植物大年结实及其与动物贮食行为之间的关系

大年结实(mast seeding)是多生年植物种群周期性同步大量繁殖的一种自然现象。大年结实作为植物适应环境条件、提高繁殖能力的一种策略而备受关注, 但其驱动机制和进化意义尚存在较大争议。在依赖动物扩散种子的植物中, 大年结实被认为是一种调控动物贮食行为、提高种子扩散效率, 并最终增加繁殖成功率的一种策略; 动物介导的植物间互作可能是促进植物共存的进化驱动力。本文简要梳理了大年结实现象的各种假说, 提出了一个包括气候、资源、动植物互作的理解大年结实机制的概念框架, 并着重讨论了大年结实和动物贮食行为之间的关系及其进化和生态意义。建议未来研究需要借助长期生态监测和分子生物学方法, 揭示植物大年结实与动物贮食行为之间的生态与进化过程。

Mast seeding and its relationship to animal hoarding behaviour

Mast seeding is a natural phenomenon that large seeding perennial plants perform periodic and synchronous reproduction. Mast seeding has been regarded as a strategy to adapt to environmental conditions and improve their reproductive ability, but its underlying mechanism and eco-evolutionary implications remain controversial. In animal dispersed reliant plants, mast seeding is considered as a scatter-hoarding protection strategy to improve dispersal efficiency and ultimately increase reproductive success. However, animal-mediated indirect seed-seed interactions of sympatric tree species may be an evolutionary driver of plant coexistence. Here, we briefly review the various hypotheses that have been suggested to explain the phenomenon of mast seeding, and we propose a conceptual framework integrating climate, resources and interaction between plants and animals to disentangle the mechanism of mast seeding. We also discuss the interaction between mast seeding and animal hoarding behavior and its evolutionary and ecological implications. In the future, long-term ecological monitoring and molecular biology methods should be used to reveal the ecological and evolutionary processes between mast seeding and animal hoarding behaviour.