Support is requested for a two-year study of seed dispersal and seedling establishment in abandoned pastures in the Chacocente Dry Forest Preserve in southwest Nicaragua. The abundance, richness, diversity, species composition, and other ecological traits of the seed rain, soil seed bank, seed germination, and seedling and sapling assemblages in abandoned pastures will be evaluated against the distribution of those characteristics in nearby intact forest. Rarefaction and simulation techniques will be used to generate the appropriate null distributions for the comparisons. Results of the proposed research will (1) enhance our understanding of the natural constraints to dispersal and establishment of forest species in abandoned pastures; (2) contribute to our ability to predict patterns of regeneration based on source assemblages; and (3) provide critical information required for efforts to accelerate or enrich the restoration of tropical forest vegetation.
