A conceptual framework linking pollen limitation and seed dispersal
effectiveness
- Laura Leal,
- Matthew Koski
Abstract
Seed production and dispersal are crucial ecological processes impacting
plant demography, species distributions, and community assembly.
Plant-animal interactions commonly mediate both seed production and seed
dispersal, but current research often examines pollination and seed
dispersal separately, which hinders our understanding of how pollination
services affect downstream dispersal services. To fill this gap, we
propose a conceptual framework exploring how pollen limitation can
impact the effectiveness of seed dispersal for endozoochorous and
myrmecochorous plant species. We summarize the quantitative and
qualitative effects of pollen limitation on plant reproduction and use
Optimal Foraging Theory to predict its impact on the foraging behavior
of seed dispersers. In doing so, we offer a new framework that poses
numerous hypotheses and empirical tests to investigate downstream
effects of pollen limitation on seed dispersal effectiveness and,
consequently, post-dispersal ecological processes occurring at different
levels of biological organization. Finally, considering the importance
of pollination and seed dispersal outcomes to plant eco-evolutionary
dynamics, we discussed the implications of our framework for future
studies exploring the demographic and evolutionary impacts of pollen
limitation for animal-dispersed plants.20 Mar 2023Submitted to Ecology Letters 22 Mar 2023Submission Checks Completed
22 Mar 2023Assigned to Editor
22 Mar 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
23 Mar 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
05 May 2023Editorial Decision: Revise Major
30 Jun 20231st Revision Received
30 Jun 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
03 Jul 2023Assigned to Editor
03 Jul 2023Submission Checks Completed
05 Jul 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
08 Aug 2023Editorial Decision: Revise Major
19 Sep 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
19 Sep 20232nd Revision Received
20 Sep 2023Submission Checks Completed
20 Sep 2023Assigned to Editor
21 Sep 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
19 Oct 2023Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
31 Oct 2023Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
31 Oct 20233rd Revision Received
02 Nov 2023Submission Checks Completed
02 Nov 2023Assigned to Editor
06 Nov 2023Reviewer(s) Assigned
16 Nov 2023Editorial Decision: Accept