Tropical forest seeds use three strategies to survive

The oldest living seeds found on Earth germinated after resting more than 30,000 years in Arctic soils. But in the humid tropics, seeds do not last. "A long-lived seed in the tropics is probably only a few decades old. This may not seem like much time, but it is critical to reestablish trees after deforestation and ensure species' survival," said Camilo Zalamea, post-doctoral fellow and lead author of a new paper in Ecology from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) in Panama.

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