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Fruit Consumers (fruit + consumer)
Selected AbstractsLimonoids as cancer chemopreventive agentsJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 3 2006Sohail Ejaz Abstract Nutritional research on the health benefits of substances in plant foods has recently advanced to a new stage. The research frontier has moved from study of classical vitamin deficiency diseases to study of the thousands of phytochemicals that may have important physiological effects. Recent research suggests that citrus fruit consumers may be getting another health benefit from orange juice and other citrus products called limonoids, which appear to possess substantial anticancer activity. Limonoids are highly oxidized triterpenes present in Rutaceae and Maliaceae families. Several citrus limonoids have recently been subjected to anticancer screening utilizing laboratory animals and human breast cancer cells. The experimental results described that citrus limonoids may provide substantial anticancer actions. The compounds have been shown to be free of toxic effects in animal models, so potential exists for the use of limonoids against human cancer in either natural fruits, in citrus fortified with limonoids, or in purified forms of specific limonoids. Although the initial studies are very promising they have been conducted primarily with in vitro cell culture and animal models. Thus, research is needed to determine whether the limonoids may be useful in preventing or treating cancer in humans. Copyright © 2005 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Avian fruit consumption and seed dispersal in a temperate Australian woodlandAUSTRAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2002Margaret C. Stanley Abstract The effectiveness of avian fruit consumers as seed dispersers of fleshy-fruited plants was studied in a temperate woodland community. As a consequence of the short and overlapping fruiting phenologies of fleshy-fruited plant species in temperate regions of Australia, there are very few avian species that are true specialist frugivores. The relative importance of bird species as fruit consumers was investigated, and how their foraging activities, movements and gut treatment of seeds affected dispersal of viable seeds away from the parent plant was examined. Fruit consumption and consumer seed dispersal capacity were assessed in this study through faecal analyses and by testing the viability of seeds that had passed through the gut of avian consumers. Behavioural observations enabled us to determine the consumption rates of, and quantities of fruit consumed by, various bird species and the amount of time spent feeding. Silvereyes (Zosterops lateralis) were the dominant fruit consumers in the community, although 19 bird species were either observed consuming fruit or provided faecal samples that contained fruit. Silvereyes had a high local abundance at the site and more than 90% of silvereyes'faecal samples contained the seeds of fruiting plants (n = 409). Large numbers of fruit were consumed per visit by silvereyes, particularly for Rhagodia parabolica (fragrant saltbush). Silvereyes consumed an average of four R. parabolica fruit per 5 s and up to a maximum 40 fruit per visit. Viability was high for seeds recovered from silvereyes'faeces (R. parabolica, 94.4% viable; Hymenanthera dentata, 100% viable). However, the number of seeds per faecal sample was high for R. parabolica, which may result in density-dependent seed mortality. Gut passage rate for silvereyes fed R. parabolica fruit in captivity was 31.5 ± 1.9 min. Silvereyes remained at fruiting plants for very short periods (average 50-60 s) and in most cases moved away from the parent plant, primarily toward canopy trees. Given the short visit duration of silvereyes, individuals would have left the parent plant well before seeds passed through the gut. Rhagodia parabolica fruit was consumed by a large number of bird species in the community, including species often thought of as exclusively insectivorous or nectarivorous. These species are likely to disperse viable R. parabolica seeds into microhabitats different from those visited by silvereyes. [source] Fruit Traits in Baboon Diet: A Comparison with Plant Species Characteristics in West AfricaBIOTROPICA, Issue 3 2010Britta K. Kunz ABSTRACT Primate fruit choice among plant species has been attributed to different morphological plant and fruit characteristics. Despite a high abundance of animal-dispersed plant species in the savanna,forest mosaic of West Africa, few data are available on the interplay between morphological fruit traits and primate fruit consumers in this ecosystem. We tested whether olive baboons (Papio anubis) at Comoé National Park, north-eastern Ivory Coast, prefer fruit species with particular characteristics relative to the availability of these traits among the woody plant species at the study site. Specifically we were interested in the suites of traits that best predict fruit choice and seed handling by baboons. The baboons ate fruit/seeds from 74 identified plant species, representing 25 percent of the regional pool of woody plant species. They preferred trees to shrubs and lianas as fruit sources. Otherwise, baboons seemed to consume whatever fruit type, color, and size of fruit and seeds available, though they especially included larger fruit into their diet. Against expectations from the African bird,monkey fruit syndrome of brightly colored drupes and berries, baboons ate mostly species having large, dull-colored fruit. Fruit type and color best described whether baboons included a species into their diet, whereas fruit type and seed size best predicted whether baboons predated upon the seeds of their food plant species. As most plant species at the study site had medium-sized to large fruits and seeds, large frugivores like baboons might be particularly important for plant fitness and plant community dynamics in West African savanna,forest ecosystems. Abstract in French is available at http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/loi/btp [source] Estudio Fenológico de Cactíceas en el Enclave Seco de la Tatacoa, Colombia,BIOTROPICA, Issue 3 2000Adriana Ruiz RESUMEN Durance un año se realizó el estudio fenológico de tres cactáceas columnares Stenocereus griseus (Haw.) Britton & Rose, Pilosocereus sp., Cereus hexagonus (L.) Mill., y una cactácea decumbente, Monvillea cf. smithiana (Britton & Rose) Backeberg., en el enclave seco interandino de La Tatacoa, Colombia. Los polinizadores y/o dispersores de las cactáceas fueron capturados mensualmente y se recolectaron las muestras fecales para la identificatión de los granos de polen y las semillas de los frutos consumidos. La floración de todas las especies fue prolongada y mostraron patrones bimodales, multimodales, o irregulares. La fructificación en todas las especies también se extendió durante todo el año, con un desfase de dos meses con respecto a la floración. Aunque no se encontró una correlatión significativa entre los valores mensuales de precipitatión y la producción de flores y frutos, la floración durante la época seca fue mayor en S. griseus, mientras que Pilosocereus sp. y C. hexagonus mostraron los valores más altos durante la época de lluvias. La productión de frutos también fue estacional, con un incremento durante la época de lluvias para S. griseus y C. hexagonus. La floración y fructificatión en M. cf. smithiana no mostraron diferencias significativas entre la época seca y la lluviosa. Los murciélagos Glossophaga longirostris, Carollia perspicillata, Sturnira lilium y algunas aves como Melanerpes rubricapillus (Picidae) y Mimus gilvus (Mimidae), y una mariposa nocturna (Sphingidae), fueron algunos de los polinizadores y/o consumidores de estas especies de cactáceas. ABSTRACT A one-year phenological study of three columnar cacti, Stenocereus griseus (Haw.) Britton & Rose, Pilosocereus sp., Cereus hexagonus (L.) Mill., and a decumbent cactus Monvillea cf. smithiana (Britton & Rose) Backeberg., was carried out in the Andean arid region of La Tatacoa, Colombia. Pollinators and/or dispersers of the cacti species also were studied monthly, and fecal samples were collected for the identification of pollen and seeds. The flowering of all species was prolonged and showed bimodal, multimodal, or irregular patterns. Fruiting in all species also was prolonged and followed flowering with a lag of less than two months. Although there were no simple correlations between rainfall and flowering or fruiting, flower production during the dry season was higher for 5. griseus, while Pilosocereus sp. and C. hexagonus showed higher flower production during the wet season. Fruit production was also seasonal, with higher production during the wet season for 5. griseus and C. hexagonus. The patterns of flowering and fruiting in M. cf. smithiana showed no relationships with dry and wet seasons. The bats Glossophaga longirostris, Carollia perspicillata, Sturnira lilium, the birds Melanerpes rubricapillus (Picidae) and Mimus gilvus (Mimidae), and moths of the family Sphingidae, were identified as pollinators and/or fruit consumers of these cacti species. [source] | ||||||||||