Data from: White-tailed deer as the last megafauna dispersing seeds in Neotropical dry forests: the role of fruit and seed traits

Endozoochory is a prominent way of dispersal in tropical dry forests, particularly when performed by large-sized dispersers. Most extant large animals or megafauna that may function as seed dispersers are ungulates. However, owing to its feeding behavior and physiology, megafauna may also function as seed predators. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is one of the last extant megafauna of Neotropical dry forests but its role as a legitimate seed disperser is poorly understood. We studied dispersal patterns and germination after white-tailed deer gut passage taking into account fruit and seed traits in a tropical dry forest in South Ecuador. Along 23 months, we recorded c. 2000 seeds of 11 species in 385 white-tailed deer feces. Most seeds belonged to four species of Fabaceae: Chloroleucon mangense, Senna mollissima, Piptadenia flava and Caesalpinia glabrata. All of them had pods with dry fibrous pulp that remained on the forest floor after fruiting, which appear as anachronistic traits matching the “megafauna fruits”. Seeds of eight out of the 11 species dispersed by white-tailed deer were able to germinate under controlled conditions. White-tailed deer ingestion did not affect germination of C. mangense and S. mollissima, whereas C. glabrata showed reduced germination. Nevertheless, the removal of fruit pulp resulting from ingestion by white-tailed deer could have a deinhibition effect on germination due to seed release. White-tailed deer played an important role as legitimate seed disperser of woody species formerly considered as autochorous. Our results suggest that more research is needed to fully understand the ecological and evolutionary effects of the last extant megafauna on plant regeneration dynamics in the dry Neotropics.