Fire as a Selective Agent for both Serotiny and Nonserotiny Over Space and Time

Lamont, Byron B.; Pausas, Juli G.; He, Tianhua; Witkowski, E.T.F.; Hanley, Mick E.

doi:10.1080/07352689.2020.1768465

Cited by 68 publications

(86 citation statements)

References 134 publications

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“…Such a procedure only deals with the rate of opening that will have a quite different genetic basis than say seed longevity. This reminds us that serotiny has numerous integrated components each under separate genetic control (Lamont et al, 2020). Thus, there is a case for using the level of serotiny based on cone/fruit opening separately from seed viability in heritability studies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…As for 5 (100/b) except viability of seeds stored supplements cones/fruits closed Banksia Lamont and Barker (1988), Crawford et al (2011) and Lamont et al (2020) LAMONT restricted (medium) age range is assessed (Figure 1) if such problems exist. Alternatively, where there is interest in such effects, the different age categories need to be assessed independently.…”

Section: Aulaxmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Species may be weakly, moderately or strongly serotinous, storing viable seeds for up to 30 years or more. The relative ‘benefits’ of different levels of serotiny centre around the opportunities for interfire versus post‐fire recruitment, fire frequency and plant longevity (Enright et al., 1998a; Hernández‐Serrano et al., 2013; Lamont et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, and for pines fromHernández-Serrano et al (2013), including their TableS1. Adapted fromLamont, Pausas, He, Witkowski, and Hanley (2020) …”

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confidence: 99%

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Evaluation of seven indices of on‐plant seed storage (serotiny) shows that the linear slope is best

Lamont

2020

Journal of Ecology

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On‐plant storage of seeds (serotiny) is a feature of many fire‐prone dominant trees and shrubs in North America, Mediterranean Basin, South Africa and Australia. Understanding how it has responded to the prevailing fire regime and recruitment/growing conditions, and its genetic basis and adaptive significance, depends on the use of an accurate index of the level of serotiny. Seven indices, three measuring ‘apparent’ serotiny and four measuring ‘inherent’ serotiny, were evaluated for their ability to reflect the extent to which seeds are stored in the crown for later release. The most widely used indices ignore the temporal aspects of seed attrition and are vulnerable to plant size, age, fecundity and local growing‐condition effects, while age of the oldest crop year with closed cones/fruits depends on the accuracy of a single observation. Presence/absence of serotiny at the individual tree level ignores the effect of plant age on the expression of serotiny. The slope of the line through the percentage of cones/fruits that still retain their seeds in progressively older crop years, the ‘degree of serotiny’ (100/slope), is shown to be unbiased by annual fluctuations in crop size, differences in plant age or variations in local growing conditions. It also corresponds to a probability, and thus more accurate, estimate of age of the oldest unopened structures. Since seeds have a lower % viability than the % of supporting cones/fruits closed at any age, there is a case for applying the slope method to the fraction of viable seeds retained to arrive at an estimate of the age of the oldest viable seeds on the plant, as the ultimate index of serotiny. If the level of serotiny is to be related to the fire regime, then care needs to be taken to use records over a sufficiently long time to have had an evolutionary impact, unless this is being used against controls to examine a genetic response to the new fire regime. Synthesis. Among seven currently available indices of serotiny, the slope measure is shown to be the most accurate for studies that relate the level of serotiny to the fire regime and habitat conditions under which the species evolved, as well as for examining its heritability. Attention needs to shift from just recording cones/fruits closed to include the viability of seeds that remain as a better basis for understanding the role of serotiny in post‐fire recruitment.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Aulaxmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, and for pines fromHernández-Serrano et al (2013), including their TableS1. Adapted fromLamont, Pausas, He, Witkowski, and Hanley (2020) …”

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confidence: 99%

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Evaluation of seven indices of on‐plant seed storage (serotiny) shows that the linear slope is best

Lamont

2020

Journal of Ecology

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“…seed retention for < 10 years, is an effective strategy when the interval between two fires exceeds the plant lifespan and there is stochastic variability in fire occurrence. On the other hand, when fires are predictable, the opposite strategies 'strong' serotiny (retention > 10 years) and nonserotiny become advantageous specialist adaptations (Lamont et al 2020).…”

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confidence: 99%

Ecological, (epi)genetic and physiological aspects of bet-hedging in angiosperms

2021

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Key message Bet-hedging is a complex evolutionary strategy involving morphological, eco-physiological, (epi)genetic and population dynamics aspects. We review these aspects in flowering plants and propose further research needed for this topic. Bet-hedging is an evolutionary strategy that reduces the temporal variance in fitness at the expense of a lowered arithmetic mean fitness. It has evolved in organisms subjected to variable cues from the external environment, be they abiotic or biotic stresses such as irregular rainfall or predation. In flowering plants, bet-hedging is exhibited by hundreds of species and is mainly exerted by reproductive organs, in particular seeds but also embryos and fruits. The main example of bet-hedging in angiosperms is diaspore heteromorphism in which the same individual produces different seed/fruit morphs in terms of morphology, dormancy, eco-physiology and/or tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses in order to ‘hedge its bets’ in unpredictable environments. The objective of this review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the ecological, genetic, epigenetic and physiological aspects involved in shaping bet-hedging strategies, and how these can affect population dynamics. We identify several open research questions about bet-hedging strategies in plants: 1) understanding ecological trade-offs among different traits; 2) producing more comprehensive phylogenetic analyses to understand the diffusion and evolutionary implications of this strategy; 3) clarifying epigenetic mechanisms related to bet-hedging and plant responses to environmental cues; and 4) applying multi-omics approaches to study bet-hedging at different levels of detail. Clarifying those aspects of bet-hedging will deepen our understanding of this fascinating evolutionary strategy.

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Jack pine of all trades: Deciphering intraspecific variability of a key adaptive trait at the rear edge of a widespread fire‐embracing North American conifer

Pelletier

Lafontaine

2023

American J of Botany

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Premise: Understanding mechanisms fostering long-term persistence of marginal populations should provide key insights about species resilience facing climate change. Cone serotiny is a key adaptive trait in Pinus banksiana (jack pine), which shows phenotypic variation according to the fire regime. Compared to range-core populations within the fire-prone boreal forest, low and variable serotiny in rear-edge populations suggest local adaptation to uncommon and unpredictable wildfire regime. We assessed environmental/physiological factors that might modulate intraspecific variation in cone serotiny. Methods: We experimentally subjected closed cones to incrementing temperatures, then tested seed germination to determine whether and how various ecological factors (cone age, branch height, tree size, tree age) are related to cone dehiscence and seed viability in jack pines from rear-edge and range-core populations in eastern Canada. Results: Cones from rear-edge populations dehisce at a lower opening temperature, which increases with cone age. Cones from range-core stands open at a more constant, yet higher temperature. Cones from rear-edge stands take between 13 and 27 years to reach the level of serotiny achieved at the range core. At the rear edge, seed viability is steady (51%), whereas it decreases from 70% to 30% in 20 years at the range core. Conclusions: We inferred the mechanisms of a bet-hedging strategy in rear-edge populations, which ensures steady recruitment during fire-free intervals and successful postfire regeneration. This capacity to cope with infrequent and unpredictable fire regime should increase the resilience of jack pine populations as global changes alter fire dynamics of the boreal forest.

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Fire as a Selective Agent for both Serotiny and Nonserotiny Over Space and Time

Cited by 68 publications

References 134 publications

Evaluation of seven indices of on‐plant seed storage (serotiny) shows that the linear slope is best

Evaluation of seven indices of on‐plant seed storage (serotiny) shows that the linear slope is best

Ecological, (epi)genetic and physiological aspects of bet-hedging in angiosperms

Jack pine of all trades: Deciphering intraspecific variability of a key adaptive trait at the rear edge of a widespread fire‐embracing North American conifer

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