Factors influencing ant-mediated seed dispersal of neotropical pioneer tree species on Barro Colorado Island, Panama

Understanding the role of dispersal in determining population dynamics has been a cornerstone of the fields of population ecology and conservation biology since their inception. Plants have little control over the fate of their seeds, therefore secondary dispersal mechanisms are particularly important in determining plant community. We investigated variation in rates of seed removal for 12 neotropical pioneer tree species at 5 sites on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Seeds were primarily removed by ants, and rates of seed removal varied both by species and by site. We then examined the factors that best correlated with variation in removal rates including: seed chemical profiles, seed size, ant community structure, individual ant body size, and ant species food preference. Identifying the factors that most strongly elicit a seed carrying response from an ant could have important implications for both restoration and invasion ecology.