Modeling seed dispersal of black cherry, an invasive forest tree: how microsatellites may help?

Abstract

We used empirical models and three dispersal functions (Weibull, lognormal and 2Dt) to model seed distributions derived from the black cherry (Prunus serotina Ehrh.) understorey of a pine-dominated stand. Two different approaches were used to disentangle the overlapping seed shadows: the traditional inverse modeling approach and the genetic approach that uses microsatellite markers to assign a dispersed seed to its maternal parent. The distinction was made between the seeds passively dispersed by gravity (fruits with mesocarp) and those dispersed by birds (fruits without mesocarp). Our main objectives were to compare the three dispersal functions and assess the differences between the two approaches used. The functions performed equally well, but the lognormal function often showed a better data correlation. The best dispersal curves obtained by both traditional and genetic approaches were quite similar for the seeds dispersed by gravity, and 95% of these seeds were predicted to fall 5 and 3 m away from the parent tree for the traditional and genetic approaches, respectively. Differences were more important for the seeds dispersed by birds. The traditional approach predicted a lower number of seeds near the parent plant and a higher dispersal distance. Microsatellites provided accurate information on individual dispersal events and led to a better insight into the dispersal process.

Prunus serotina unleashed: invader dominance after 70 years of forest development

“…is a semi shade-tolerant opportunistic gap-phase species (Auclair and Cottam 1971) that grows on a wide variety of soils (Marquis 1990;Zerbe and Wirth 2006). Fruit production is high, even in forest understories (Pairon et al 2006b), and variable between years (Starfinger 1990). Fruit production is strongly correlated with tree size in open landscapes (Deckers et al 2008), but not in forest understories (Pairon et al 2006b).…”

Interaction between invasive and potentially invasive shrub species does not influence relationships between their ecological success and distance from propagule sources

“…The relationship between two alien species tested here could not be interpreted without taking into account other factors limiting their dispersal distance, e.g., distance from the propagule source (Deckers et al 2005(Deckers et al , 2008Pairon et al 2006). If C. alternifolia density was positively correlated with P. serotina density, it could be interpreted as the occurrence of one alien species facilitating secondary invasion, following the invasional meltdown concept (Simberloff and Von Holle 1999;Simberloff 2006).…”

Potenziale und Risiken eingeführter Baumarten

“…Eine Vollmast gibt es alle ein bis zwei Jahre. Die meisten Samen werden im Alter zwischen 30 und 100 Jahren gebildet (Hough 1965) und fallen im Umkreis von 0 bis 5 m auf den Boden (Pairon et al 2006). Die Samenverbreitung erfolgt endozoisch, denn die Kirschen sind eine wichtige Nahrungsgrundlage für zahlreiche Vögel und Säugetiere.…”