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Contributed Talk

Session: : Forests: Tropical 1

COS 38-2 - Decadal survival of tropical pioneer seeds in the soil seedbank is accompanied by fungal infection and dormancy release.

Monday, August 7, 2023
3:45 PM – 4:00 PM PDT
Location: D140
Abstract: Neotropical pioneer trees require high-light environments for successful seedling establishment. Their seeds often persist in the soil seed bank (SSB) for periods ranging from several weeks to decades. How they survive despite extensive pressure from seed predators and soilborne pathogens remains an intriguing question. The aim of this study was to determine if decades old viable seeds of Trema micrantha and Zanthoxylum ekmanii collected from the SSB in a lowland tropical forest i) escaped seed fungal infection and/or ii) maintained high levels of seed dormancy and seed coat integrity when compared to inviable seeds. We collected seeds in Barro Colorado Island, Panama, from locations where reproductive trees had occurred over the previous 30 years. We found that decades-old viable seeds, whose ages were inferred based on carbon dating, are colonized by a diverse group of fungi representing a broad range of phylogenetic lineages. We found a negative association between fungal infection and seed age for viable and inviable seeds. We also found that seed-associated fungal communities differed among old seeds of Z. ekmanii and T. micrantha. Contrary to our expectations, we also found that old viable seeds do not maintain high levels of seed dormancy. Our findings reveal the importance of a previously understudied aspect of seed survival, where the impact of seed-microbial interactions may be critical to understand long term persistence in the SSB.