Dwarf bamboos affect the regeneration of zoochorous trees by providing habitats to acorn-feeding rodents

The effects of dwarf bamboos (Sasa spp.) on the regeneration of trees in a natural hardwood forest were studied by analysing the spatial dispersion of seedlings and saplings of anemochores (Acer palmatum var. matsumurae, Fraxinus lanuginosa, and Carpinus laxiflora) and zoochores (Quercus mongolica var. grosseserrata and Q. serrata). Relative photosynthetic photon flux density at 10 cm above ground was significantly correlated with the coverage of dwarf bamboos (r=0.661, P<0.001). Seedlings were abundant and were randomly distributed in the anemochores, other than the shade-intolerant species C. laxiflora which was significantly more sparse in sites with dense Sasa than in sites where Sasa was rare. Distribution of saplings was also random in the shadetolerant anemochores A. palmatum var. matsumurae and F. lanuginosa but aggregated in sites with sparse Sasa in the shade-intolerant anemochore C. laxiflora. In contrast to the anemochores, seedlings of zoochores were very few and were distributed in sites with sparse Sasa. Saplings were also aggregated and negatively correlated with Sasa cover in the shade-intolerant species Q. serrata and the tolerant species Q. mongolica var. grosseserrata. The acorns put on the forest floor in a site with dense Sasa were quickly removed by small rodents such as Apodemus speciosus and A. argenteus. Trap census of rodents revealed that those mammals prefer the dense Sasa habitat to the sparse Sasa habitat. This suggests that the dwarf bamboos strongly affect the regeneration of zoochorous trees not only by shading the seedlings but also by providing habitats to acorn-feeding small mammals.