Premium
Does Fire Trigger Seed Germination in the Neotropical Savannas? Experimental Tests with Six Cerrado Species
Author(s) -
Fichino Betânia Santos,
Dombroski Julia R. G.,
Pivello Vânia R.,
Fidelis Alessandra
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
biotropica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.813
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1744-7429
pISSN - 0006-3606
DOI - 10.1111/btp.12276
Subject(s) - germination , smoke , ecosystem , grassland , dormancy , biology , fire history , vegetation (pathology) , biodiversity , fire regime , agronomy , ecology , botany , environmental science , geography , climate change , medicine , pathology , meteorology
The C errado ( B razilian savanna) is a biodiversity hotspot with a history of fire that goes back as far as 10 million years. Fire has influenced the evolution of several aspects of the vegetation, including reproduction and life cycles. This study tested how fire by‐products such as heat and smoke affect the germination of six species common to two C errado open physiognomies: wet grasslands and the campo sujo (grassland with scattered shrubs and dwarf trees). We subjected seeds collected in northern B razil to heat shock and smoke treatments, both separately and combined, using different temperatures, exposure times, and smoke concentrations in aqueous solutions. High temperatures and smoke did not break seed dormancy nor stimulate germination of the C errado study species. However, seeds were not killed by high temperatures, indicating that they are fire‐tolerant. Our findings differed from those of other fire‐prone ecosystems (mostly of M editerranean vegetation), where fire stimulates germination. Moreover, we provide important information regarding germination strategies of non‐woody C errado plants, showing the importance of considering the tolerance of seeds to high temperatures when evaluating fire‐related traits in fire‐prone ecosystems.