Adult plant abundance, reproductive efficiency, and recruitment patterns in two tropical areas

Ramírez, N. (2011) Adult plant abundance, reproductive efficiency, and recruitment patterns in two tropical areas. Community Ecology, 12 (2). pp. 143-152. ISSN 1585-8553

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Abstract

The recruitment patterns of trees, shrubs and climbers were studied in two contrasting geographical areas in Venezuela: the Venezuelan Central Plain (VCP), and shrubland. The main purpose was to determine whether recruitment was simultaneously affected by adult plant abundance and relative fecundity in two different geographical areas, and if such relationships were influenced by life forms, vegetation types, dispersal syndromes, and within and between habitats in the VCP. Multiple regressions were used to determine the effect of adult plant abundance and relative fecundity on seedling and juvenile plant abundance. The relative abundance of juvenile plants increased significantly with the simultaneous increment of relative adult abundance and relative fecundity. However, the best predictor of plant recruitment was adult plant abundance. The effect of adult abundance and the fecundity of life forms on recruitment varied according to habitat in the VCP. Significant regressions were also found for species with animal dispersed plant species in the VCP and animal and wind dispersed species in the shrubland. This agrees with the associations between shrubs with animals dispersal in the VCP. Although plants tended to recruit mainly in those habitats where the parent plants were found, recruitment also depended upon the fecundity and adult abundance of plants from different habitats. It is suggest that there is a progressive colonization from the forest to the forest border and from the border to the savanna, and that there is a high interdependence between adjacent habitats for recruitment in the VCP.

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