( Special Sections in Volume 6, Issues 2 and 3 )

Edited by Tomás A. CARLO (Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University), Ahimsa CAMPOS-ARCEIZ (School of Geography, The University of Nottingham, Malaysia Campus, Malaysia) and Michael A. STEELE (Department of Biology, Wilkes University, USA).

Frugivory and Seed Dispersal studies have become an integrative task that encompasses zoology, botany, physiology, ecology, genetics and conservation biology. Human-driven loss of biodiversity refers not only to the loss of species, populations, and genetic diversity, but also to the loss of ecological interactions that are central to ecosystem function. One of these key interactions is the process of seed dispersal -- the movement of seeds away from their parent plants -- often mediated by frugivorous or granivorous animals engaged in a tight plant-animal mutualism bearing profound implications for the regeneration, maintenance, and conservation of terrestrial ecosystems.

A rich combination of the most prominent peoplein the field, young emerging researchers, and “hungry” graduate studentsassembledat FSD 2010. It was precisely among the café au lait and croissants of FSD 2010 coffee breaks that this special issue was forged and its contents initially outlined. The momentum generated at the meeting seemed like an ideal opportunity to capitalize on this diversity of expertise, study systems, levels of organization, and experience. The result is this special section of Integrative Zoology on Frugivory and Seed Dispersal. The pieces published here contain a high content of research on plants, and animal-plant interactions that may seem unusual for a more traditional zoological journal. In fact, the intersection of such cross-disciplinary boundaries captures the very essence of frugivory and seed dispersal; ecologically and evolutionarily speaking, the lives of frugivorous animals and fruiting plants are so intimately intertwined they cannot be understood in isolation of one another. Thus, Integrative Zoology is the most appropriate journal for this topic.

Inspired by the FSD2010 Symposium, up to 12 contributors submitted their manuscripts to Integrative Zoology. Their submission were published in special sections in two successive issues, Integrative Zoology, Volume 6, Issue 2 and Issue 3.

In the best spirit of Integrative Zoology, we hope that this special section will continue to fuel integrative research in this exciting and relevant field and, in some small way, contribute to a broader appreciation for the process of seed dispersal.
I.　  Special Section on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal in Volume 6 Issue 2  (2011)

Effect of logging on rodent scatter-hoarding dynamics in tropical forests: implications for plant recruitment (pages 74–80) Gabriel GUTIÉRREZ-GRANADOS

Habitat differences in dung beetle assemblages in an African savanna–forest ecotone: implications for secondary seed dispersal (pages 81–96) Britta K. KUNZ and Frank-Thorsten KRELL

Seed dispersal in Hong Kong, China: past, present and possible futures (pages 97–109) Richard T. CORLETT

Frugivory and seed dispersal in the Galápagos: what is the state of the art? (pages 110–129) Ruben HELENO, Stephen BLAKE, Patricia JARAMILLO, Anna TRAVESET, Pablo VARGAS and Manuel NOGALES

II.　  Special Section on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal in Volume 6 Issue 3  (2011)

Predation of cassowary dispersed seeds: is the cassowary an effective disperser? (pages 168–177) Matt G. BRADFORD and David A. WESTCOTT

Fruit availability, frugivore satiation and seed removal in 2 primate-dispersed tree species (pages 178–194) Sandra RATIARISON and Pierre-Michel FORGET

Plant-frugivore interactions in an intact tropical forest in north-east Thailand (pages 195–212) Wangworn SANKAMETHAWEE, Andrew J. PIERCE, George A. GALE and Britta Denise HARDESTY

Internal dispersal of seed-inhabiting insects by vertebrate frugivores: a review and prospects (pages 213–221) Ángel HERNÁNDEZ

Effectiveness of seed dispersal by ants in a Neotropical tree (pages 222–226) Britta Denise HARDESTY

Scatter-hoarding rodents as secondary seed dispersers of a frugivore-dispersed tree Scleropyrum wallichianum in a defaunated Xishuangbanna tropical forest, China (pages 227–234) Lin CAO, Zhishu XIAO, Cong GUO and Jin CHEN

Does multiple seed loading in Blue Jays result in selective dispersal of smaller acorns? (pages 235–243) Andrew W. BARTLOW, Michael KACHMAR, Nathanael LICHTI, Robert K. SWIHART, Jeffrey A. STRATFORD and Michael A. STEELE

Inter-specific and intra-specific variability in fruit color preference in two species of Turdus (pages 244–258) Asier R. LARRINAGA

For more information on the FSD2010 Symposium, please see: http://www.fsd2010.org/

For more information on the 6th International Symposium-Workshop on Frugivores and Seed Dispersal (FSD2015) in KwaZulu, South Africa, 21 to 25 June 2015, please see: http://www.fsd2015.org/