Ecology of Soil Seed Banks

Ecology of Soil Seed Banks examines the factors that influence seed bank dynamics and the variety of patterns found among different species. This book presents seed banks in a community context to explore the ecological implications of different patterns, and thus begin the development of a synthesis by comparing various communities.
Organized into five parts, this book first examines the general processes that influence inputs or losses from the seed bank, including predation, dormancy/germination mechanisms, and their evolutionary importance. Then, this text examines seed banks in a community context. Only eight vegetation types are included, but the range in diversity of life form, length of growing season, and dominant environmental conditions allow comparisons of seed bank patterns. This book also explores the role of seed banks in vegetation management.
This reference material will be a valuable reference material to population and community ecologists and managers. Evolutionary consequences of seed banks should be of interest to population and theoretical biologists.

Inhalt

Contributors
Preface
Foreword
Seed Banks in Ecological Perspective
Part 1 Introduction

1. Seed Banks: General Concepts and Methodological Issues
   I. Overview
   II. Methodological Considerations
   III. Questions Related to Seed Banks
2. Some Aspects of the Natural History of Seed Banks
   I. Introduction
   II. Seed Banks
   III. Occurrences of Seed Banks
   IV. Physiology of Seed Banks
   V. Demography of Seed Banks
   VI. Seed Chemistry
   VII. Genetical Considerations
   VIII. Conclusions
   Part 2 Seed Bank Processes
3. Predation in the Dynamics of Seed Regeneration
   I. Introduction
   II. Effects of Seed Predation
   III. Emerging Generalizations
   IV. Recommendation: Path Analysis Plus Field Experiments
   V. Summary and Conclusions
4. Physiology of Dormancy and Germination in Relation to Seed Bank Ecology
   I. Introduction
   II. Types and States of Dormancy in Seeds
   III. Germination Ecology of Buried Seeds
   IV. General Patterns of Germination Responses in Seed Banks
   V. Summary and Conclusions
5. Modeling the Evolutionary Ecology of Seed Banks
   I. Why Model the Population Dynamic Consequences of Seed Banks?
   II. Issues Relevant to Understanding Seed Banks
   III. How Seed Banks Affect the Way Selection Operates on Other Traits
   IV. Density Dependence and Kin Selection
   V. Community Seed Bank Patterns
   VI. Summary and Conclusions
   Part 3 Seed Banks And Vegetation Type
6. The Role of Buried Viable Seeds in Arctic and Alpine Plant Communities
   I. Introduction
   II. Buried Seed Densities in Arctic and Alpine Soils
   III. Seed Bank Composition
   IV. Selection for Delayed Germination in Arctic and Alpine Environments
   V. Seed Bank Dynamics and Persistence
   VI. Summary and Conclusions
7. Seed Banks and Vegetation Processes in Coniferous Forests
   I. Introduction
   II. The Environmental Setting
   III. Seed Bank Studies
   IV. Seed Bank Dynamics
   V. Fire as an Agent of Disturbance
   VI. Summary and Conclusions
8. Seed Bank Dynamics in Temperate Deciduous Forest
   I. Introduction
   II. Tentative Generalizations about Seed Banks
   III. Seed Banks and Adaptation to Disturbance
   IV. Limitations of the Data Base and Opportunities for Future Research
   V. Summary and Conclusions
9. Tropical Soil Seed Banks: A Review
   I. Introduction
   II. Regeneration Strategies of Tropical Species
   III. Dynamics of Seeds in Soil
   IV. Tropical Soil Seed Bank Strategies
   V. Changes in Tropical Soil Seed Banks during Succession
   VI. Spatial and Temporal Heterogeneity
   VII. Summary
   VIII. Appendix
10. Impacts of Seed Banks on Grassland Community Structure and Population Dynamics
    I. Introduction
    II. Seed Banks and Community Structure in Grasslands
    III. Seed Banks and Population Dynamics in Grasslands
    IV. Annuals with Seed Banks: Modeling the Implications of Age Structure
    V. Summary
11. Seed Banks in California Chaparral and Other Mediterranean Climate Shrublands
    I. Introduction
    II. Species Seed Bank Dynamics
    III. Seed Banks and Ecosystem Processes
    IV. Summary
12. Seed Banks and Vegetation Processes in Deserts
    I. Introduction
    II. Distribution and Dynamics of Desert Seed Banks
    III. Relation of Seed Banks to Vegetation Dynamics
    IV. Regional Comparisons of Desert Seed Banks
    V. Summary and Conclusions
13. Wetland Seed Banks
    I. Introduction
    II. Seed Bank Dynamics
    III. Summary and Conclusions
    Part 4 Management And Soil Seed Banks
14. Seed Banks in Arable Land
    I. Introduction
    II. Inputs to Arable Seed Banks
    III. Numbers of Seeds in the Seed Bank
    IV. Seed Banks in Different Crops
    V. Changes over Time in Arable Seed Banks
    VI. Seed Banks in Different Soils
    VII. Effects of Fertilizers and Manures
    VIII. Effects of Cultivation
    IX. Effects of Herbicides
    X. Summary and Conclusions
15. Seed Banks and the Management and Restoration of Natural Vegetation
    I. Introduction
    II. Vegetation Management
    III. Vegetation Restoration
    IV. Environmental Control of Recruitment
    V. Summary and Conclusions
16. Seed Banks and Vegetation Management for Conservation: Toward Predictive Community Ecology
    I. Applying Ecological Research
    II. Manipulating Regeneration Processes
    III. A Quantitative Model: Toward Predictive Community Ecology
    IV. Case Histories: Fire and Water
    V. Conclusion
    Part 5 Synthesis
17. Pattern and Process in the Dynamics of Seed Banks
    I. Introduction
    II. Population Seed Bank Dynamics
    III. Community Seed Bank Dynamics
    IV. Seed Banks and Management
    V. Seed Bank Dynamics: A Perspective
    Bibliography
    Index