Fire-released seed dormancy - a global synthesis

Abstract

Seed dormancy varies greatly between species, clades, communities, and regions. We propose that fireprone ecosystems create ideal conditions for the selection of seed dormancy as fire provides a mechanism for dormancy release and postfire conditions are optimal for germination. Thus, fire-released seed dormancy should vary in type and abundance under different fire regimes. To test these predictions, we compiled data from a wide range of fire-related germination experiments for species in different ecosystems across the globe. We identified four dormancy syndromes: heat-released (physical) dormancy, smoke-released (physiological) dormancy, non-fire-released dormancy, and non-dormancy. In fireprone ecosystems, fire, in the form of heat and/or chemical by-products (collectively termed ‘smoke’), are the predominant stimuli for dormancy release and subsequent germination, with climate (cold or warm stratification) and light sometimes playing important secondary roles. Fire (heat or smoke)-released dormancy is best expressed where woody vegetation is dense and fires are intense, i.e. in crown-fire ecosystems. In such environments, seed dormancy allows shade-intolerant species to take advantage of vegetation gaps created by fire and synchronize germination with optimal recruitment conditions. In grassy fireprone ecosystems (e.g. savannas), where fires are less intense but more frequent, seed dormancy is less common and dormancy release is often not directly related to fire (non-fire-released dormancy). Rates of germination, whether controls or postfire, are twice as fast in savannas than in mediterranean ecosystems. Fire-released dormancy is rare to absent in arid ecosystems and rainforests. The seeds of many species with fire-released dormancy also possess elaiosomes that promote ant dispersal. Burial by ants increases insulation of seeds from fires and places them in a suitable location for fire-released dormancy. The distribution of these dormancy syndromes across seed plants is not random – certain dormancy types are associated with particular lineages (phylogenetic conservatism). Heat-released dormancy can be traced back to fireprone floras in the ‘fiery’ mid-Cretaceous, followed by smoke-released dormancy, with loss of fire-related dormancy among recent events associated with the advent of open savannas and non-fireprone habitats. Anthropogenic influences are now modifying dormancy-release mechanisms, usually decreasing the role of fire as exaptive effects. We conclude that contrasting fire regimes are a key driver of the evolution and maintenance of diverse seed dormancy types in many of the world's natural ecosystems.