Peduncles elicit large-mammal endozoochory in a dry-fruited plant.

Journal article

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Plants have evolved a variety of seed dispersal mechanisms to overcome lack of mobility. Many species embed seeds in fleshy pulp to elicit endozoochory, i.e. disseminating seed through the animal gut. In contrast to well-studied fleshy fruited plants, dry-fruited plants may exploit this dispersal mutualism by producing fleshy appendages as a nutritional reward to entice animals to swallow their diaspores, but this has been little studied. In this study, it is hypothesized...

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Authors: Zhou, Y; Newman, C; Xie, Z; Macdonald, D

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Annals of botany
• Volume: 112
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 85-93
• Publication date: 2013-07-01
• DOI: 10.1093/aob/mct096
• EISSN: 1095-8290
• ISSN: 0305-7364
• Language: English
• Keywords: Animals; Rhamnaceae; Adaptation, Physiological; Ecosystem; Seed Dispersal; Trees; Fruit; Germination; Feces; China; Feeding Behavior; Mammals