Data from: The role of trait combination in the conspicuousness of fruit display among bird-dispersed plants

In visually-driven seed dispersal mutualisms, natural selection should promote plant strategies that maximize fruit visibility to dispersers. Plants might increase seed dispersal profitability by increasing conspicuousness of fruit display, understood as a plant strategy to maximize fruit detectability by seed dispersers. The role of different plant traits in fruit choice and consumption by seed dispersers has been broadly studied. However, there is no clear evidence about the importance of the traits that increase conspicuousness of fruit display. Because strategies to maximize conspicuousness of fruit display are diverse, and usually are expected to be costly, we would expect that individual plant species will produce an efficient combination of traits.We explored this prediction with 62 fleshy-fruited plant species of a subtropical Andean forest (Southern Yungas), and using a large dataset of fruit consumption by birds (4,476 records). The conspicuousness of fruit display was characterized by both fruit and plant traits including chromatic contrast, size, exposure, aggregation, and crop size of fruits. We also considered phylogenetic effects on phenotypic variation.Fruit consumption was explained by fruit chromatic contrast depending on fruit crop size. These traits revealed low phylogenetic effects, with the exception of four plant clades at different levels in the phylogenetic tree. Negative correlations between pairs of traits support our assumption that fruit display traits are costly, suggesting natural selection favours parsimonious evolutionary pathways. Plant species seem rely on conspicuousness of fruit display by a combination of traits that might minimize costs of fruit display. This appears adaptively relevant to improve communication with mutualistic animals, to increase fruit consumption in a community context and, ultimately, to enhance the profitability of seed dispersal.在视觉驱动的种子传播互利共生（visually-driven seed dispersal mutualisms）系统中，自然选择应推动植物演化出最大化果实对种子传播者（seed disperser）可见性的策略。植物可通过提升果实展示的醒目性来提高种子传播的收益，即通过植物策略最大化果实被种子传播者检测到的概率。 不同植物性状在种子传播者选择与取食果实过程中的作用已得到广泛研究，但目前尚无明确证据证实提升果实展示醒目性的相关性状的重要性。鉴于提升果实展示醒目性的策略多样且通常具有演化成本，我们推测单个植物物种会形成一套高效的性状组合。本研究以安第斯亚热带森林（南部永加斯，Southern Yungas）的62种肉质果植物（fleshy-fruited plant species）为研究对象，结合包含4476条记录的鸟类取食果实大型数据集，对该推测展开了探究。 本研究通过果实与植物两类性状表征果实展示的醒目性，涵盖色彩对比度（chromatic contrast）、果实大小、暴露程度、聚集程度以及单株结果量（crop size），同时考量了表型变异中的系统发育效应（phylogenetic effect）。 研究结果显示，果实取食量可通过果实色彩对比度结合单株结果量进行解释。除系统发育树不同层级的4个植物演化支（clade）外，其余性状的系统发育效应均较弱。性状间的负相关关系支持了"果实展示性状具有演化成本"的假设，表明自然选择倾向于选择简约的演化路径。 植物物种似乎通过多种性状的组合来提升果实展示的醒目性，从而尽可能降低果实展示的成本。该策略在与互利共生动物的信息交流、提升群落背景下的果实取食率，最终提升种子传播收益等方面，均具有重要的适应意义。