Despite the importance of seed dispersal as a driving process behind plant community assembly, our understanding of the role of seed dispersal in plant population persistence and spread remains incomplete. As a result, our ability to predict the effects of global change on plant populations is hampered. We need to better understand the fundamental link between seed dispersal and population dynamics in order to make predictive generalizations across species and systems, to better understand plant community structure and function, and to make appropriate conservation and management responses related to seed dispersal. To tackle these important knowledge gaps, we established the CoDisperse Network and convened an interdisciplinary, NSF-sponsored Seed Dispersal Workshop in 2016, during which we explored the role of seed dispersal in plant population dynamics (NSF DEB Award # 1548194). In this Special Issue, we consider the current state of seed dispersal ecology and identify the following collaborative research needs: (i) the development of a mechanistic understanding of the movement process influencing dispersal of seeds; (ii) improved quantification of the relative influence of seed dispersal on plant fitness compared to processes occurring at other life history stages; (iii) an ability to scale from individual plants to ecosystems to quantify the influence of dispersal on ecosystem function; and (iv) the incorporation of seed dispersal ecology into conservation and management strategies.

中文翻译：

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特刊简介：种子传播在植物种群中的作用：不断变化的世界的观点和进展。

尽管种子传播作为植物群落组装背后的驱动过程非常重要，但我们对种子传播在植物种群持续存在和传播中的作用的理解仍然不完整。因此，我们预测全球变化对植物种群影响的能力受到了阻碍。我们需要更好地了解种子传播和种群动态之间的基本联系，以便对物种和系统进行预测概括，更好地了解植物群落结构和功能，并就种子传播做出适当的保护和管理应对措施。为了解决这些重要的知识差距，我们建立了 CoDisperse 网络，并于 2016 年召开了由 NSF 赞助的跨学科种子传播研讨会，在此期间我们探讨了种子传播在植物种群动态中的作用（NSF DEB 奖＃1548194）。在本期特刊中，我们考虑了种子传播生态学的现状，并确定了以下合作研究需求：（i）对影响种子传播的运动过程建立机械理解；(ii) 与其他生命史阶段发生的过程相比，改进了种子传播对植物适应性的相对影响的量化；(iii) 能够从单个植物扩展到生态系统，以量化扩散对生态系统功能的影响；(iv) 将种子传播生态学纳入保护和管理战略。