Uniting niche differentiation and dispersal limitation predicts tropical forest succession

Citation

Dent DH & Estrada-Villegas S (2021) Uniting niche differentiation and dispersal limitation predicts tropical forest succession. Trends in Ecology and Evolution, 36 (8), pp. 700-708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2021.04.001

Abstract
Tropical secondary forests are increasingly important for carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation worldwide; yet, we still cannot accurately predict community turnover during secondary succession. We propose that integrating niche differentiation and dispersal limitation will generate an improved theoretical explanation of tropical forest succession. The interaction between seed sources and dispersers regulates seed movement throughout succession, and recent technological advances in animal tracking and molecular analyses enable us to accurately monitor seed movement as never before. We propose a framework to bridge the gap between niche differentiation and dispersal limitation. The Source-Disperser Limitation Framework (SDLF) provides a way to better predict secondary tropical forest succession across gradients of landscape disturbance by integrating seed sources and frugivore behavior.

Keywords
agricultural landscapes; forest regeneration; frugivores; secondary forest; seed sources; succession theory

Journal
Trends in Ecology and Evolution: Volume 36, Issue 8