Seed dispersal by granivores in a changing world

Aleksandra Wróbel, PhD

Date: May 24, 2022
Time: 4 pm (s.t.)
Place: F 01 (Büsgenweg 1) and streemed via zoom. If you want to attend remotely, please register by sending an email to grk2300@uni-goettingen.de.

In plants, local population dynamics and encroachment into new areas are heavily dependent on propagule pressure. Many large-seeded plants rely on animals as seed dispersal vectors. In turn, two-phase seed dispersal, with a different type of dispersal agents involved in each stage (so-called “diplochory”) often provides greater benefits to seeds than does dispersal provided by single agents. Diplochory is probably far more common than is currently assumed, but this phenomenon still remains understudied. In my studies, I generally focus on tree-seed disperser interactions in various ecological contexts because I believe this gap in knowledge reduces our understanding of plant regeneration, This might be particularly risky in those ecological systems where recruitment is strongly affected by human-induced global changes. At the lecture, I will present the results from some of my previous research. I will additionally share some details and primary results of my ongoing project conducted in Swiss Alps on pine-nutcracker mutualistic interactions which may be considered a more complex diplochory pine-nutcracker-rodent system.
The contribution of granivorous rodents in forest regeneration now revealed at lower elevations (where rodents are currently abundant) can represent the future picture of seed dispersal mechanisms at higher elevations (where the abundance of rodents is increasing) facing global warming.