Uniting niche differentiation and dispersal limitation predicts tropical forest succession

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

28 Scopus citations

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.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)700-708
Number of pages9
JournalTrends in Ecology and Evolution
Volume36
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2021
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

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