easter School in Agricultural Science, University of Nottingham. Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, Pennsylvania.
Janzen, D.H. 1983. Dispersal of seeds by vertebrate guts. In: Coevolution (eds. DJ. Futuyma and M. Slatkin), pp. 232–262. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts.
Leigh, E.G., A.S. Rand and D.M. Windsor. Editors. 1982. The Ecology of a Tropical Forest: Seasonal Rhythms and Longterm Changes. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Mayer, A.M. and A. Poljakoff-Mayber. 1975. The Germination of Seeds. Second Edition. Pergamon Press, Oxford, England.
Rand, A.S. and W.M. Rand. 1982. Variation in rainfall on Barro Colorado Island. In: The Ecology of a Tropical Forest: Seasonal Rhythms and Long-term Changes (eds. E.G. Leigh, A.S. Rand and D.M. Windsor), pp. 47–59. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Sokal, R.R. and F.J. Rohlf. 1981. Biometry. Second Edition. Freeman, San Francisco, California.
Vazquez-Yanes, C. and A. Orozco Segovia. 1984. Ecophysiology of seed germination in the tropical humid forests of the world: a review. In: Physiological Ecology of Plants of the Wet Tropics (eds. E. Medina, H.A. Mooney and C. Vazquez-Yanes), pp. 37–50. Dr. W. Junk Publishers, The Hague.
Wilkinson, L. 1984. SYSTAT. Systat, Inc., Evanston, IL.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1986 Dr W. Junk Publishers, Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Garwood, N.C. (1986). Constraints on the timing of seed germination in a tropical forest. In: Estrada, A., Fleming, T.H. (eds) Frugivores and seed dispersal. Tasks for vegetation science, vol 15. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4812-9_30
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4812-9_30
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-010-8633-2
Online ISBN: 978-94-009-4812-9
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive