Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species

doi:10.1016/j.pld.2025.02.002

Plant Diversity ›› 2025, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (03): 522-525.DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2025.02.002

• Case Report • Previous Articles Next Articles

Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species

Xiaoyan Hu^a, Jinyu Zhang^a, Bo Wang^a,b,c

a. School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, China;
b. Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecosystem Protection and Restoration (Anhui University), Hefei, Anhui 230601, China;
c. Anhui Shengjin Lake Wetland Ecology National Long-term Scientific Research Base, Dongzhi, Anhui 247230, China

Received:2024-12-05 Revised:2025-02-11 Online:2025-05-21 Published:2025-05-25
Contact: Bo Wang,E-mail:yangblue@ahu.edu.cn
Supported by:
This study was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (32171533 and 31971444), and Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2208085J28).

Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species

Xiaoyan Hu^a, Jinyu Zhang^a, Bo Wang^a,b,c

a. School of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230601, China;
b. Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecosystem Protection and Restoration (Anhui University), Hefei, Anhui 230601, China;
c. Anhui Shengjin Lake Wetland Ecology National Long-term Scientific Research Base, Dongzhi, Anhui 247230, China

通讯作者: Bo Wang,E-mail:yangblue@ahu.edu.cn
基金资助:
This study was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China (32171533 and 31971444), and Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (2208085J28).

Abstract

Key words: Fruit type, Intraspecific variation, Seed dispersal, Seed mass, Skewness

关键词: Fruit type, Intraspecific variation, Seed dispersal, Seed mass, Skewness

Xiaoyan Hu, Jinyu Zhang, Bo Wang. Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species[J]. Plant Diversity, 2025, 47(03): 522-525.

Cao, L., Wang, Z., Yan, C., et al., 2016. Differential foraging preferences on seed size by rodents result in higher dispersal success of medium-sized seeds. Ecology 97, 3070-3078.
Carreira, D.C., Dattilo, W., Bruno, D.L., et al., 2020. Small vertebrates are key elements in the frugivory networks of a hyperdiverse tropical forest. Sci. Rep. 10, 10594.
Chen, S.C., Moles, A.T. 2015. A mammoth mouthful? A test of the idea that larger animals ingest larger seeds. Glob. Ecol. Biogeogr. 24, 1269-1280.
Cui, J., Zhang, Y., Guo, J., et al., 2023. Conflicting selection pressures on seed size and germination caused by carnivorous seed dispersers. Integr. Zool. 18, 799-816.
Fricke, E.C., Ordonez, A., Rogers, H.S., et al., 2022. The effects of defaunation on plants’ capacity to track climate change. Science 375, 210-214.
Galetti, M., Guevara, R., Cortes, M.C., et al., 2013. Functional extinction of birds drives rapid evolutionary changes in seed size. Science 340, 1086-1090.
Greene, D.F., Johnson, E.A., 1993. Seed mass and dispersal capacity in wind-dispersed diaspores. Oikos 67, 69-74.
Hendrix S.D., Sun I.F., 1989. Inter-and intraspecific variation in seed mass in seven species of umbellifer. New Phytol. 112, 445-451.
Hovstad, K.A., Borvik, S., Ohlson, M., 2009. Epizoochorous seed dispersal in relation to seed availability-an experiment with a red fox dummy. J. Veg. Sci. 20, 455-464.
Howe, H.F., Smallwood, J., 1982. Ecology of seed dispersal. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 13, 201-228.
Jin, Y., Qian, H., 2019. V. PhyloMaker: an R package that can generate very large phylogenies for vascular plants. Ecography 42, 1353-1359.
Kattge, J., Diaz, S., Lavorel, S., et al., 2011. TRY-a global database of plant traits. Glob. Change Biol. 17, 2905-2935.
Leishman, M.R., Wright, I.J., Moles, A.T., et al., 2000. The evolutionary ecology of seed size. In: M Fenner, ed. Seeds: the ecology of regeneration in plant communities. Wallingford, UK: Cabi Publishing, 31-57.
Moles, A.T., Ackerly, D.D., Webb, C.O., et al., 2005. Factors that shape seed mass evolution. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 102, 10540-10544.
Muller-Landau, H.C., 2010. The tolerance-fecundity trade-off and the maintenance of diversity in seed size. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 107, 4242-4247.
Munoz, A., Bonal, R., 2008. Are you strong enough to carry that seed? Seed size/body size ratios influence seed choices by rodents. Anim. Behav. 76, 709-715.
Narbona, E., Arista, M., Ortiz, P.L., 2005. Explosive seed dispersal in two perennial Mediterranean Euphorbia species (Euphorbiaceae). Am. J. Bot. 92, 510-516.
Ong, L., McConkey, K.R., Campos-Arceiz, A., 2022. The ability to disperse large seeds, rather than body mass alone, defines the importance of animals in a hyper-diverse seed dispersal network. J. Ecol. 110, 313-326.
R Core Team. 2024. R: a language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria.
Rogers, H.S., Donoso, I., Traveset, A., et al., 2021. Cascading impacts of seed disperser loss on plant communities and ecosystems. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst. 52, 641-666.
Schmitt, J., 1983. Individual flowering phenology, plant size, and reproductive success in Linanthus androsaceus, a California annual. Oecologia 59, 135-140.
Shimada, T., Takahashi, A., Shibata, M., et al., 2015. Effects of within-plant variability in seed weight and tannin content on foraging behaviour of seed consumers. Funct. Ecol. 29, 1513-1521.
Thomson, F.J., Moles, A.T., Auld, T.D., et al., 2011. Seed dispersal distance is more strongly correlated with plant height than with seed mass. J. Ecol. 99, 1299-1307.
Tilman, D., 1994. Competition and biodiversity in spatially structured habitats. Ecology 75, 2-16.
Wang, B., Ives, A.R., 2017. Tree-to-tree variation in seed size and its consequences for seed dispersal versus predation by rodents. Oecologia 183, 751-762.
Wang, G., Ives, A.R., Zhu, H., et al., 2022. Phylogenetic conservatism explains why plants are more likely to produce fleshy fruits in the tropics. Ecology 103, e03555.
Willis, S.G., Hulme, P.E., 2004. Environmental severity and variation in the reproductive traits of Impatiens glandulifera. Funct. Ecol. 18, 887-898.
Wotton, D.M., Kelly, D., 2012. Do larger frugivores move seeds further? Body size, seed dispersal distance, and a case study of a large, sedentary pigeon. J. Biogeogr. 39, 1973-1983.
Wright S.J., Muller-Landau H.C., Condit R., et al., 2003. Gap-dependent recruitment, realized vital rates, and size distributions of tropical trees. Ecology 84, 3174-3185.
Wu, L.M., Chen, S.C., Quan, R.C., et al., 2024. Disentangling the relative contributions of factors determining seed physical defence: A global-scale data synthesis. Funct. Ecol. 38, 1146-1155.
Zhang, J., Qian, H., 2024. U.Taxonstand: An R package for standardizing scientific names of plants and animals. Plant Divers. 45, 1-5.
Zhang, J., Qian, H., Wang, X., 2025. An online version and some updates of R package U.Taxonstand for standardizing scientific names in plant and animal species. Plant Diversity 47, 166-168.
Zhang, J., Wang, B., 2024. Intraspecific variation in seed size is mediated by seed dispersal modes and animal dispersers-evidence from a global-scale dataset. New Phytol. 241, 461-470.

[1]	Min-Fei Jin, Xiang-Hai Cai, Gao Chen. Seed dispersal by deception: A game between mimetic seeds and their bird dispersers [J]. Plant Diversity, 2025, 47(02): 169-177.
[2]	Rong Ma, Qi Xu, Yongqian Gao, Deli Peng, Hang Sun, Bo Song. Patterns and drivers of plant sexual systems in the dry-hot valley region of southwestern China [J]. Plant Diversity, 2024, 46(02): 158-168.
[3]	Shuang Tie, Yong-Deng He, Amparo Lázaro, David W. Inouye, You-Hao Guo, Chun-Feng Yang. Floral trait variation across individual plants within a population enhances defense capability to nectar robbing [J]. Plant Diversity, 2023, 45(03): 315-325.
[4]	Yongquan Ren, Chengling Huang, Jiaming Zhang, Yongpeng Ma, Xiaoling Tian. Dispersal and germination of winged seeds of Brandisia hancei, a shrub in karst regions of China [J]. Plant Diversity, 2021, 43(03): 234-238.
[5]	Wumei Xu, Kyle W. Tomlinson, Jie Li. Strong intraspecific trait variation in a tropical dominant tree species along an elevational gradient [J]. Plant Diversity, 2020, 42(01): 1-6.
[6]	Zhi-Li Zhou, Yuan-Wen Duan, Yan Luo, Yong-Ping Yang, Zhi-Qiang Zhang. Cell number explains the intraspecific spur-length variation in an Aquilegia species [J]. Plant Diversity, 2019, 41(05): 307-314.
[7]	ysajan Abdusalam, Qing Jun Li. Elevation-related variation in the population characteristics of distylous Primula nivalis affects female fitness and inbreeding depression [J]. Plant Diversity, 2019, 41(04): 250-257.
[8]	Yahuang Luo, Jie Liu, Shaolin Tan, Marc W. Cadotte, Kun Xu, Lianming Gao, Dezhu Li. Trait variation and functional diversity maintenance of understory herbaceous species coexisting along an elevational gradient in Yulong Mountain, Southwest China [J]. Plant Diversity, 2016, 38(06): 303-311.
[9]	Ye Chen, Gao Chen, Jing Yang, Weibang Sun. Reproductive biology of Magnolia sinica (Magnoliaecea), a threatened species with extremely small populations in Yunnan, China [J]. Plant Diversity, 2016, 38(05): 253-258.
[10]	Gao Chen, Changqiu Liu, Weibang Sun. Pollination and seed dispersal of Aquilaria sinensis (Lour.) Gilg (Thymelaeaceae): An economic plant species with extremely small populations in China [J]. Plant Diversity, 2016, 38(05): 227-232.
[11]	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.
[12]	WANG Dong-Chao-, WU Jie-, YANG Yong-Hong-, CHEN Jia-Hui-, YANG Yong-Ping. Intraspecific Variation of Leaf Epidermal Cuticle Waxes under Scanning Electronic Microscope：Stipa purpurea and Oxytropis microphylla from the QinghaiTibet Plateau [J]. Plant Diversity, 2013, 35(3): 348-354.
[13]	CONRAN John G, LI Jie. A Preliminary Report of Small Mammal Frugivory on Balanophora harlandii (Balanophoraceae) [J]. Plant Diversity, 2012, 34(5): 466-470.
[14]	TAO Yong , CHEN Fang , WAN Kai-Yuan , LI Jian-Qiang, MENG Ai-Ping , CHEN Shu-Sen. Study on Structural Traits of Seed of Myricaria laxiflora (Tamaricaceae) [J]. Plant Diversity, 2008, 30(02): 190-194.

Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species

Seed size distributions of fleshy-fruited species are more right-skewed compared to that of dry-fruited species

PDF (PC)

Knowledge

Abstract

Cite this article

share this article

References

Related Articles 14

Recommended Articles

Metrics

Comments