PLANT-ANIMAL INTERACTIONS IN TEMPERATE FORESTS OF THE CORDILLERA CANTABRICA.Author:
MARTINEZ CANO ISABEL.
Year:
2006.
University:
OVIEDO [
www.uniovi.es].
Place of defense: FACULTAD DE BIOLOGIA.
Place of preparation: UNIVERSIDAD DE OVIEDO.
Summary: The plant interactions are important for the structure and function of ecological communities. For example, recruitment of forest species is strongly influenced by the dispersal of seeds and seedlings and seed predation. This thesis explores the predation and dispersal of seeds in five species of the temperate forests of the Cordillera Cantabrica, holly (Ilex aquifolium), hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), yew (Taxus baccata), hazelnut (Corylus avellana) and beech (Fagus sylvatica). This is a series of experiments to manipulate and observational in several areas located in the Sierra Peña Mayor Asturias. First, they studied the selective pressures exerted by scatterers (mainly thrushes, Turdidae) and predators (rodents) on the size of the seed in the hawthorn. Then, we explored the behavior as dispensers of different species of thrushes and mammals (fox and badger), and its effect on the pattern of seed deposition of the three species of fleshy fruit. Thirdly, the spatial structure of the trees adults was studied using analysis techniques dot patterns, paying special attention to the biological interactions. Finally, we characterized the spectra of seed dispersal of the five tree species model cores redistribution simple and compound. Overall, it shows the importance of interactions plant in the forests of the Cordillera, as well as its extraordinary complexity.
