Seed quality and seed quantity in red maple depends on weather and individual tree characteristics,Ecology and Evolution

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Seed quality and seed quantity in red maple depends on weather and individual tree characteristics
Ecology and Evolution ( IF 2.3 ) Pub Date : 2020-10-14 , DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6900
Abigail R Goszka ₁ , Rebecca S Snell ₁

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Under future climate change, plant species are expected to shift their ranges in response to increasing temperatures and altered precipitation patterns. As seeds represent the single opportunity for plants to move, it is critical to quantify the factors that influence reproduction. While total seed production is clearly important, seed quality is equally as critical and often overlooked. Thus, to quantify how environmental and tree‐level characteristics affect seed quality and quantity, the reproductive output of red maple (Acer rubrum) was measured along an elevation gradient in the Monongahela National Forest, WV. A variety of individual‐level characteristics were measured (e.g., DBH, canopy area, height, and tree cores were taken to quantify growth), and seed traps were placed under seed‐bearing trees to collect samaras and quantify total seed production. A random subsample of collected seeds from each tree was micro‐CT scanned to determine embryo volume, photographed for morphology measurements, and used for germination trials. The number of seeds produced was negatively affected by frost events during flowering, and stand density. The trees with the most seeds also showed reduced growth in recent years. Only 63% of scanned seeds showed embryo development, and of those seeds—only 23% germinated. The likelihood of embryo presence increased as growth rate decreased, while embryo size increased with tree height, smaller DBH, and in areas dominated by hemlock. Both larger embryo volume and larger overall seed size increased the likelihood of germination. The results highlight the importance of including seed quality in addition to seed quantity for a more complete representation of reproductive output.

中文翻译：

红枫的种子质量和种子数量取决于天气和个体树的特征

在未来的气候变化下，植物物种预计会改变其分布范围，以应对气温升高和降水模式改变。由于种子代表了植物移动的唯一机会，因此量化影响繁殖的因素至关重要。虽然种子总产量显然很重要，但种子质量同样重要且经常被忽视。因此，为了量化环境和树木水平特征如何影响种子质量和数量，沿着西维吉尼亚州莫农加希拉国家森林的海拔梯度测量了红枫（ Acer rubrum ）的繁殖产量。测量了各种个体水平的特征（例如，胸径、树冠面积、高度和树芯来量化生长），并将种子陷阱放置在结种子的树下以收集翅果并量化种子总产量。从每棵树上收集种子的随机子样本进行显微 CT 扫描以确定胚胎体积，拍照进行形态测量，并用于发芽试验。产生的种子数量受到开花期间霜冻事件和林分密度的负面影响。近年来，种子最多的树木的生长速度也有所下降。只有 63% 的扫描种子显示出胚胎发育，而这些种子中只有 23% 发芽了。随着生长速度的降低，胚胎存在的可能性增加，而胚胎的大小随着树高、胸径的减小以及铁杉占主导地位的区域的增加而增加。较大的胚胎体积和较大的种子整体尺寸都增加了发芽的可能性。结果强调了除了种子数量之外还包括种子质量对于更完整地表示生殖产量的重要性。

更新日期：2020-12-03

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