Red foxes increase white spruce seed production at its northern range limit

IF 3 2区 环境科学与生态学 Q2 ECOLOGY
Justin S. Benjamin, James D. Roth, John H. Markham
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Abstract

The northern boreal forest treeline is usually considered to be the result of climate limiting tree reproduction. Although climate also influences the cycling of nutrients, the effects of nutrient availability on the treeline have largely been ignored. Various animal activities can alter nutrient cycling, creating microsites of highly fertile soil. Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) act as ecosystem engineers in the nutrient-poor northern boreal woodlands by concentrating soil nutrients through their denning activities, increasing white spruce (Picea glauca) tree growth. Here, we examined how denning activity affects reproduction in white spruce by determining the number cones per tree, seeds per cone (with or without endosperm, i.e., filled or not) and their viability. Overall, seed production in the study region was low, with an average of 3.7 filled seeds and 0.73 viable seeds per cone. Denning activity affected all stages of seed production, with trees on dens producing an average of two times more cones, three times more total seeds, four times more filled seeds, and 18 times more viable seeds than trees growing away from dens. While cone counts per tree were a good predictor of filled seeds per tree, they were less reliable at predicting viable seeds per tree. Additionally, the number of cones on a tree does not predict the number of filled seeds in a cone, making it difficult for granivores like squirrels and birds to assess food availability from cone abundance. Overall, these results suggest that nutrient availability can play a crucial role in tree reproduction at the treeline and denning activities can create hotspots of seed production and seed viability, acting as a potential food source for granivores and locations for tree reproduction.
红狐增加了白云杉北部分布极限的种子产量
北寒带森林树线通常被认为是气候限制树木繁殖的结果。虽然气候也会影响养分的循环,但养分供应对林木线的影响在很大程度上被忽视了。各种动物的活动会改变养分循环,形成高肥力土壤的微生境。红狐(Vulpes vulpes)通过筑巢活动集中土壤养分,促进白云杉(Picea glauca)树木的生长,在养分贫乏的北寒带林地扮演着生态系统工程师的角色。在这里,我们通过测定每棵白云杉的球果数量、每个球果的种子(有无胚乳,即是否饱满)及其存活率,研究了穴居活动如何影响白云杉的繁殖。总体而言,研究地区的种子产量较低,平均每个圆锥体有 3.7 粒填充种子和 0.73 粒存活种子。巢穴活动影响种子生产的各个阶段,与远离巢穴的树木相比,巢穴上的树木平均多产两倍的锥果、三倍的种子总量、四倍的填充种子和 18 倍的存活种子。虽然每棵树的球果数可以很好地预测每棵树的饱满种子数,但在预测每棵树的有活力种子数方面却不太可靠。此外,树上的圆锥体数量并不能预测圆锥体中饱满种子的数量,因此松鼠和鸟类等食粒动物很难根据圆锥体的数量来评估食物的可用性。总之,这些结果表明,营养物质的可获得性对树木在树线上的繁殖起着至关重要的作用,而穴居活动可以形成种子生产和种子活力的热点,成为食粒动物的潜在食物来源和树木繁殖的地点。
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来源期刊
Basic and Applied Ecology
Basic and Applied Ecology 环境科学-生态学
CiteScore
6.90
自引率
5.30%
发文量
103
审稿时长
10.6 weeks
期刊介绍: Basic and Applied Ecology provides a forum in which significant advances and ideas can be rapidly communicated to a wide audience. Basic and Applied Ecology publishes original contributions, perspectives and reviews from all areas of basic and applied ecology. Ecologists from all countries are invited to publish ecological research of international interest in its pages. There is no bias with regard to taxon or geographical area.
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