Sammanfattning

Climate change will likely affect population dynamics of numerous plant species by modifying several aspects of the life cycle. Because plant regeneration from seeds may be particularly vulnerable, here we assess the possible effects of climate change on seed characteristics and present an integrated analysis of seven seed traits (nutrient concentrations, samara mass, seed mass, wing length, seed viability, germination percentage, and seedling biomass) of Acer platanoides and A. pseudoplatanus seeds collected along a wide latitudinal gradient from Italy to Norway. Seed traits were analyzed in relation to the environmental conditions experienced by the mother trees along the latitudinal gradient. We found that seed traits of A. platanoides were more influenced by the climatic conditions than those of A. pseudoplatanus. Additionally, seed viability, germination percentage, and seedling biomass of A. platanoides were strongly related to the seed mass and nutrient concentration. While A. platanoides seeds were more influenced by the environmental conditions (generally negatively affected by rising temperatures), compared to A. pseudoplatanus, A. platanoides still showed higher germination percentage and seedling biomass than A. pseudoplatanus. Thus, further research on subsequent life-history stages of both species is needed. The variation in seed quality observed along the climatic gradient highlights the importance of studying the possible impact of climate change on seed production and species demography.

Nyckelord

Acer platanoides; Acer pseudoplatanus; Climate change; Seed traits; Latitudinal gradient

Publicerad i

Plant Ecology
2014, Volym: 215, nummer: 8, sidor: 911-925
Utgivare: SPRINGER

SLU författare

• Brunet, Jörg

  • Institutionen för sydsvensk skogsvetenskap, Sveriges lantbruksuniversitet
    

Globala målen

SDG13 Vidta omedelbara åtgärder för att bekämpa klimatförändringarna och dess konsekvenser


UKÄ forskningsämne

Skogsvetenskap
Botanik
Ekologi


Publikationens identifierare

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11258-014-0343-x

Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/64267