title: Space, time and complexity in plant dispersal ecology.
abstract: Dispersal of pollen and seeds are essential functions of plant species, with far-reaching demographic, ecological and evolutionary consequences. Interest in plant dispersal has increased with concerns about the persistence of populations and species under global change. We argue here that advances in plant dispersal ecology research will be determined by our ability to surmount challenges of spatiotemporal scales and heterogeneities and ecosystem complexity. Based on this framework, we propose a selected set of research questions, for which we suggest some specific objectives and methodological approaches. Reviewed topics include multiple vector contributions to plant dispersal, landscape-dependent dispersal patterns, long-distance dispersal events, spatiotemporal variation in dispersal, and the consequences of dispersal for plant communities, populations under climate change, and anthropogenic landscapes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest Ecology & Genetics, INIA-CIFOR, Ctra. de la Coruña km 7.5, 28040 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Robledo-Arnuncio
authors.affiliation: INRA, UR546 Biostatistique et Processus Spatiaux (BioSP), Avignon, France.
authors.forename: Etienne K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Klein
authors.affiliation: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Apartado Postal 0843-03092 Panamá, Republica de Panamá
authors.forename: Helene C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Muller-Landau
authors.affiliation: Spatial Ecology Group, Doñana Biological Station (EBD-CSIC), Sevilla, Spain.
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Santamaría
keywords: Climate change; Community ecology; Dispersal kernel; Gene flow; Long-distance dispersal; Migration; Pollen; Seed