Correlation of Seed Mass with Elevation

Abstract

Abstract:

The correlation between seed mass and elevation is an important and controversial topic in ecology. We examined seed mass and elevation distributions of 2879 seed collections belonging to 853 plant species and 123 families in China, to determine if seed mass was correlated with elevation. Our results showed that, in general, seed mass was negatively correlated with elevation, with magnitude of seed mass and lifeforms decreasing significantly with increasing elevation. However, among all seven magnitude orders of seed mass, 100 was the only one that was negatively correlated with elevation. Moreover, among all seven life forms investigated, only the seed masses of shrubs and creeping herbs were negatively correlated with elevation, while at the species level, only 82% of species showed a significant correlation. Our results indicate that associations between seed mass and elevation in Chinese species are most likely affected by a complex of factors. Thus, variation in seed mass is likely to be affected by both species genetic variation and environment conditions, and this should be borne in mind with regard to agricultural and forestry practices, as well as land management and monitoring of invasive species.

Key words: Seed mass, Magnitude orders, Elevation gradient, Correlation

摘要：

种子重量与海拔的关系是植物生态学中重要而尚存争议的问题。本文对中国123科853种2879份野生植物种子的重量在海拔上的变化特点以及二者之间的相互关系进行了深入研究，结果显示：种子重量总体上与海拔呈负相关，种子重量级别多样性和生活型多样性随海拔上升呈阶梯状下降。但7级种子中，只有100级种子的重量与海拔呈负相关；7种生活型中，只有灌木和匍匐草本的种子重量与海拔呈负相关；在种水平上，只有82%的物种种子重量与海拔存在相关性。本研究揭示了我国种子重量与海拔之间的复杂关系，以及遗传和环境对种子重量的影响，对植物育种、森林管理以及入侵植物的防治具有一定指导意义。

关键词: 种子重量, 级别, 海拔梯度, 相关性

CLC Number:

Q 948

DU Yan, HE Hua-Jie, ZHANG Zhi-Feng, YANG Ya-Juan, LI Lan-Yi, YANG Xiang-Yun. Correlation of Seed Mass with Elevation[J]. Plant Diversity, 2014, 36(01): 109-115.

杜燕, 何华杰, 张志峰, 杨娅娟, 李涟漪, 杨湘云. 种子重量与海拔的相关性分析[J]. Plant Diversity, 2014, 36(01): 109-115.

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