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9 - Evolution of synchronised and intermittent reproduction (masting) of trees: key role of regeneration dynamics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 December 2013

By
Yoh Iwasa ,
Akiko Satake  and
Yuuya Tachiki
Edited by
Colleen K. Kelly ,
Michael G. Bowler  and
Gordon A. Fox
Yoh Iwasa
Affiliation:
Kyushu University
Akiko Satake
Affiliation:
Hokkaido University
Yuuya Tachiki
Affiliation:
Kyushu University
Colleen K. Kelly
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
Michael G. Bowler
Affiliation:
University of Oxford
Gordon A. Fox
Affiliation:
University of South Florida
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Summary

Introduction

The variable and synchronous production of seeds by plant populations is called masting or mast seeding and is observed in diverse forests (Kelly 1994). Many flowers and fruits are produced one year (called a mast year) but little reproductive activity occurs during the several subsequent years until the next mast year (Herrera et al. 1998, Koening and Knops 1998, 2000, Koening et al. 1999). The variance in the reproductive activity of trees between years is large. It cannot be simply a result of environmental fluctuation in annual productivity (Tamura and Hiura 1998).

Many studies on masting have focused on adaptive significance (Kelly and Sork 2002). A popular hypothesis is the predator satiation theory – that is, seed predators starve during non-mast years, while they are unable to consume all the seeds during mast years (Janzen 1971, Silvertown 1980, Nilsson and Wästljung 1987, van Schaik et al. 1993). An alternative but not mutually exclusive hypothesis is pollination efficiency: in mast years, trees receive a lot of outcross pollen, which may improve fruiting success compared with reproduction in non-mast years (Nilsson and Wästljung 1987, Smith et al. 1990, van Schaik et al. 1993, Shibata et al. 1998, Kelly et al. 2001, Rees et al. 2002, Satake and Bjørnstad 2004).

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Temporal Dynamics and Ecological Process , pp. 191 - 223
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2014

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