Abstract
BackgroundSeed dispersal allows plants to colonize new habitats that has an significant influence on plant distribution and population dynamics. Orchids produce numerous tiny seeds without endosperm, which are considered to be mainly wind-dispersed. Here, we report avian seed dispersal for an early diverging orchid species, Neuwiedia singapureana, which produces fleshy fruits with hard seed coats in the understory of tropical forests.ResultsNeuwiedia singapureana produced fleshy fruits that turned red in autumn, and birds were confirmed to be the primary seed dispersers. As compared to its sister species, N. veratrifolia with dehiscent capsular fruits, embryos of N. singapureana were larger and enclosed by thickened and lignified seed coats. After passing through the digestive tracts of birds, the seeds still stayed alive, and the walls of seed coat contained several cracks. The germination percentage increased significantly for digested seeds as compared with seeds from intact fruits.ConclusionThe thickened and lignified seed coat may protect seeds as they passed through the digestive tracts of birds. Taken together with a recent report of insect-mediated seed dispersal system in the subfamily Apostasioideae, the animal-mediated seed dispersal may be an adaptive mechanism promoting the success of colonization in dark understory habitats.
Highlights
Seed dispersal allows plants to colonize new habitats that has an significant influence on plant distri‐ bution and population dynamics
Seed dispersal has an important influence on plant distribution, abundance and population dynamics because it determines the future locations where seeds and later seedlings will survive or expire (Eriksson 2000)
The inner periclinal and anticlinal walls were very thick as compared with the outer periclinal wall (Fig. 1e)
Summary
Seed dispersal allows plants to colonize new habitats that has an significant influence on plant distri‐ bution and population dynamics. Orchids produce numerous tiny seeds without endosperm, which are considered to be mainly wind-dispersed. We report avian seed dispersal for an early diverging orchid species, Neuwiedia singapureana, which produces fleshy fruits with hard seed coats in the understory of tropical forests. Seed dispersal has an important influence on plant distribution, abundance and population dynamics because it determines the future locations where seeds and later seedlings will survive or expire (Eriksson 2000). The tiny orchid seed contains an undifferentiated embryo without endosperm covered by a thin layer of seed coat (Dressler 1993). These characters are considered to be an adaptation for wind dispersal (Arditti and Ghani 2000)
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