Seed morphology and colour variation in derotinous Cape Proteaceae

I investigated seed colour polymorphism in Leucadendron is investigated for the possibility of crypsis in a post fire environment. Results were inconclusive, possibly due to a missed opportunity, but do not exclude the possibility of crypsis. Seed predation by birds may be an as yet undescribed and...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Gibson, Stephen
Other Authors: Midgley, Jeremy J
Format: Others
Language:English
Published: University of Cape Town 2017
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Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11427/23625
Description
Summary:I investigated seed colour polymorphism in Leucadendron is investigated for the possibility of crypsis in a post fire environment. Results were inconclusive, possibly due to a missed opportunity, but do not exclude the possibility of crypsis. Seed predation by birds may be an as yet undescribed and significant phenomenon. Seed morphology and its impact on second phase dispersal is little known, except in a few cases. This was investigated in a comparison of hairy brown Protea and black winged Leucadendron seeds. This showed that these two types of seed tend to germinate in different habitats. This has implications for interspecific competition and species distribution limits.