Seed Functional Traits Provide Support for Ecological Restoration and ex situ Conservation in the Threatened Amazon Ironstone Outcrop Flora.

ABSTRACT: Cangas (ironstone outcrops) host a specialized flora, characterized by high degree of edaphic endemism and an apparent lack of natural history knowledge of its flora. Due to intense pressure from iron ore mining this ecosystem is under threat and in need of restoration. We studied seed functional traits that are relevant for restoration, translocation and ex situ conservation in 48 species from cangas in eastern Amazon. Were determined the thermal niche breadth, classified seed dormancy and determined methods to overcome it, determined the effect of seed storage on germination, tested the association between germination traits and functional groups, and tested whether seed traits are phylogenetically conserved. We found a broad interspecific variation in most seed traits, except for

SUBMITTER: Zanetti M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7793850 | biostudies-literature | 2020

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature