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Dispersal limitation in epiphytic bromeliad communities in a Costa Rican fragmented montane landscape

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2009

Alfredo Cascante-Marín ,
Noemi von Meijenfeldt ,
Hanneke M. H. de Leeuw ,
Jan H. D. Wolf ,
J. Gerard B. Oostermeijer  and
Joannes C. M. den Nijs
Alfredo Cascante-Marín*
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Noemi von Meijenfeldt
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Hanneke M. H. de Leeuw
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Jan H. D. Wolf
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
J. Gerard B. Oostermeijer
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Joannes C. M. den Nijs
Affiliation:
Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), Universiteit van Amsterdam, Kruislaan 318, NL-1098 SM Amsterdam, the Netherlands
*
1Corresponding author. Present address: Departamento de Historia Natural, Museo Nacional de Costa Rica, Apartado 749-1000 San José, Costa Rica. Email: [email protected]
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Abstract:

Transformation of tropical forests is likely to affect seed-dispersal patterns and influence the composition of epiphytic plant communities in human-altered habitats. We tested this hypothesis by carrying out a comparative study of seed influx, survival and growth of transplanted seedlings of epiphytic bromeliads among isolated trees in six pasture areas, six forest edges and six forest sites in a montane area in Costa Rica. In total, 72 traps trapped 1285 seeds over a 2-mo period in the dry season of 2003. For all four investigated bromeliad genera, Catopsis, Guzmania, Tillandsia and Werauhia, the number of trapped seeds in each habitat followed a pattern similar to the number of fruiting individuals in the vicinity of the traps. Traps in forest edges (30) were 1.9 times more likely to collect seeds than traps at forest interiors (30) and pasture trees (12), the latter showing similar probabilities of catching seeds. After 1 y, survival and growth of 3660 transplanted seedlings from three bromeliad species was significantly higher in forest interiors, providing no explanation for the lower abundance of fruiting adults in that habitat. These results suggest that the successful establishment of epiphytic bromeliads in forest interiors is mainly dispersal-limited. If corroborated, differences in abundance among species at each habitat are likely related to differences in growth rates and reproductive success. Further studies on the growth and mortality of seedlings up to the flowering stage, however, are needed.

Keywords

canopy microclimateCatopsisepiphyte establishmentforest fragmentationGuzmaniaremnant treesseed dispersionTillandsiaWerauhia
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 25 , Issue 1 , January 2009 , pp. 63 - 73
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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