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Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Katul, GG; Porporato, A; Nathan, R; Siqueira, M; Soons, MB; Poggi, D; Horn, HS; Levin, SA
Published in: The American naturalist
September 2005

We introduce an analytical model, the Wald analytical long-distance dispersal (WALD) model, for estimating dispersal kernels of wind-dispersed seeds and their escape probability from the canopy. The model is based on simplifications to well-established three-dimensional Lagrangian stochastic approaches for turbulent scalar transport resulting in a two-parameter Wald (or inverse Gaussian) distribution. Unlike commonly used phenomenological models, WALD's parameters can be estimated from the key factors affecting wind dispersal--wind statistics, seed release height, and seed terminal velocity--determined independently of dispersal data. WALD's asymptotic power-law tail has an exponent of -3/2, a limiting value verified by a meta-analysis for a wide variety of measured dispersal kernels and larger than the exponent of the bivariate Student t-test (2Dt). We tested WALD using three dispersal data sets on forest trees, heathland shrubs, and grassland forbs and compared WALD's performance with that of other analytical mechanistic models (revised versions of the tilted Gaussian Plume model and the advection-diffusion equation), revealing fairest agreement between WALD predictions and measurements. Analytical mechanistic models, such as WALD, combine the advantages of simplicity and mechanistic understanding and are valuable tools for modeling large-scale, long-term plant population dynamics.

Duke Scholars

Published In

The American naturalist

DOI

EISSN

1537-5323

ISSN

0003-0147

Publication Date

September 2005

Volume

166

Issue

3

Start / End Page

368 / 381

Related Subject Headings

  • Wind
  • Trees
  • Seeds
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Poaceae
  • Models, Theoretical
  • Ecology
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences
 

Citation

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MLA
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Katul, G. G., Porporato, A., Nathan, R., Siqueira, M., Soons, M. B., Poggi, D., … Levin, S. A. (2005). Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind. The American Naturalist, 166(3), 368–381. https://doi.org/10.1086/432589
Katul, G. G., A. Porporato, R. Nathan, M. Siqueira, M. B. Soons, D. Poggi, H. S. Horn, and S. A. Levin. “Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind.The American Naturalist 166, no. 3 (September 2005): 368–81. https://doi.org/10.1086/432589.
Katul GG, Porporato A, Nathan R, Siqueira M, Soons MB, Poggi D, et al. Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind. The American naturalist. 2005 Sep;166(3):368–81.
Katul, G. G., et al. “Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind.The American Naturalist, vol. 166, no. 3, Sept. 2005, pp. 368–81. Epmc, doi:10.1086/432589.
Katul GG, Porporato A, Nathan R, Siqueira M, Soons MB, Poggi D, Horn HS, Levin SA. Mechanistic analytical models for long-distance seed dispersal by wind. The American naturalist. 2005 Sep;166(3):368–381.
Journal cover image

Published In

The American naturalist

DOI

EISSN

1537-5323

ISSN

0003-0147

Publication Date

September 2005

Volume

166

Issue

3

Start / End Page

368 / 381

Related Subject Headings

  • Wind
  • Trees
  • Seeds
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Poaceae
  • Models, Theoretical
  • Ecology
  • 31 Biological sciences
  • 06 Biological Sciences