Physical processes limiting colonization of bare tidal flats by pioneer mangrove species have commonly been described but not yet quantified. Understanding thresholds to early seedling establishment is critical for successful restoration and management of mangrove forests. We determined how seedling establishment of Avicennia alba Bl. is affected by the combination of increasing hydrodynamic fo...

1 We examined how seed size and seedling growth rate influence recruitment success of neotropical pioneer species. We investigated the soil seed bank, and followed seedlings from emergence and establishment to the sapling stage in artificially created gaps in secondary forest on the Barro Colorado Nature Monument, Panamá. 2 To simulate microsite variation within gaps, litter addition/removal an...

Sod cutting (i.e. top soil removal) is a restoration management option for enhancing seedling establishment and for lowering the nutrient concentration in eutrophicated soils of nutrient-poor species-rich grasslands. Removal of the upper soil changes not only abiotic soil properties but may also affect the resident soil community. We investigated the effects of sod cutting on the establishment ...

Tree radial growth and seedling establishment of Nothofagus pumilio at alpine treeline near 408 S latitude in Chile and Argentina show timeand site-dependent relationships to interannual-and decadal-scale climate variation. Six treelines were sampled at two spatial scales corresponding to regional and local climates. A shift in climate from cool–wet to warm–dry conditions facilitated comparison...

Since inference concerning the relative effects of propagule pressure, biotic interactions, site conditions and species traits on the invasibility of plant communities is limited, we carried out a field experiment to study the role of these factors for absolute and relative seedling emergence in three resident and three non-resident confamilial herb species on a nutrient-poor temperate pasture....

BACKGROUND Herbivores have the power to shape plant evolutionary trajectories, influence the structure and function of vegetation, devastate entire crops, or halt the spread of invasive weeds, and as a consequence, research into plant-herbivore interactions is pivotal to our understanding of plant ecology and evolution. However, the causes and consequences of seedling herbivory have received re...

1 We examined amongand within-species effects of seed mass for seedling establishment from seed to 5 years of age in a field experiment at Paracou, French Guiana. 2 Six seeds of each of eight species were weighed and planted into each of 120 plots (1 m 2 ) throughout closed-canopy forest along 12 100-m transects in 1998. 3 We described the microhabitat of each planting site using principal comp...

Uricase II is a purine metabolic enzyme highly induced in root nodules during the symbiosis established between legumes and bacteria of the genera Rhizobium and Bradyrhizobium. Here we describe the characterization of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) nodule uricase II cDNA and show that uricase II is encoded by a single gene in the bean genome. This gene is also expressed in cotyledons, roots, and hyp...

Spatial heterogeneity of abiotic factors influences patterns of seedling establishment at different scales. In stress-prone ecosystems such as Mediterranean ones, heterogeneity generated by shrubs has been shown to facilitate the establishment of tree species. However, how this facilitation is affected by spatial scale remains poorly understood. We have experimentally analysed the consequences ...