FSD 2010 - Hampe

5th International Symposium-Workshop on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal (1985-2010)

Arndt Hampe

Depto. de Ecología Integrativa
Estación Biológica de Doñana (CSIC)
Av. Américo Vespucio s/n
E-41092 Sevilla (Spain)

arndt(at)ebd.csic.es

Activities

I am a plant population ecologist and evolutionary biologist. My research spans local to large geographical scales and combines field and molecular ecological approaches. Woody plants are my favourite study organisms, and (mostly seed) dispersal processes represent a common denominator of my different research lines: 1) Interactions between animal-dispersed plants and their dispersers; 2) Demography of woody plant recruitment; 3) Ecological determinants of population genetic structure; 4) Phylogeography and species range dynamics; 5) Performance of climate relict populations.

Abstract

Plants on the move: dispersal and colonization in a rapidly changing climate

Modern global climate is warmer than that recorded throughout most of the Quaternary and temperatures are predicted to rise at an unprecedented rate. As a consequence, plant species worldwide are expanding their ranges towards higher latitudes and altitudes through the establishment of new populations at range limits. Seed dispersal is the principal means for plant populations to colonize newly available areas. A great uncertainty exists to which extent dispersal limitation is constraining the ability of species to reach such areas under rapid climatic change, and how differences in the colonization ability of species are contributing to reshuffle communities. Recent advances in dispersal ecology have been largely ignored by attempts to model the impact of climate change on species distributions.

Here I explore potential effects of climate change on the successive demographic processes involved in plant dispersal and population spread. Except for altitudinal treelines, few dispersal studies have to date examined actively expanding pioneer populations at the forefront of advancing range margins. Therefore little is known about how processes such as propagule production and movement, pre- and postdispersal seed predation or seedling establishment are affected by the particular ecological situation of pioneer populations. I review the existing evidence and discuss how these processes could be influenced by climatic changes such as increases in mean temperature, CO2 concentrations or the frequency of extreme climatic events. Finally, I highlight potential implications of emerging patterns in attempts to model future species distributions under rapid climate change. (Photo : Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) carrying an oak acorn. Credit: Ran Schols.)

Related references

Hampe A (2004) Bioclimate envelope models: what they detect and what they hide. Global Ecology and Biogeography 13: 469-471.

Hampe A, Petit RJ (2005) Conserving biodiversity under climate change: the rear edge matters. Ecology Letters 8: 461-467.

Hu FS, Hampe A, Petit RJ (2009) Paleoecology meets genetics: deciphering past vegetational dynamics. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 7: 371-379.

Petit RJ, Bialozyt R, Garnier-Géré P, Hampe A (2004) Ecology and genetics of tree invasions: from recent introductions to Quaternary migrations. Forest Ecology and Management 197: 117-137.

Petit RJ, Hampe A (2006) Some evolutionary consequences of being a tree. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 37: 187-214.

(Illustration: Simulation of a postglacial range expansion involving rare long-distance dispersal events, as tracked by maternally inherited genetic markers. Genetic variants are indicated by yellow, green, blue, or red. (from Hu et al. 2009. Frontiers Ecol. Environ. 7: 371-379)