Wind-dispersed seed deposition patterns and seedling recruitment of Artemisia halodendron in a moving sandy land.
OBJECTIVE
Artemisia halodendron is a native sub-shrub that occurs mainly in moving and semi-fixed sandy lands in Inner Mongolia, China. Information on the spatial patterns of wind-dispersed seed deposition and seedling recruitment of A. halodendron inhabiting moving sandy lands is very limited. The aim of this study was to examine wind-dispersed seed deposition patterns and post-dispersal recruitment of A. halodendron seedlings. *


METHODS
The spatial patterns of wind-dispersed seed deposition and seedling recruitment of A. halodendron were examined by investigating the numbers of deposited seeds, emerged and surviving seedlings using sampling points at a range of distances from the parent plant in eight compass directions for two consecutive growing seasons. *


RESULTS
Wind-dispersed seed deposition showed considerable variation between directions and years. Wind transported A. halodendron seeds only a few meters away from the parent plant in all eight directions. Seedling emergence and establishment also showed between-direction and between-year variability, but the spatial pattern of seedling distribution differed from that of seed deposition. Only a very small fraction (<1 %) of the deposited seeds emerged in the field and survived for long enough to be included in our seedling censuses at the end of the growing season. *


CONCLUSIONS
The spatial variation in wind speed and frequency strongly affects the pattern of seed deposition, although the variation in seed deposition does not determine the spatial pattern of seedling recruitment. Seeds of A. halodendron are not dispersed very well by wind. The low probability of recruitment success for A. halodendron seedlings suggests that this species does not rely on seedling recruitment for its persistence and maintenance of population.
Li
Feng-Rui
FR
Key Laboratory of Desert and Desertification, Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 260 Donggang West Road, Lanzhou 730000, China. lfengrui@vip.163.com
Wang
Tao
T
Zhang
Ai-Sheng
AS
Zhao
Li-Ya
LY
Kang
Ling-Fen
LF
Chen
Wen
W
D019306:Artemisia / Q000502:physiology*; D003710:Demography; D017753:Ecosystem; D036226:Seedlings / Q000502:physiology*; D012639:Seeds / Q000502:physiology*; D012987:Soil; D014919:Wind
D012987:Soil