期刊
SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
卷 92, 期 -, 页码 1-6出版社
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.sajb.2013.12.007
关键词
Niche conservatism; Seed germination; Subtropical thicket
资金
- Department of Environment Affairs, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
- Claude Leon Foundation
- National Research Foundation (NRF)
Seedlings of woody canopy species in the xeric forms of subtropical thicket are rare. Here we argue that the low number of seedlings is a consequence of niche conservatism where thicket species have retained germination and seedling establishment requirements associated with their ancestral origins in the warm, wet forests of the early Cenozoic. We test this hypothesis by evaluating the germination success of 12 arid and valley thicket species - representing a range of growth forms and dispersal modes - using a factorial germination experiment that sought to simulate permanently moist and deeply-shaded conditions (i.e. a wet forest environment) and sparsely-shaded and intermittently dry conditions (i.e. open microsites during the rainy season) in contemporary thicket environments. Germination success was significantly higher under the more mesic soil-moisture conditions for all species except Pappea capensis and Jatropha capensis. These results suggest that germination of thicket species requires long periods of high soil moisture supporting the niche conservatism hypothesis. (c) 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of SAAB.
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