Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

Pervasive density-dependent recruitment enhances seedling diversity in a tropical forest

Nature volume 404, pages 493–495 (2000)Cite this article

Abstract

Negative density-dependent recruitment of seedlings, that is, seeds of a given species are less likely to become established seedlings if the density of that species is high, has been proposed to be an important mechanism contributing to the extraordinary diversity of tropical tree communities1,2,3 because it can potentially prevent any particular species from usurping all available space, either in close proximity to seed sources or at relatively larger spatial scales1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18. However, density-dependent recruitment does not necessarily enhance community diversity14. Furthermore, although density-dependent effects have been found at some life stages in some species3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13, no study has shown that density-dependent recruitment affects community diversity14,15. Here we report the results of observations in a lowland, moist forest in the Republic of Panamá in which the species identities of 386,027 seeds that arrived at 200 seed traps were compared with the species identities of 13,068 seedlings that recruited into adjacent plots over a 4-year period. Across the 200 sites, recruit seedling diversity was significantly higher than seed diversity. Part of this difference was explained by interspecies differences in average recruitment success. Even after accounting for these differences, however, negative density-dependent recruitment contributes significantly to the increase in diversity from seeds to seedling recruits.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: The relationship between the seed density and recruit seedling density for Trichilia tuberculata (Meliaceae).
Figure 2: The frequency distribution of the exponent of the relationship between recruit density and seed density for 53 species of shrubs, trees and lianas.
Figure 3: Comparisons of Shannon–Wiener diversity indices within census stations.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Ridley, H. N. The Dispersal of Plants Throughout the World (L. Reeve & Co., Ashford, England, 1930).

    Google Scholar 

  2. Janzen, D. H. Herbivores and the number of tree species in tropical forests. Am. Nat. 104, 501–528 ( 1970).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Connell, J. H. in Dynamics of Populations (eds den Boer, P. J. & Gradwell, G. R.) 298–312 (Center for Agricultural Publication and Documentation, Wageningen, The Netherlands, 1971).

    Google Scholar 

  4. Augspurger, C. K. Seedling survival of tropical tree species: interactions of dispersal distance, light-gaps and pathogens. Ecology 65, 1705 –1712 (1984).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Clark, D. A. & Clark, D. B. Spacing dynamics of a tropical rainforest tree: evaluation of the Janzen–Connell model. Am. Nat. 124, 769–788 ( 1984).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Hammond, D. S. & Brown, V. K. in Dynamics of Tropical Communities (eds Newbery, D. M., Prins, H. H. T. & Brown, N. D.) 51–78 (Blackwell Science, London, 1998).

    Google Scholar 

  7. Howe, H. F. Survival and growth of juvenile Virola surinamensis in Panama: effects of herbivory and canopy closure. J. Trop. Ecol. 6, 259–280 (1990).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Webb, C. O. & Peart, D. R. Seedling density dependence promotes coexistence of Bornean rain forest trees. Ecology 80 , 2006–2017 (1999).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Condit, R., Hubbell, S. P. & Foster, R. B. Recruitment near conspecific adults and the maintenance of tree and shrub diversity in a neotropical forest. Am. Nat. 140, 261–286 (1992).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Gilbert, G. S., Hubbell, S. P. & Foster, R. B. Density and distance-to-adult effects of a canker disease of trees in a moist tropical forest. Oecologia 98, 100–108 (1994).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Hubbell, S. P., Condit, R. & Foster, R. B. Presence and absence of density dependence in a neotropical tree community. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B 330, 269–281 (1990).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  12. Wills, C. & Condit, R. Similar non-random processes maintain diversity in two tropical rainforests. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 266, 1445–1452 (1999).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Wills, C., Condit, R., Foster, R. B. & Hubbell, S. P. Strong density- and diversity-related effects help to maintain tree species diversity in a neotropical forest. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 94, 1252–1257 (1997).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Hubbell, S. P. Seed predation and the coexistence of tree species in tropical forests. Oikos 35, 214–229 ( 1980).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Wright, S. J. in Handbook of Functional Plant Ecology (eds Pugnaire, F. I. & Valladares, F.) 449–472 (M. Dekker, New York, 1999).

    Google Scholar 

  16. Connell, J. H. Diversity in tropical rain forest and coral reefs. Science 199, 1302–1309 (1978).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Leigh, E. G. Jr Tropical Forest Ecology (Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, 1999).

    Google Scholar 

  18. Schupp, E. W. The Janzen–Connell model for tropical tree diversity: population implications and the importance of spatial scale. Am. Nat. 140, 526–530 (1992).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Condit, R., Hubbell, S. P. & Foster, R. B. Changes in tree species abundance in a Neotropical forest: impact of climate change. J. Trop. Ecol. 12 , 231–256 (1996).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Hammond, D. S. & Brown, V. K. Seed size of woody plants in relation to disturbance, dispersal, soil type in wet neotropical forests. Ecology 76, 2544– 2561 (1995).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Kitajima, K. Relative importance of photosynthetic traits and allocation patterns as correlates of seedling shade tolerance of 13 tropical trees. Oecologia 98, 419–428 (1994).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  22. Janzen, D. H. Specificity of seed-attacking beetles in a Costa Rican deciduous forest. J. Ecol. 68, 929–952 ( 1980).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Barone, J. A. Host-specificity of folivorous insects in a moist tropical forest. J. Anim. Ecol. 67, 400–409 (1998).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Coley, P. D. & Barone, J. A. Herbivory and plant defenses in tropical forests. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 27, 305–335 (1996).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Coley, P. D. & Aide, T. M. in Plant–Animal Interactions (eds Price, P. W., Lewinson, T. M., Fernandes, G. W. & Benson, W. W.) 25–49 (John Wiley and Sons, New York, 1991).

    Google Scholar 

  26. Hubbell, S. P. et al. Light-gap disturbances, recruitment limitation, and tree diversity in a neotropical forest. Science 283, 554 –557 (1999).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Wright, S. J., Carrasco, C., Calderón, O. & Paton, S. The El Niño southern oscillation, variable fruit production, and famine in a tropical forest. Ecology 80, 1632– 1647 (1999).

    Google Scholar 

  28. Wright, S. J., Carrasco, C., Calderòn, O. & Paton, S. The El Niño southern oscillation, variable fruit production, and famine in a tropical forest. Ecology 80, 1632– 1647 (1999).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We dedicate this study to the memory of Eduardo Sierra: his ability to identify seedlings of 700 plant species was indispensable. We thank B. Arnold, J. Connell, J. Dalling, J. Eberhard, C. Gehring, P. Green, S. Hubbell, P. Juniper, H. Müller-Landau and T. Theimer for constructive criticism of the manuscript. The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Environmental Sciences Program of the Smithsonian Institution provided financial support.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado 2072, Balboa, Republic of Panamá

    Kyle E. Harms, S. Joseph Wright, Osvaldo Calderón, Andrés Hernández & Edward Allen Herre

Authors
  1. Kyle E. Harms
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S. Joseph Wright
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Osvaldo Calderón
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Andrés Hernández
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Edward Allen Herre
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kyle E. Harms.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Harms, K., Wright, S., Calderón, O. et al. Pervasive density-dependent recruitment enhances seedling diversity in a tropical forest. Nature 404, 493–495 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/35006630

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/35006630

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing