EEB440H1 Chapter Notes - Chapter N/A: Predator Satiation, Anemophily, Seed Dispersal
27 Apr 2016
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Acorn production by oaks in central california: variation within and. Variation in acorn production was considerable within and among years. Wind pollination and predator satiation hypotheses supported. Looked at extent of within and among year variation, bimodality in reproductive efforts (one year high, next low), incidence of crop failures, whether large crops occur in successive years, and the existence of masting cycles. Looked at among individual trees within years. Masting may result from wither resource matching or economies of scale. Resource matching hypothesis: seed crop size tracks current resource levels and thus annual variation in resources causes masting patterns. Predator satiation hypothesis: suggests that individuals should mask synchronously, since it maximizes the probability of swamping predators in mast years and starving them in non-mast years. Variation in production in the same year should be low. Wind pollination hypothesis: concentration of pollen production in mast years should increase the efficiency of wind pollination.
