Rock n' Seeds: A database of seed functional traits and germination experiments from Brazilian rock outcrop vegetation

Abstract

Advancing functional ecology depends fundamentally on the availability of data on reproductive traits, including those from tropical plants, which have been historically underrepresented in global trait databases. Although some valuable databases have been created recently, they are mainly restricted to temperate areas and vegetative traits such as leaf and wood traits. Here, we present Rock n' Seeds, a database of seed functional traits and germination experiments from Brazilian rock outcrop vegetation, recognized as outstanding For affiliation refer to page 2

Low availability of functional seed trait data from the tropics could negatively affect global macroecological studies, predictive models and plant conservation

“…To prevent the negative consequences of geographical bias on research and predictive models based on global datasets, we suggest: (1) improving inclusion of all existing data by performing multi-lingual searches of both the grey and peer-reviewed literature; (2) generating additional data from the tropics and a wider range of families in both temperate and tropical regions, accounting for intraspecific variability; and (3) improving the availability and accessibility of newly gathered data through their inclusion in seed trait datasets (e.g. Ordóñez-Parra et al , 2022 ), which could populate comprehensive global databases of seed traits (e.g. SeedArc: http://unioviedo.es/seedarc/ ).…”

Seed functional ecology in Brazilian rock outcrop vegetation: an integrative synthesis

“…We retrieved seed trait and germination records from Rock n’ Seeds (Ordóñez-Parra et al . 2023), a database of seed functional traits and germination experiments of plant species from Brazilian rock outcrop vegetation (Figure 1).…”

“…We focused on seven functional traits associated with the investment in regeneration via seeds and seeds main functions (Grubb 1977;Saatkamp et al 2019) [i.e., seed dry mass (mg), seed water content (%), percentage of embryoless seeds (%), percentage of viable seeds (%), seed dispersal syndrome (anemochoroy, autochory and zoochory), seed dispersal season (early-dry, late-dry, early-rain and late-rain) and primary dormancy (dormant and non-dormant)]; and experiments assessing the effects of light availability, constant and alternate temperatures, and fire-related cues (i.e., heat shocks and smoke). Beyond seed and germination traits, the database also provides information on species growth form, microhabitat ('xeric' when substrate experiences pronounced seasonal drought, or otherwise 'mesic'), and geographic distribution ('restricted' to rock outcrop vegetation, and otherwise 'widespread') of each species (see Ordóñez-Parra et al 2023 for a full description of data collection).…”

“…2019). Nevertheless, they have only been assessed with a handful of species from a single family or could not be formally tested without large-scale databases made available only recently (Ordóñez-Parra et al . 2023).…”

“…Still, these syntheses put forward promising hypotheses about the role of seed and germination traits in the ecological dynamics of these plant communities by pointing out that 1) seed traits shape germination responses to abiotic factors and 2) that contrasting microhabitat preferences and geographical ranges derive from distinct germination requirements, as assumed under the regeneration niche hypothesis and the seed ecological spectrum framework (Grubb 1977;Saatkamp et al 2019). Nevertheless, they have only been assessed with a handful of species from a single family or could not be formally tested without large-scale databases made available only recently (Ordóñez-Parra et al 2023). Furthermore, these qualitative reviews do not explicitly address the potential role of shared evolutionary history in species seed ecology.…”