Degree Name
MS (Master of Science)
Program
Biology
Date of Award
5-2014
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Christopher Liu
Committee Members
Michael Zavada, Thomas Jones, Istvan Karsai
Abstract
Soil seed banks are a reservoir of viable seeds present in the soil in plant communities. They have been studied and characterized in various ways in different habitats. However, these studies are limited to modern seed banks. This study extends seed bank studies to the Paleozoic Era. It was hypothesized that size distribution and seed density in Paleozoic seed banks exhibit similar patterns as in modern seed banks. Seed sizes and seed density of fossil seed from Wise Virginia were estimated. Modern seed bank information was obtained from published data. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis test. The Paleozoic size distribution was predominated by larger seeds and the estimated seed density of 19 200 seeds m-3 falls within the range of modern seed banks but at a higher end of modern seed bank densities. During the Paleozoic they were sufficient to insure regeneration of these economically important forests.
Document Type
Thesis - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Yehnjong, Petra Seka, "Paleozoic Seed Bank and Their Ecological Significance" (2014). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 2316. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/2316
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.