Seed polyphenols in a diverse tropical plant community

Autor: Jorma Kim, Paul Camilo Zalamea, Evan C. Fricke, Juha-Pekka Salminen, S. Joseph Wright, Nancy C. Garwood, Sofia Gripenberg, Jadranka Rota
Přispěvatelé: Bielefeld Nardoto, Gabriela
Rok vydání: 2017
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Ecology. 106:87-100
ISSN: 0022-0477
DOI: 10.1111/1365-2745.12814
Popis: 1. Polyphenols are one of the most common groups of secondary metabolites in plants and thought to play a key role in enhancing plant fitness by protecting plants against enemies. Although enemy-inflicted mortality at the seed stage can be an important regulator of plant populations and a key determinant of community structure, few studies have assessed community-level patterns of polyphenol content in seeds. 2. We describe the distribution of the main seed polyphenol groups across 196 tree and liana species on Barro Colorado Island (Panama) and community-level patterns in two aspects of their biological activity (protein precipitation and oxidative capacity). Taking advantage of substantial variation in morphological and ecological traits in the studied plant community, we test for correlations and trade-offs between seed polyphenols and non-chemical plant traits hypothesised to make plant species more or less likely to invest in polyphenol production. 3. The majority of species have polyphenols in their seeds. The incidence and concentrations of polyphenols were related to a set of non-chemical plant traits. Polyphenols were most likely to be present (and where present, to be expressed in high concentrations) in species with large seeds, short seed dormancy times, low investment in mechanical seed defences, high wood density, high leaf mass per area, tough leaves, and slow growth rates. 4. Synthesis: Our study reveals a potential trade-off between chemical and mechanical seed defences and shows that plant species that invest in physical defences at later life stages (high wood density and tough leaves) tend not to invest in physical defences of seeds but instead produce secondary metabolites likely to act as seed defences. Overall, our results conform to predictions from the resource availability hypothesis, which states that species in resource-limited environments (such as slow-growing shade-tolerant tree species) will invest more in defences than fast-growing pioneer species.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz: