Endozoochory of Large Bryophyte Fragments by Waterbirds

Wilkinson, David M.; Lovas‐Kiss, Ádám; Callaghan, Des A.; Green, Andy J.

doi:10.7872/cryb/v38.iss2.2017.223

Cited by 34 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…So far, more information is available for migratory dabbling ducks, which disperse hundreds of angiosperm species within Europe, representing a broad range of life-histories and habitat types (Soons et al 2016, Lovas-Kiss et al 2018a). Like ducks, shorebirds are also likely to disperse mosses and other non-flowering plants (Wilkinson et al 2017).…”

Section: Dispersal Syndromes Fail To Predict Endozoochorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Shorebirds as important vectors for plant dispersal in Europe

et al. 2019

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Shorebirds (Charadriiformes) undergo rapid migrations with potential for long‐distance dispersal (LDD) of plants. We studied the frequency of endozoochory by shorebirds in different parts of Europe covering a broad latitudinal range and different seasons. We assessed whether plants dispersed conformed to morphological dispersal syndromes. A total of 409 excreta samples (271 faeces and 138 pellets) were collected from redshank Tringa totanus, black‐winged stilt Himantopus himantopus, pied avocet Recurvirostra avosetta, northern lapwing Vanellus vanellus, Eurasian curlew Numenius arquata and black‐tailed godwit Limosa limosa in south‐west Spain, north‐west England, southern Ireland and Iceland in 2005 and 2016, and intact seeds were extracted and identified. Godwits were sampled just before or after migratory movements between England and Iceland. The germinability of seeds was tested. Intact diaspores were recovered from all bird species and study areas, and were present in 13% of samples overall. Thirteen plant families were represented, including Charophyceae and 26 angiosperm taxa. Only four species had an ‘endozoochory syndrome’. Four alien species were recorded. Ellenberg values classified three species as aquatic and 20 as terrestrial. Overall, 89% of seeds were from terrestrial plants, and 11% from aquatic plants. Average seed length was higher in redshank pellets than in their faeces. Six species were germinated, none of which had an endozoochory syndrome. Seeds were recorded during spring and autumn migration. Plant species recorded have broad latitudinal ranges consistent with LDD via shorebirds. Crucially, morphological syndromes do not adequately predict LDD potential, and more empirical work is required to identify which plants are dispersed by shorebirds. Incorporating endozoochory by shorebirds and other migratory waterbirds into plant distribution models would allow us to better understand the natural processes that facilitated colonization of oceanic islands, or to improve predictions of how plants will respond to climate change, or how alien species spread.

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Section: Dispersal Syndromes Fail To Predict Endozoochorymentioning

confidence: 99%

Shorebirds as important vectors for plant dispersal in Europe

et al. 2019

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“…Nevertheless, only a handful of studies have considered which plants are actually dispersed in the field via gut passage by widespread waterfowl species such as mallards Anas platyrhynchos (e.g. Charalambidou & Santamaría, ; Green, Frisch, Michot, Allain, & Barrow, ; Wilkinson, Lovas‐Kiss, Callaghan, & Green, ). Since morphological syndromes do not allow us to predict a priori which plants are dispersed (Soons et al., ), there is an urgent need for extensive field studies, so that we can begin to characterize the networks of dispersal interactions between waterbirds and plants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even the broad taxonomic diversity of plants dispersed by waterfowl is currently unclear (Green et al., ). It has only recently been demonstrated that waterfowl disperse viable bryophyte fragments by endozoochory (Wilkinson et al., ). Despite long‐standing speculation about the potential of aquatic ferns to disperse via waterbirds (Reynolds, Miranda, & Cumming, ; Ridley, ), this has never been conclusively demonstrated.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Endozoochory of aquatic ferns and angiosperms by mallards in Central Europe

et al. 2018

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Modern literature on plant dispersal by birds focuses mainly on the importance of frugivory and scatter‐hoarding, yet recent studies show that endozoochory by migratory waterbirds is an important mechanism of long‐distance dispersal for a broad range of plants. Nevertheless, there is a lack of empirical field studies that identify the plants dispersed by waterbirds in a comprehensive manner. In particular, so far there are no detailed studies of the level of spatial variation in the plant taxa dispersed by a waterbird vector, and no clear demonstration that aquatic ferns can be dispersed by endozoochory. Consequently, we remain ignorant of the networks of dispersal interactions between granivorous waterbirds and plants. Five sets of faecal samples (total n = 215) were collected from mallards Anas platyrhynchos on autumn migration in the Hevesi‐holm and Balaton regions in Hungary, central Europe. Intact diaspores were extracted, identified and their germinability assessed under standard conditions. The plant communities recorded at different sites were compared with PERMANOVA and other multivariate methods. Macrospores of the floating watermoss Salvinia natans were recorded in 32 samples, and a total of 16 macrospores germinated, providing the first field demonstration of endozoochory of ferns by birds. Of 21 angiosperm taxa recorded (of which eight germinated), 13 were terrestrial species, although the most abundant taxa were aquatic species such as the alkali bulrush Bolboschoenus maritimus and the sago pondweed Potamogeton pectinatus. Two naturalized alien species, the common fig Ficus carica and the hackberry Celtis occidentalis were also recorded. Only four of the taxa had an endozoochory syndrome. The plant taxa dispersed varied at two different spatial scales, with minor but significant differences between samples from sites separated by less than 1 km, and major differences between the two regions separated by c. 220 km. Synthesis. This is a unique study of the spatial variation in plants dispersed by endozoochory by a migratory waterfowl species, with a high taxonomic resolution and the first demonstration of avian endozoochory of ferns. We recorded eight taxa not previously reported as dispersed by mallards, showing how more empirical studies are essential, so we can understand which plants are dispersed by migratory birds. We found evidence that networks of interactions between granivorous waterbird vectors and dispersed plants vary spatially.

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“…The Sp statistics of 0.04 lay in the upper limit of the range reported for species with gravity‐dispersed seeds (0.028 ± 0.016) and is higher than the range reported for species characterized by wind (0.012 ± 0.012) and animal (0.008 ± 0.005)‐dispersed seeds (Vekemans & Hardy, ). Such a poor dispersal capacity does not point to the transportation of diaspores by animals, which has been increasingly documented in bryophyte species from dense forest environments with low wind connectivity (Heinken et al, ; Parsons et al, ; Rudolphi, ; Wilkinson et al, ). The Sp statistics was, in turn, lower than that reported for plant species characterized by selfing (and even more, clonal) mating systems (0.14 ± 0.08), which is consistent with the hypothesis that interspecific gene flow may occur in sympatry.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maintenance of genetic and morphological identity in two siblingSyrrhopodonspecies (Calymperaceae, Bryopsida) despite extensive introgression

Pereira

Ledent

Mardulyn

et al. 2019

J of Sytematics Evolution

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Bryophytes are a group of land plants in which the role of hybridization has long been challenged. Using genotyping by sequencing to circumvent the lack of molecular variation at selected loci previously used for phylogeny and morphology, we determine the level of genetic and morphological divergence and reproductive isolation between the sibling Syrrhopodon annotinus and S. simmondsii (Calymperaceae, Bryopsida) that occur in sympatry but in different habitats in lowland Amazonian rainforests. A clear morphological differentiation and a low (0.06), but significant Fst derived from the analysis of 183 single nucleotide polymorphisms were observed between the two species. Conspecific pairs of individuals consistently exhibited higher average kinship coefficients along a gradient of geographic isolation than interspecific pairs. The weak, but significant genetic divergence observed is consistent with growing evidence that ecological specialization can lead to genetic differentiation among bryophyte species. Nevertheless, the spatial genetic structures of the two species were significantly correlated, as evidenced by the significant slope of the Mantel test based on kinship coefficients between pairs of interspecific individuals and the geographic distance separating them. Interspecific pairs of individuals are thus more closely related when they are geographically closer, suggesting that isolation‐by‐distance is stronger than the interspecific reproductive barrier and pointing to interspecific gene flow. We conclude that interspecific introgression, whose role has long been questioned in bryophytes, may take place even in species wherein sporophyte production is scarce due to dioicy, raising the question as to what mechanisms maintain differentiation despite weak reproductive isolation.

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Endozoochory of Large Bryophyte Fragments by Waterbirds

Cited by 34 publications

References 14 publications

Shorebirds as important vectors for plant dispersal in Europe

Shorebirds as important vectors for plant dispersal in Europe

Endozoochory of aquatic ferns and angiosperms by mallards in Central Europe

Maintenance of genetic and morphological identity in two siblingSyrrhopodonspecies (Calymperaceae, Bryopsida) despite extensive introgression

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