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A Review on the State of the Art in Frugivory and Seed Dispersal on Islands and the Implications of Global ChangeNARA Subscribed
We provide an overview of the current state of knowledge of island frugivory and seed dispersal and identify knowledge gaps that are important for fundamental research on—and applied conservation of—island ecosystems. We conducted a systematic literature search of frugivory and seed dispersal on islands, omitting large, continental islands. This revealed a total of 448 studies, most (75%) published during the last two decades,...
Prolonging survival in good health is a fundamental societal goal. However, the leading determinants of disability-free survival in healthy older people have not been well established. Data from ASPREE, a bi-national placebo-controlled trial of aspirin with 4.7 years median follow-up, was analysed. At enrolment, participants were healthy and without prior cardiovascular events, dementia or persistent physical disability. Disab...
The global abundance of tree palmsNARA Subscribed
Aim Palms are an iconic, diverse and often abundant component of tropical ecosystems that provide many ecosystem services. Being monocots, tree palms are evolutionarily, morphologically and physiologically distinct from other trees, and these differences have important consequences for ecosystem services (e.g., carbon sequestration and storage) and in terms of responses to climate change. We quantified global patterns of tree...
Dispersal limitation, speciation, environmental filtering and niche differentiation influence forest tree communities in West PolynesiaNARA Subscribed
Aim Regional patterns of forest composition in West Polynesia were analysed to determine the relative importance of dispersal limitation, speciation, environmental filtering and biotic interactions. Location West Polynesia (Fiji, Tonga, Samoa). Methods We applied clustering and indicator species analysis to presence/absence data for 397 tree taxa in 338 forest plots to detect groups of plots sharing similar species composition...
Climate‐associated population declines reverse recovery and threaten future of an iconic high‐elevation plantNARA Subscribed
Although climate change is predicted to place mountain‐top and other narrowly endemic species at severe risk of extinction, the ecological processes involved in such extinctions are still poorly resolved. In addition, much of this biodiversity loss will likely go unobserved, and therefore largely unappreciated. The H aleakalā silversword is restricted to a single volcano summit in H awai‘i, but is a highly charismatic giant ro...
The potential for long‐term persistence of forest fragments on Tongatapu, a large island in western PolynesiaNARA Subscribed
Aim We describe compositional variation among forest fragments on Tongatapu in terms of successional status and site conditions. We then examine two factors that directly influence the potential for long‐term persistence of these fragments – tree regeneration and alien invasion. Location Tongatapu is the largest (261 km 2 ), most densely inhabited (population 67,000) island in the Kingdom of Tonga, western Polynesia. Inhabited...
Aim As a result of the extinctions of several large frugivorous birds (and one flying fox) and the diminished ranges of others, Tonga now has a relatively small number of effective seed dispersers, especially for large‐seeded plants. We estimate the bill width and gape of the two largest known extinct pigeon species ( Ducula ) present in Tonga prior to human arrival. We then estimate which native rain forest species had fruits...
The biology of insularity: an introductionNARA Subscribed
Insular environments, ranging from oceanic islands to fragments of once‐contiguous natural systems, have long been used by biologists to test basic principles of ecology, evolution and biogeography. More recently, insular environments have figured prominently in conservation ecology, where the aim has usually been to conserve species or assemblages unique to isolated habitats. Improving the level of communication among the evo...
Post‐dispersal seed predation on eleven large‐seeded species from the New Zealand flora: A preliminary study in secondary forestNARA Subscribed
Seed predation trials were conducted for 11 large‐seeded species native to New Zealand in secondary forest. The species used were: Alectryon excelsus, Beilschmiedia tawa, Coprosma grandifolia, Corynocarpus laevigatus, Hedycarya arborea, Myoporum laetum, Nestegis cunninghamii, Prumnopitys ferruginea, Prumnopitys taxifolia, Rhopalostylis sapida , and Ripogonum scandens . Seed removal was monitored for 15 days for 160 seeds of ea...
Potential contributions of the seed rain and seed bank to regeneration of native forest under plantation pine in New ZealandNARA Subscribed
The seed rain, seed bank, and vegetation were studied in a Pinus radiata plantation destined for restoration to native forest, in order to gain information on the vegetation dynamics and potential future vegetation composition of this forest. A total of 1812 ± 245 seeds m ‐2 from 34 species fell in the seed rain between October 1996 and May 1997. The seed bank had a density of 8841 ± 1157 seeds m ‐2 , and contained at least 45...
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