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Data files and R scripts from: Associations of dispersal traits with fecundity and clonal expansion among Japanese ant-dispersed sedges

Tanaka, Koki1

Published Feb 10, 2026 on Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.j0zpc86t1

Data files

Feb 10, 2026 version files 141.98 MB

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Abstract

Dispersal syndrome, a covariation of dispersal traits with other traits, is an important aspect of any organism because it provides clues for potential selection pressures or constraints imposed by other traits. In plants, fecundity and clonal expansion are the two least empirically explored reproductive traits in terms of their association with dispersal traits, despite theoretical predictions for their existence. This study examined the associations of two dispersal traits (elaiosome size, autochorous distance) with two reproductive traits (fecundity, clonal expansion) among 40 sedge species (Carex spp.) that disperse seeds through autochory through postfloral stalk bending and growth, followed by myrmecochory. Of the two dispersal traits, larger elaiosomes are known to result in longer dispersal distances through attraction of large ants, while longer autochorous distances are expected to reduce local seed clumping by facilitating an independent discovery of sibling seeds by ant workers from multiple nests. Through the comparative analyses, I found the negative associations of elaiosome size with both reproductive traits. The result is consistent with either the functional redundancy of the traits in risk spreading or the fecundity cost of producing larger elaiosomes. After verifying the use of stalk length as a surrogate for autochorous distance, I found the positive association of stalk length with fecundity largely driven from the contrast between four species with extremely short stalks and rest of species with normal stalks. These results are among the first to show an existence of dispersal syndromes among myrmecochorous plants involving dispersal and reproductive traits.