Additional advantage of endozoochory by mammals:

disinfection of parasitized seeds

Velez, Silvina; Antúnez, Ana L.; Lomáscolo, Silvia & Chacoff, Natacha
1. Laboratorio de Interacciones Ecológicas, IADIZA-CONICET. CCT Mendoza.
svelez@mendoza-conicet.gov.ar
INTRODUCTION METHODS
In some arid ecosystems, large mammalian herbivores disperse and During dispersal of P. flexuosa fruits in Ñacuñán MaB Reserve in 2006, 2007
facilitate germination of many Fabaceae species by scarifying the and 2008, we collected recent feces of gray fox ( Pseudalopex griseus n=28),
seeds. Prosopis flexuosa (Fabaceae) is a key species in the Monte Patagonian hare (Dolichotis patagonum n=80) and exotic European hare
Desert. Its indehiscent pods are highly attractive to several insects (Lepus europaeus n=36). Every sample was analyzed separately to remove
all seeds and discard those which were aborted or had already been
and vertebrates and it depends on endozoochory for dispersal and
predated. Seeds were observed under the dissecting scope to determine
germination. Before dispersal, P. flexuosa seeds are attacked by undamaged seeds (ingested undamaged and uninfected), non-viable seeds
bruchid beetles (mostly of the genus Scutobruchus). The larva (undamaged seeds that lost its viability by the passage along the digestive
consumes a seed entirely if it completes the cycle, but scarified seeds tract) disinfected seeds (with dead bruchids at different stages, Figs. 1, 2 &
containing early larval stages can germinate. 3) and non disinfected seeds (with live bruchids, Fig. 4). Disinfected seeds
Hypothesis: herbivores may reduce bruchid infection by the action of were germinated to determine their viability (Fig. 5). Given that not all
digestive fluids that penetrate through the larval entry hole. disinfected seeds remained alive, for each disperser we calculated:
Question: whether and to what extent different medium-size disinfection Effect = ELG/ELG, were ELG is the number of seeds infected
mammals in the Monte Desert disinfect parasitized P. flexuosa seeds. with dead early larval stage that germinated and EL is the number of seeds
uninfected with dead early larval stage.

Fig. 1. Dead early larva Fig. 2. Dead advanced larva Fig. 3. Dead pre-imaginal stage Fig. 4. Bruchid emergency hole Fig. 5. Disinfested seeds in Petri’s dishes.

RESULTS
The percentage of live seeds (70.7%, 67.5% & 60.2%) was higher than
that of dead seeds (29.3%, 32.5% & 39.8%) in P. griseus, D. patagonum
and L. europaeus (Fig. 6). Of the total number of infected seeds (Fig.
7), the number of disinfected seeds was greater than that of non-
disinfected seeds, in native dispersers. We found scarce infected seeds
Undamaged ingested seeds
Live seeds Disinfected and germinated seeds
in L. europaeus. The mortality of larval stages was more important than
pre-imaginal stage (Fig. 7). The Disinfection Effect was calculated with
early larva because this stage was the only one that allowed the seeds to
survive. Figure 8 shows that a great number of seeds with early larval
stage were disinfected and germinated. Disinfection Effect was similar
among all dispersers (X2= 4.09, d.f.= 2, p= 0,13).
300 Mortality of pre-imaginal stage
70
Number of seeds with early larval

Seeds damaged by chewing 250 Mortality of advanced larval stage

Dead seeds 60
Total number of infected seds

Non-viable seeds
Mortality of early larval stage
stage germinated

70 200 50
60 Non-disinfected seeds 40
150
% of seeds

50
30
40
100
30 20
20
50 10
10
0
0
0
P. griseus D. patagonum L. europaeus P. griseus D. patagonum L. europaeus P. griseus D. patagonum L. europaeus
Fig. 6. The percentage of live and dead seeds after of the passage along the Fig. 7. Number of total infected seeds and proportions of disinfected and germinated seeds, Fig. 8. Disinfection effect in all dispersers. Proportion of seeds with early
digestive tract of each disperser. disinfected but non-viable seeds, and non-disinfected seeds. larval stage that germinated.

CONCLUSIONS
We can separately analyze the ability of the native and the exotic mammals to determine who is a better disperser. P. griseus and D.
patagonum leave a good proportion of live seeds, are highly effective at seed disinfection and chewing damage is very low. Even though the
proportion of live seeds left by L. europaeus is nearly as good as that of natives, this disperser seems to be less effective at seed disinfection
and damage by chewing is more evident.
A closer look at the Disinfection Effect shows that seeds only remain alive while hosting larvae at the early stage and have a great probability
of germinating due to the disinfection effect and to the scarification conferred by the passage along the digestive tract of dispersers.
Finally, we can conclude that P. griseus and D. patagonum are good dispersers for both the number of seeds they disperse and the number of
seeds they disinfect.
As a side note we can suggest that, though the majority of disinfected seeds did not germinate (due to the advanced stages of the insects in
their interior) the high mortality of these stages could probably influence the population dynamics of bruchids, more precisely in the process
of reinfection. On the other hand, the bruchids that survive have the opportunity to be dispersed long distances and colonize new areas. But
both ideas are speculations because no studies have been found to support them.
Special thanks to GIB for facilitating the laboratory equipment and N. Horak for English corrections.