Data from: Telemetric tracking of scatterhoarding and seed fate in a Central African forest

In seed predation studies, removal of a seed is only the first step of a dynamic process that may result in dispersal rather than seed death. This process, termed seed fate, has received little attention in African forests, particularly in Central Africa. We experimentally assessed the initial steps of seed fate for two tree species—the large-seeded Pentaclethra macrophylla and the relatively small-seeded Gambeya lacourtiana—in northeastern Gabon. Specifically, we evaluated whether seed size and seed consumer identity are important determinants of seed fate. We established experimental stations under conspecific fruiting trees, each comprising three seeds fitted with telemetric thread tags to facilitate their recovery, and a motion-sensitive camera to identify visiting mammals. In total, animals removed 76 tagged seeds from experimental stations. Small Murid rats and mice primarily removed small Gambeya seeds, whereas large-bodied rodents and mandrills primarily removed large Pentaclethra seeds. Gambeya seeds were carried shorter distances than Pentaclethra seeds and were less likely to be cached. The two large-bodied rodents handled seeds differently: Cricetomys emini larderhoarded nearly all (N = 15 of 16) encountered Pentaclethra seeds deep in burrows, while Atherurus africanus cached all (N = 5 of 5) encountered Pentaclethra seeds singly under 1–3 cm of leaf litter and soil, at an average distance of 24.2 m and a maximum distance of 46.3 m from experimental stations. This study supports the hypothesis that seed fate varies based on seed size and seed consumer identity, and represents the first telemetric experimental evidence of larderhoarding and scatterhoarding in the region.

在种子捕食相关研究中，种子被取食仅为某一动态过程的起始步骤——该过程最终可能促成种子扩散，而非直接导致种子死亡。这一被命名为种子命运（seed fate）的过程在非洲森林，尤其是中非地区的森林中尚未得到充分关注。
本研究于加蓬东北部开展实验，针对两种树木的种子命运初始过程进行评估：分别为大种子树种五蕊豆（Pentaclethra macrophylla）与相对小种子树种甘贝木（Gambeya lacourtiana），并具体探究了种子大小与种子取食者种类是否为决定种子命运的关键影响因素。
我们在结果实的同种树木下方设置实验站点，每个站点包含3枚佩戴遥测线标（telemetric thread tags）的种子以方便后续回收，以及一台用于识别到访哺乳动物的运动感应相机。总计有76枚带标记的种子被动物从实验站点取走。
小型鼠科（Murid）大鼠与小鼠主要取食甘贝木的小种子，而大体型啮齿类与山魈（mandrills）则主要取食五蕊豆的大种子。甘贝木种子的搬运距离短于五蕊豆种子，且被埋藏的概率更低。
两种大体型啮齿类对种子的处理方式存在显著差异：埃氏巨鼠（Cricetomys emini）几乎将所有被其接触到的五蕊豆种子（16枚中的15枚）集中贮藏（larderhoarding）于深洞穴中；而非洲帚尾豪猪（Atherurus africanus）则将所有被其接触到的五蕊豆种子（5枚全部）单独埋藏于1~3厘米厚的落叶与土层下方，埋藏点距离实验站点的平均距离为24.2米，最大距离为46.3米。
本研究证实了“种子命运随种子大小与取食者种类而异”的假说，同时也是该区域首个关于集中贮藏与分散贮藏的遥测实验证据。