Seed ecology

Soil seed bank is a hidden underground form of diversity. It can help plants to bridge unfavourable environmental conditions and can support their germination when the circumstances are favourable. Seed bank can be a nature-based local source for restoration in spontaneous vegetation recovery, but the extent of this capacity is largely variable across ecosystems. In our studies we aim to dig deeper than previous researches and aim to study the role of deep buried seed bank in vegetation dynamics. We perform structured soil seed bank sampling in various ecosystems and evaluate the seed content of the deep soil layers. Our results showed that germinable seeds of grassland specialist species can be found in deep layers (as deep as 80 cm) in alkaline grasslands, which can contribute to vegetation dynamics if soil disturbance mechanisms bring them closer to the soil surface. This result can give hope for restoration in degraded areas, where the seeds of former natural vegetation might be present in the deep soil layers. Now we are studying these mechanisms in degraded sandy grasslands and wetlands - which is the PhD topic of Ágnes Tóth.

Spatial seed dispersal is a crucial form of plant movement that enables to maintain the genetic diversity of populations by establishing biological connections within metapopulations and also allows the colonization of new habitats, and new biogeographical regions. Plant propagules can disperse in various ways, with the help of abiotic (wind, water) or biotic vectors. We are the most interested in seed dispersal occurring with the help of biotic vectors, including animals and humans, as in these processes there are many interesting questions related to the various biological interactions between the seeds and the dispersers. We are keen on studying human-vectored seed dispersal in a series of field and lab experiments - this is the main PhD topic of Katalin Lukács. We experimentally study the attachment and detachment of plant propagules on human clothing and footwear and study the importance of environmental factors, plant traits and vector characteristics in this process. We also study the fate of cloth-dispersed seeds and the effect of laundry washing on their germination ability in a series of germination experiments. The results showed that laundry washing can even increase the germination capacity of some plant species and might contribute to biological invasions.

We are also keen on studying seed dispersal by various animal groups. Laura Godó's topic in her ELKH young scientist scholarship is the study of the complex role of small mammals and birds in seed dispersal and vegetation dynamics. As a first step she performed a global review on the seed dispersal by rodents and lagomorphs. In field and lab experiments now we are studying various interesting seed dispersal processes, including synzoochory and diploendozoochory by rodents and birds.