Seed dispersal

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Seed dispersal is the movement or transport of seeds away from the parent plant. Plants have
limited mobility and consequently rely upon a variety of dispersal vectors to transport their
propagules, including both abiotic and biotic vectors. Seeds can be dispersed away from the
parent plant individually or collectively, as well as dispersed in both space and time. The patterns
of seed dispersal are determined in large part by the dispersal mechanism and this has important
implications for the demographic and genetic structure of plant populations, as well as migration
patterns and species interactions. There are five main modes of seed dispersal: gravity, wind,
ballistic, water and by animals. Some plants are serotinous and only disperse their seeds in
response to an environmental stimulus.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Benefits of seed dispersal

• 2 Types of dispersal
o 2.1 Gravity
o 2.2 Wind
o 2.3 Water
o 2.4 Ballistic
o 2.5 Dispersal by animals
o 2.6 Dispersal by humans
• 3 Consequences of seed dispersal
• 4 See also
• 5 Further reading
• 6 References

• 7 External links

[edit] Benefits of seed dispersal

Seed dispersal is likely to have several benefits for plant species. First, seed survival is often
higher away from the parent plant. This higher survival may result from the actions of density-
dependent seed and seedling predators and pathogens, which often target the high concentrations
of seeds beneath adults.[1] Competition with adult plants may also be lower when seeds are
transported away from their parent.

Seed dispersal also allows plants to reach specific habitats that are favorable for survival, a
hypothesis known as directed dispersal. For example, Ocotea endresiana (Lauraceae) is a tree
species from Latin America which is dispersed by several species of birds, including the three-
wattled bellbird. Male bellbirds perch on dead trees in order to attract mates, and often defecate
seeds beneath these perches where the seeds have a high chance of survival because of high light
conditions and escape from fungal pathogens.[2] In the case of fleshy-fruited plants, seed-
dispersal in animal guts (endozoochory) often enhances the amount, the speed, and the
asynchrony of germination, which can have important plant benefits . [3]

Seeds dispersed by ants (myrmecochory) are not only dispersed to short distances but are also
buried underground by the ants. These seeds can thus avoid adverse environmental effects such
as fire or drought, reach nutrient-rich microsites and survive longer than other seeds.[4] These
features are peculiar to myrmecochory, which may thus provide additional benefits not present in
other dispersal modes.

Finally, at another scale, seed dispersal may allow plants to colonize vacant habitats and even
new geographic regions.[5]

[edit] Types of dispersal

[edit] Gravity

Gravity is a simple means of achieving seed dispersal. The effect of gravity on heavier fruits
causes them to fall from the plant when ripe. Fruits exhibiting this type of dispersal include
apples, coconuts and passionfruit and those with harder shells often roll away from the plant to
gain further distance. Gravity dispersal also allows for later transmission by water or animal.[6]

[edit] Wind

Wind dispersal of dandelion seeds

Wind dispersal is one of the more primitive means of dispersal. Wind dispersal can take on one
of two primary forms: seeds can float on the breeze or alternatively, they can flutter to the
ground.[7] The classic examples of these dispersal mechanisms include dandelions, which have a
feathery pappus attached to their seeds and can be dispersed long distances, and maples, which
have winged seeds (samara) and flutter to the ground. An important constraint on wind dispersal
is the need for abundant seed production to maximise the likelihood of a seed landing in a site
suitable for germination. There are also strong evolutionary constraints on this dispersal
mechanism. For instance, Cody and Overton (1996) found that species in the Asteraceae on
islands tended to have reduced dispersal capabilities (i.e., larger seed mass and smaller pappus)
relative to the same species on the mainland.[8] Reliance on wind dispersal is common among
many weedy or ruderal species. Unusual mechanisms of wind dispersal include tumbleweeds.

[edit] Water

Many aquatic (water) and some terrestrial (ground) plant species use hydrochory, or seed
dispersal through water. Seeds can travel for extremely long distances, depending on the specific
mode of water dispersal.

The water lily is an example of such a plant. Water lilies' flowers make a fruit that floats in the
water for a while and then drops down to the bottom to take root on the floor of the pond.[9] The
seeds of palm trees can also be dispersed by water. If they grow near oceans, the seeds can be
transported by ocean currents over long distances, allowing the seeds to be dispersed as far as
other continents. This is the road the palm trees use to move its seeds (coconuts) to their new
home..

Mangrove trees live right in the water. Their seeds fall from the tree and grow roots as soon as
they touch any kind of soil. During low tide, they might fall in soil instead of water and start
growing right where they fell. If the water level is high, however, they can be carried far away
from where they fell. Mangrove trees often make little islands as dirt and other things collect in
their roots, making little bodies of land.[10]

Showing the "bill" and seed dispersal mechanism of Geranium pratense

[edit] Ballistic

Main article: Dehiscence (botany)

Self-dispersal, or autochory, is the physical and often explosive discharge of seeds from the fruit.
The seeds are typically ejected from the fruit by elastic contraction of the fruit tissues and often
the fruits are shaped such that seeds are flung away from the parent plant.[11] While ballistic
dispersal does not often achieve the same distance as animal-dispersed seeds, many ballistic
dispersed seeds also have a form of secondary dispersal.[12] Some common examples of species
employing ballistic dispersal include the aptly named Touch-me-nots (Impatiens spp.,
Balsaminaceae) whose fruits explosively dehisce and squirting cucumbers (Ecballium elaterium,
Cucurbitaceae) that discharge their seeds in a mucilaginous stream of liquid.

Geranium species have a fruit capsule of five cells which end in cups that hold the seed. The
cups are joined to a long beak-like column, and when the fruit is ripe, it springs open casting
away the seeds like a catapult.

[edit] Dispersal by animals

Notice the small hooks on the surface of a bur, this enables attachment to animal fur for
dispersion.

Epizoochory in Bidens tripartita; the seeds have attached to the clothes of a human.

Animals can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of
vertebrate animals (mostly mammals), a process known as epizoochory. Plant species
transported externally by animals can have a variety of adaptations for dispersal, including
adhesive mucus, and a variety of hooks, spines and barbs.[13] A typical example of an
epizoochorous plant is Trifolium angustifolium, a species of Old World clover which adheres to
animal fur by means of stiff hairs covering the seed.[14] Epizoochorous plants tend to be
herbaceous plants, with many representative species in the families Apiaceae and Asteraceae.[13]
However, epizoochory is a relatively rare dispersal syndrome for plants as a whole; the
percentage of plant species with seeds adapted for transport on the outside of animals is
estimated to be below 5%.[13] Nevertheless, epizoochorous transport can be highly effective if
seeds attach to wide-ranging animals. This form of seed dispersal has been implicated in rapid
plant migration and the spread of invasive species.[14]

Seed dispersal via ingestion by vertebrate animals (mostly birds and mammals), or
endozoochory, is the dispersal mechanism for most tree species.[15] Endozoochory is generally a
coevolved mutualistic relationship in which a plant surrounds seeds with an edible, nutritious
fruit as a good food for animals that consume it. Birds and mammals are the most important seed
dispersers, but a wide variety of other animals, including turtles and fish, can transport viable
seeds.[16] The exact percentage of tree species dispersed by endozoochory varies between
habitats, but can range to over 90% in some tropical rainforests.[15] Seed dispersal by animals in
tropical rainforests has received much attention, and this interaction is considered an important
force shaping the ecology and evolution of vertebrate and tree populations.[17] In the tropics, large
animal seed dispersers (such as tapirs, chimpanzees and hornbills) may disperse large seeds with
few other seed dispersal agents. The extinction of these large frugivores from poaching and
habitat loss may have negative effects on the tree populations that depend on them for seed
dispersal.[18]

Seed dispersal by ants (myrmecochory) is a dispersal mechanism of many shrubs of the southern
hemisphere or understorey herbs of the northern hemisphere.[4] Seeds of myrmecochorous plants
have a lipid-rich attachment called the elaiosome, which attracts ants. Ants carry such seeds into
their colonies, feed the elaiosome to their larvae and discard the otherwise intact seed in an
underground chamber.[19] Myrmecochory is thus a coevolved mutualistic relationship between
plants and seed-disperser ants. Myrmecochory has independently evolved at least 100 times in
flowering plants and is estimated to be present in at least 11 000 species, but likely up to 23 000
or 9% of all species of flowering plants.[4] Myrmecochorous plants are most frequent in the
fynbos vegetation of the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa, the kwongan vegetation and
other dry habitat types of Australia, dry forests and grasslands of the Mediterranean region and
northern temperate forests of western Eurasia and eastern North America, where up to 30-40% of
understorey herbs are myrmecochorous.[4]

Seed predators, which include many rodents (such as squirrels) and some birds (such as jays)
may also disperse seeds by hoarding the seeds in hidden caches.[20] The seeds in caches are
usually well-protected from other seed predators and if left uneaten will grow into new plants.
Finally, seeds may be secondarily dispersed from seeds deposited by primary animal dispersers.
For example, dung beetles are known to disperse seeds from clumps of feces in the process of
collecting dung to feed their larvae.[21]

[edit] Dispersal by humans

Dispersal by humans used to be seen as a form of dispersal by animals. Recent research points
out that human dispersers differ from animal dispersers by a much higher mobility based on the
technical means of human transport.[22] Dispersal by humans on the one hand may act on large
geographical scales and lead to invasive species. On the other hand dispersal by humans also acts
on smaller, regional scales and drive the dynamics of existing biological populations. Humans
may disperse seeds by many various means and some surprisingly high distances have been
repeatedly measured. Examples are: dispersal on human clothes (up to 250m)[23], on shoes (up to
5km)[22] or by cars (regularly ~ 250m, singles cases > 100km).[24]

[edit] Consequences of seed dispersal

Seed dispersal has many consequences for the ecology and evolution of plants. Dispersal is
necessary for species migrations, and in recent times dispersal ability is an important factor in
whether or not a species transported to a new habitat by humans will become an invasive species.
[25]
Dispersal is also predicted to play a major role in the origin and maintenance of species
diversity. For example, myrmecochory increased the rate of diversification more than twofold in
plant groups in which it has evolved because myrmecochorous lineages contain more than twice
as many species as their non-myrmecochorous sister groups.[26] Dispersal of seeds away from the
parent organism has a central role in two major theories for how biodiversity is maintained in
natural ecosystems, the Janzen-Connell hypothesis and recruitment limitation.[1] Seed dispersal is
essential in allowing forest migration.

Seed Dispersal

How Plants Spread

Before they can grow into new plants, seeds need to leave the seed pod. If all the seeds a plant produced
landed just underneath the parent plant, they would be too crowded, and the established large plant might
not leave them enough light or water for them all to develop properly. When you plant seeds too thickly in
a pot, you can see that they grow tall and leggy, and each plant is weak and spindly. The various
methods of seed dispersal are designed to ensure that as many seeds as possible have a good chance of
growing up to produce seeds of their own.

Sometimes, the pod or fruit containing the seeds is carried away from the parent plant; sometimes,
individual seeds are spread to a new location. The size and shape of the seedpod or the seeds influences
how they are dispersed. The main methods plants use to disperse their seeds to places with better
growing conditions than directly under the parent plant include gravity, animals, force, wind and water.
Often, a plant will spread its seeds by a combination of these methods. For instance, a fruit falling to the
ground by gravity might then be carried away by animals, or a seed blown by the wind might land in water
and be transported somewhere else before germinating.

On some plants native to Australia and South Africa, the seedpods may need the heat of the natural bush
fires occurring in these areas to open and release their seeds, which are then dispersed by other means.

For more information and examples of different methods of seed dispersal, click the appropriate picture
below:

Gravity Animals Force Wind Water

Seed dispersal
Published: March 31, 2009, 3:37 pm
Edited: March 31, 2009, 3:37 pm

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Content Source: Wikipedia

This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor: Cutler Cleveland

Seed dispersal is the movement or transport of seeds away from the parent plant. Plants have
limited mobility and consequently rely upon a variety of dispersal vectors to transport their
propagules, including both abiotic and biotic vectors. Seeds can be dispersed away from the
parent plant individually or collectively, as well as dispersed in both space and time. The
patterns of seed dispersal are determined in large part by the dispersal mechanism and this has
important implications for the demographic and genetic structure of plant populations, as well as
migration patterns and species interactions. There are five main modes of seed dispersal:
gravity, wind, ballistic, water and by animals.

Table of Contents
1 Benefits of seed dispersal

2 Types of Dispersal

2.1 Gravity

2.2 Wind

2.3 Ballistic

2.4 Water

2.5 Dispersal by animals

3 Consequences of seed dispersal

4 References
5 Further Reading

Benefits of seed dispersal

Seed dispersal is likely to have several benefits for plant species. First, seed survival is often
(but not always) higher away from the parent plant. This higher survival may result from the
actions of density-dependent seed predators and pathogens which often target the high
concentrations of seeds beneath adults[1]. Competition (biology) with adult plants may also be
lower when seeds are transported away from their parent. Seed dispersal also allows plants to
reach specific habitats that are favorable for survival, a hypothesis known as directed dispersal.
For example, Ocotea endresiana (Lauraceae) is a tree species from Latin America which is
dispersed by several species of birds, including the three-wattled bellbird. Male bellbirds perch
on dead trees in order to attract mates, and often defecate seeds beneath these perches where the
seeds have a high chance of survival because of high light conditions and escape from fungal
pathogens[2]. Finally, seed dispersal may allow plants to colonize new habitats and geographic
regions[3].

Types of Dispersal
Gravity

The simplest form of seed dispersal utilizes gravity. In this scenario, seeds drop from the parent
plant and are typically not dispersed very far. Species with gravity- dispersed seeds typically
lack obvious rewards (i.e., fleshy fruit) or extra structures (i.e., winged seeds) [4]. One example of
a gravity-dispersed seed is European Beech (Fagus sylvatica, Fagaceae), although the seeds are
also dispersed by scatter-hoarding rodents[5]. Some species rely upon gravity for primary
dispersal, but following this initial dispersal event, they are further dispersed by another vector
(secondary dispersal).

Wind

Wind dispersal, or anemochory, is one of the more primitive means of dispersal. Wind dispersal
can take on one of two primary forms: seeds can float on the breeze or alternatively, they can
flutter to the ground[6]. The classic examples of these dispersal mechanisms include dandelions
(Taraxacum spp., Asteraceae), which have a feathery pappus attached to their seeds and can be
dispersed long distances, and maples (Acer spp., Sapindaceae), which have winged seeds and
flutter to the ground. An important constraint on wind dispersal is the need for abundant seed
production to maximize the likelihood of a seed landing in a site suitable for germination. There
are also strong evolutionary constraints on this dispersal mechanism. For instance, Cody and
Overton (1996) found that species in the Asteraceae on islands tended to have reduced dispersal
capabilities (i.e., larger seed mass and smaller pappus) relative to the same species on the
mainland[7]. Reliance upon wind dispersal is common among many weedy or ruderal species.

Ballistic
Ballistic seed dispersal, or autochory, is the physical and often explosive discharge of seeds from
the fruit. The seeds are typically ejected from the fruit by elastic contraction of the fruit tissues
and often the fruits are shaped such that seeds are flung away from the parent plant [8]. While
ballistic dispersal does not often achieve the same distance as animal-dispersed seeds, many
ballistic dispersed seeds also have a form of secondary dispersal[9]. Some common examples of
species employing ballistic dispersal include the aptly named Touch-me-nots (Impatiens spp.,
Balsaminaceae) whose fruits explosively dehisce and squirting cucumbers (Ecballium elaterium,
Cucurbitaceae) that discharge their seeds in a mucilaginous stream of liquid.

Water

Many aquatic and some terrestrial plant species utilize hydrochory, or seed dispersal through
water. Seeds can travel for extremely long distances, depending on the specific mode of water
dispersal. For instance, coconuts (Cocos nucifera, Aceraceae) can travel up to thousands of
kilometers on the ocean before settling on land and germinating. Mangrove species (Rhizophora
spp., Rhizophoraceae) all utilize water to disperse their propagules, although mangroves display
vivipary (the seed germinates prior to detachment from the parent plant). In general, water
dispersal has been identified as the principal dispersal agent for freshly deposited seeds (primary
dispersal) and remobilizing previously dispersed seeds (secondary dispersal)[10]. An interesting
case of secondary dispersal involves the invasive species ''Ailanthus altissima'' (Simaroubaceae),
which is typically wind-dispersed. As ''A. altissima'' expands its range, however, its dispersal
and germination is being enhanced by water transport[11].

Dispersal by animals

Animals can disperse plant seeds in several ways. First, seeds can be transported on the outside
of animals, a process known as epizoochory. Plant species transported externally by animals can
have a variety of adaptations for dispersal, including adhesive mucus, and a variety of hooks
spines and barbs[12]. A typical example of an epizoochorous plant is Trifolium angustifolium, a
species of Old World clover which adheres to animal fur by means of stiff hairs covering the
seed[13]. Epizoochorous plants tend to be herbaceous plants, with many representative species in
the families Apiaceae and Asteraceae [12]. Nevertheless, epizoochorous transport can be highly
effective if seeds attach to wide-ranging animals. This form of seed dispersal has been implicated
in rapid plant migration and the spread of invasive species[13].

Seed dispersal via ingestion by animals, or endozoochory, is the dispersal mechanism for most
tree species [14]. Endozoochory is generally a coevolved mutualistic relationship in which a plant
surrounds seeds with an edible, nutritious fruit as a reward to frugivorous animals that consume
it. Birds and mammals are the most important seed dispersers, but a wide variety of other
animals, including turtles and fish, can transport viable seeds[15]. The exact percentage of tree
species dispersed by endozoochory varies between habitats, but can range to over 90% in some
tropical rainforests [14]. Seed dispersal by animals in tropical rainforests has received much
attention, and this interaction is considered an important force shaping the ecology and evolution
of vertebrate and tree populations[16]. In the tropics, large animal seed dispersers (such as tapirs,
chimpanzees and hornbills) may disperse large seeds with few other seed dispersal agents. The
extinction of these large frugivores from poaching and habitat loss may have negative effects on
the tree populations that depend on them for seed dispersal[17].

Seed predators, which include many rodents (such as squirrels) and some birds (such as jays)
may also disperse seeds by hoarding the seeds in hidden caches[18]. The seeds in caches are
usually well-protected from other seed predators and if left uneaten
What does the
will grow into new plants. Finally, seeds may be secondarily
dispersed from seeds deposited by primary animal dispersers. For word "dispersal"
example, dung beetles are known to disperse seeds from clumps of mean?
[19]
feces in the process of collecting dung to feed their larvae . Dispersal means
scattering or
Consequences of seed dispersal distribution of
something.
Seed dispersal has many consequences for the ecology and evolution
of plants. Dispersal is necessary for species migrations, and in recent What is a fruit?
times dispersal ability is an important factor in whether or not a
Fruit is the part of
species transported to a new habitat by humans will become an
invasive species[20]. Dispersal is also predicted to play a major role in the plant that
the maintenance of species diversity. Dispersal of seeds away from protects seeds as
the parent organism has a central role in two major theories for how they grow. Fruits
biodiversity is maintained in natural ecosystems, the Janzen-Connell can be fleshy and
hypothesis and recruitment limitation [1]. juicy—like apples
and oranges—or
dry like nuts or
peas.
Seed Dispersal
People plant some seeds, but most plants don't rely on
people. Plants rely on animals and wind and water to
help scatter their seeds.

Animal dispersal

Animals disperse seeds in several

ways. First, some plants, like the Teachers—
burr at left, have barbs or other download lesson
structures that get tangled in plans to use in
animal fur or feathers, and are your classroom!
then carried to
new sites. Other plants produce their
seeds inside fleshy fruits that then get
eaten be an animal. The fruit is
digested by the animal, but the seeds pass through the digestive tract, and
are dropped in other locations. Some animals bury seeds, like squirrels with
acorns, to save for later, but may not return to get the seed. It can grow
into a new plant.

Wind dispersal

The kind of seeds which are often wind dispersed are smaller seeds that
have wings or other hair-like or feather-like structures. Plants that produce
wind blown seeds, like the dandelion shown in the video clip below, often
produce lots of seeds to ensure that some of the seeds are blown to areas
where the seeds can germinate.

Floating in water

Many aquatic plants and plants that live near water have
seeds that can float, and are carried by water. Plants living
along streams and rivers have seeds that float downstream,
and therefore become germinate at new sites. The size of
the seed is not a factor in determining whether or not a seed
can float. Some very large seeds, like coconuts, can float. Some small
seeds also float.

And some plants disperse their seeds in other ways...

Some plants have unique ways to disperse their seeds. Several kinds of
plants "shoot" seeds out of pods, as in the video clip below. The seeds can
travel quite a few feet from the plant this way.