論文

査読有り
2013年1月

Seasonal fruiting and seed dispersal by the brown lemur in a tropical dry forest, North-Western Madagascar

Journal of Tropical Ecology
  • Hiroki Sato

29
1
開始ページ
61
終了ページ
69
記述言語
英語
掲載種別
研究論文(学術雑誌)
DOI
10.1017/S0266467413000011

Community-wide seasonal fruiting and seed dispersal by the common brown lemur (Eulemur fulvus fulvus) was investigated in a tropical dry forest, north-western Madagascar. The brown lemur is the sole disperser of large seeds &gt
10 mm in diameter. Considering the limited assemblage of dispersers, large-seeded plants should display distinctive fruiting patterns to acquire dispersers. To compare fruiting patterns and seed dispersal by the brown lemur between small-seeded and large-seeded plants, fruiting conditions for 432 trees on a transect, feeding activity over 1212 h of observation, and the composition of 1126 dung samples were recorded for 1 y. Seeds of a total of 52 species were identified through both observations and faecal analysis. As rainfall increased, larger numbers of species and individuals of small-seeded plants fruited. Among the 52 species, the brown lemur dispersed 29 and 13 species with small and large seeds, respectively, during the rainy season. High moisture levels probably favoured seed germination and seedling establishment in various species. During the dry season, although small-seeded species rarely fruited, a few large-seeded species, particularly Vitex beraviensis, formed a long-term fruiting peak and provided essential food resources for the brown lemur. Because seeds of these large-seeded plants were frequently dispersed by the brown lemur, dry-season fruiting seemed to be favourable to avoid competition for dispersers with other plant species. © 2012 Cambridge University Press.

リンク情報
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266467413000011
ID情報
  • DOI : 10.1017/S0266467413000011
  • ISSN : 0266-4674
  • ISSN : 1469-7831
  • SCOPUS ID : 84873888222

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