Chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) seed dispersal in an afromontane forest:: Microhabitat influences on the postdispersal fate of large seeds

We examined the postdispersal fate of large seeds (>= 5 mm) dispersed by chimpanzees in all afromontane forest to evaluate aspects of the effetiveness of seed dispersal by chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes. We assessed the influence of six microhabitat characteristics oil seed persistence and germination in seeds dispersed in chimpanzee feces and "wadgcs." A total of 257 fecal samples and 56 wadges were located over a 4-mo period by tracking a semi-habituated chimpanzee community on day follows. Forty-nine (19.1%) of the fecal samples contained large seeds from five different tree species. The majority of fecal samples with seeds contained seeds front the mature forest tree Olea capensis (Oleaceae) (83.7%). Forty-two wadges (75%) contained seeds from the mature forest tree Syzygium guineense (Myrtaceae). Seeds were monitored at their deposition site for removal and germination up to 49 d Following deposition. We collected data oil the microhabitat surrounding each fecal and wadge sample. Multivariate analyses indicated that while fecal and wadge samples were nor clustered into particular microhabitats, there was little overlap in the microhabitats in which wadges and fecal samples were deposited. Significantly more seeds persisted over 49 d in wadges (67.9%) than in feces (30.3%). Elevation was the only microhabitat variable determined to have a significant influence oil seed persistence, whereas slope was determined to have a significant influence oil germination.