Data from: Seed dispersal by dispersing juvenile animals: a source of functional connectivity in fragmented landscapes
Data files
Jun 12, 2019 version files 1.11 MB
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classification_habitats_ringing_data.csv
5.82 KB
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dna_barcoding_data.csv
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README_for_classification_habitats_ringing_data.pdf
120.73 KB
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README_for_dna_barcoding_data.pdf
120.08 KB
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README_for_ringing_captures_vs_mean_seed_rain.pdf
120.73 KB
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README_for_seed_rain_contr_syl_mel_and_other_spp.pdf
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README_for_seed_rain_syl_mel_and_other_spp.pdf
120.73 KB
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ringing_captures_vs_mean_seed_rain.csv
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seed_rain_contr_syl_mel_and_other_spp.csv
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seed_rain_syl_mel_and_other_spp.csv
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Abstract
Juvenile animals generally disperse from their birthplace to their future breeding territories. In fragmented landscapes, habitat-specialist species must disperse through the anthropogenic matrix where remnant habitats are embedded. Here, we test the hypothesis that dispersing juvenile frugivores leave a footprint in the form of seed deposition through the matrix of fragmented landscapes. We focused on the Sardinian warbler (Sylvia melanocephala), a resident frugivorous passerine. We used data from field sampling of bird-dispersed seeds in the forest and matrix of a fragmented landscape, subsequent disperser identification through DNA-barcoding analysis, and data from a national ringing programme. Seed dispersal by Sardinian warblers was confined to the forest most of the year, but warblers contributed a peak of seed-dispersal events in the matrix between July and October, mainly attributable to dispersing juveniles. Our study uniquely connects animal and plant dispersal, demonstrating that juveniles of habitat-specialist frugivores can provide mobile-link functions transiently, but in a seasonally predictable way.