Fruit secondary metabolites shape seed dispersal effectiveness

Summary

This narrative review in Trends in Ecology & Evolution synthesises current understanding of how fruit secondary metabolites—chemical compounds serving both defensive and attractive functions—shape seed dispersal effectiveness and plant fitness. By integrating PSM effects into the seed dispersal effectiveness framework, the authors provide a systematic approach to understanding the multiple interactive roles these chemicals play across dispersal stages. The work highlights trade-offs and complexities in plant-animal mutualisms, with implications for predicting plant population dynamics under environmental change.

Regional applicability

The review is primarily ecologically focused rather than agronomically or geographically specific. Whilst the underlying plant-animal mechanisms apply universally, the direct relevance to United Kingdom horticulture and fruit production would depend on how PSM knowledge is operationalised in crop breeding and cultivation decisions.

Key measures

Seed dispersal effectiveness (SDE); quantity and quality of animal-mediated seed dispersal; plant fitness; impacts of fruit secondary metabolites on disperser behaviour and seed viability

Outcomes reported

The review integrates plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) into the seed dispersal effectiveness (SDE) framework, examining how PSMs affect both the quantity and quality of animal-mediated seed dispersal across disperser communities and dispersal stages. The authors synthesise evidence on trade-offs in PSM functions and their consequences for plant fitness and population dynamics.

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