Abstract
Comparisons are made between the geographical distributions of southern African tree species possessing drupe, berry, pod, capsule or nut fruit forms. For those species for which information exists comparisons are also made between wind, avian and mammalian dispersal agents irrespective of fruit type. For most fruit types, regions of similar species composition orientate in accord with both latitudinal and longitudinal belts, whereas patterns of proportional species richness (the percentage of specified fruit type in the total tree flora) tend to form longitudinal belts. The pod-bearing species occur most commonly in tropical xeric areas. Drupe-bearing species are most numerous in tropical areas, and become more numerous than berry-bearing species in xeric areas. Since bird- dispersed species usually possess berry fruits, the distribution of the two groups conform with one another. The nut-bearing species are most numerous in temperate areas and are usually associated with wind-dispersal. These results are also interpretated in relation to opportunist (r-selected) and specialist (K-selected) reproductive strategies.
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