Effects of burial and coating on acorn survival of Quercus variabilis and Quercus serrata under rodent predation
包衣、埋藏的栓皮栎和枹栎种子在鼠类捕食下的存留

Rodent predation on acorn is very intensive, which affects the regeneration of plant. Quercus variabilis and Q. serrata are the dominant tree species in evergreen broadleaved forests in Southwest China. They are not only of great economic value, but also favorable for local forestation. In this paper, their acorns were under four treatments, i.e., coated but not buried, coated and buried, buried but not coated, and neither coated nor buried, and the fates of these acorns were followed up. The results showed that the median survival time of the acorns differed significantly with the treatments. The survival duration of coated and buried acorns was significantly longer than that of the acorns neither coated nor buried. Burial significantly reduced the predation of acorn by rodents, and coating effectively protected the acorns from predation. Both coating and burial increased the probability of acorns survival and seedlings recruitment. The results of this study could be used for artificial seeding plantation to increase the survival rate of forestation.