Knowra Seed dispersal Seed dispersal Seed dispersal is the movement of seeds away from their parent plants by wind, water, animals, gravity, or the plants themselves. It affects where plants establish and how populations spread.
Anemochory : Seed dispersal by wind, often aided by wings, hairs, or very small seeds. Wind carries seeds whose structures slow their fall or let them glide.
Seed : A plant embryo with stored resources, enclosed by a protective coat. The seed is the unit that dispersal moves away from its parent.
Ecological restoration : The practice of assisting the recovery of damaged, degraded, or destroyed ecosystems. Restoration projects often introduce seeds or restore processes that spread them.
Janzen–Connell hypothesis : The hypothesis that host-specific enemies reduce survival near parent plants, promoting species coexistence. Distance-dependent seed and seedling survival can favor dispersal away from parents.
Dandelion : A flowering plant whose fruits have a feathery pappus that aids wind dispersal. Its parachute-like pappus makes wind transport conspicuous.
Hydrochory : Seed dispersal by water, including transport by streams, rivers, and ocean currents. Buoyant seeds can travel along waterways or across seas.
Fruit : A mature flowering-plant ovary, sometimes including associated tissues, that contains seeds. Fruits protect seeds and often provide structures or rewards involved in transport.
Invasive species : A non-native organism that spreads and causes ecological, economic, or other harm. Dispersal pathways help explain how invasive plants expand into new areas.
Negative density dependence : A pattern in which individual survival or growth declines as local population density rises. Dispersal can reduce crowding and exposure to enemies near parent plants.
Coconut : The large seed of a palm, enclosed in a fibrous fruit that can float in seawater. Its buoyant husk enables transport by ocean currents.
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