Modeling the impact of reproductive mode on masting |
| |
| Authors: | Yongjie Liu Zhixia Ying Shichang Wang Jinbao Liao Hui Lu Liang Ma Zhenqing Li |
| |
| Institution: | 1. State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China;2. Department of Biology, Centre of Excellence Plant and Ecosystem, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium;3. College of Life Science, Key Laboratory of Poyang Lake Environment and Resource Utilization, Ministry of Education, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China;4. Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Centre for Computational Biology and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China;5. Ministry of Education's Key Laboratory of Poyang Lake Wetland and Watershed Research, Jiangxi Normal University, Nanchang, China;6. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China |
| |
| Abstract: | Masting is defined as the intermittent highly variable production of seed in a plant population. According to reproductive modes, that is, sexual and asexual reproduction, masting species can be separated into three groups, that is, (1) species, for example, bamboo, flower only once before they die; (2) species, for example, Fagus, reproduce sexually; and (3) species, for example, Stipa tenacissima, reproduce both sexually and asexually. Several theories have been proposed to explore the underlying mechanisms of masting. However, to our knowledge, no theory has been found to explain the mechanism of masting species that reproduce both sexually and asexually. Here we refine the Resource Budget Model by considering a trade‐off between sexual and asexual reproduction. Besides the depletion efficient (i.e., the ratio of the cost of seed setting and the cost of flowering), other factors, such as the annual remaining resource (i.e., the rest of the resource from the photosynthetic activity after allocating to growth and maintenance), the trade‐off between sexual and asexual reproduction, and the reproductive thresholds, also affect masting. Moreover, two potential reproductive strategies are found to explain the mechanisms: (1) When the annual remaining resource is relatively low, plants reproduce asexually and a part of the resource is accumulated as the cost of asexual reproduction is less than the annual remaining resource. Plants flower and set fruits once the accumulated resource exceeds the threshold of sexual reproduction; (2) when the annual remaining resource is relatively high, and the accumulated resource surpasses the threshold of sexual reproduction, masting occurs. Remarkably, under certain depletion efficient, more investigation in sexual reproduction will lead plants to reproduce periodically. Additionally, plants investigate less resource to reproduce periodically when depletion efficient keeps increasing as plants can reproduce efficiently. Overall, our study provides new insights into the interpretation of masting, especially for species that reproduce both sexually and asexually. |
| |
| Keywords: | asexual reproduction refined resource budget model sexual reproduction trade‐off |
|
|
