Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents

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dc.contributor.advisorBond, William Jen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorBunney, Katherineen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-11-05T03:56:06Z
dc.date.available2014-11-05T03:56:06Z
dc.date.issued2014en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical referencesen_ZA
dc.description.abstractSeed dispersal is a key process. It is important in plant population biology because it influences the fate of seeds and the probability of recruitment, in plant biogeography since dispersal mode can influence the distribution range and rate of response to environmental change and habitat fragmentation, and in animal ecology since fruits can be an important dietary item (Wang and Smith, 2002). The majority of trees in the tropics (70 – 90%) and a large proportion of trees in temperate regions (up to 60%) rely on vertebrates for their dispersal (Howe and Smallwood, 1982; Fleming et al., 1987, Willson, 1990). Vertebrate dispersers range in size from 5g mistletoe birds (Dicaeidae) to 7,500,000g elephants (Elephantidae). The range and distribution of frugivore sizes is not uniform across ecosystems or geographical regions (Mack, 1993). These differences, one might suspect would be mirrored in the range and distribution of fruit size. This is not the case; in South America where the largest frugivorous mammal is the tapir (300kg; Hansen and Galetti, 2009), there is a subset of fruit that are conspicuously large. The paradoxical existence of such large fruit in the lowlands of Costa Rica was first noted by Janzen. In collaboration with Pleistocene faunal expert Paul Martin they conjectured that these fruit were ecological anachronisms that had evolved in the presence of large terrestrial vertebrates (>1000kg - megafauna) but had remained long after their demise (Janzen and Martin, 1982).en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationBunney, K. (2014). <i>Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9191en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationBunney, Katherine. <i>"Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9191en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationBunney, K. 2014. Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Bunney, Katherine AB - Seed dispersal is a key process. It is important in plant population biology because it influences the fate of seeds and the probability of recruitment, in plant biogeography since dispersal mode can influence the distribution range and rate of response to environmental change and habitat fragmentation, and in animal ecology since fruits can be an important dietary item (Wang and Smith, 2002). The majority of trees in the tropics (70 – 90%) and a large proportion of trees in temperate regions (up to 60%) rely on vertebrates for their dispersal (Howe and Smallwood, 1982; Fleming et al., 1987, Willson, 1990). Vertebrate dispersers range in size from 5g mistletoe birds (Dicaeidae) to 7,500,000g elephants (Elephantidae). The range and distribution of frugivore sizes is not uniform across ecosystems or geographical regions (Mack, 1993). These differences, one might suspect would be mirrored in the range and distribution of fruit size. This is not the case; in South America where the largest frugivorous mammal is the tapir (300kg; Hansen and Galetti, 2009), there is a subset of fruit that are conspicuously large. The paradoxical existence of such large fruit in the lowlands of Costa Rica was first noted by Janzen. In collaboration with Pleistocene faunal expert Paul Martin they conjectured that these fruit were ecological anachronisms that had evolved in the presence of large terrestrial vertebrates (>1000kg - megafauna) but had remained long after their demise (Janzen and Martin, 1982). DA - 2014 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2014 T1 - Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents TI - Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9191 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/9191
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationBunney K. Seed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agents. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Department of Biological Sciences, 2014 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9191en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Biological Sciencesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherBotanyen_ZA
dc.titleSeed dispersal in South African trees: with a focus on the megafaunal fruit and their dispersal agentsen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMScen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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