DOI: 10.5061/dryad.rn8pk0pnc
title: Data from: Estimation of potential seed dispersal regions based on floating and ballochory of Euphorbia adenochlora capsules

description: The ability to disperse individuals and seeds among subpopulations is
 required for the sustainability of plant metapopulations. Understanding
 the mechanism of seed dispersal is essential for the conservation and
 restoration of plant diversity. In this study, Euphorbia adenochlora
 growing on floodplains was used as a research target to obtain new
 knowledge about hydrochory and ballochory and estimate potential dispersal
 range related to hydrological regimes. A wetland spreading around the Omi
 Maiko Inner Lake in Minami-Komatsu, Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan,
 was the study site. E. adenochlora bear capsules, which have a
 three-chambered hollow structure and which float on water up to 14 days,
 they can be dispersed by hydrochory. The capsule of E. adenochlora splits
 open when it dries, and ejects the seeds at a maximum distance of 4.1 m,
 indicating that the drifting capsule is capable for secondary dispersal by
 ballochory. At the study site, 2% of E. adenochlora subpopulations were
 within the range where fallen capsules could be dispersed by hydrochory,
 and 33% of E. adenochlora subpopulations could have been formed by
 ballochory from the drift line. These subpopulations are crucial for the
 conservation of E. adenochlora population at the study site. Furthermore,
 the fluctuating and maximum water levels from late May to mid-June for E.
 adenochlora were considered important to the formation of new
 subpopulations.
description: <strong>The buoyancy and ballochory
 experiment</strong> In total, 164 capsules of E.
 adenochlora were randomly collected from several subpopulation s at the
 study site on May 23, 2023. Only ripe capsules were collected, although
 there were mixtures of ripe and brown capsules, unripe and green capsules,
 and capsules that had already fallen off. The collected capsules were
 sealed in plastic bags and taken to the laboratory, and floating
 experiments were started on the following day (May 24). Considering that
 some capsules had split open at the beginning of the experiment, 115
 capsules were placed in a container filled with tap water and placed
 indoors. The air conditioning was switched off, so the temperature in the
 room was the same as outdoors, around 25°C. Approximately every 7 days, I
 counted the sunken capsules and ten capsules were randomly selected from
 the sunken capsules, dried on paper towels, and placed in a room (6 m × 7
 m) unaffected by wind and rain. Approximately 7 days after placement, the
 number of capsules that split open and the distance between the dispersed
 seeds and the original place of the capsule was measured.
 <strong>Estimation of the seed dispersal
 potential</strong> The potential seed dispersal
 range of E. adenochlora was estimated based on the water depth of the
 inner lake estimated using the digital terrain model (DTM), the results of
 the buoyancy and ballochory experiments, and the distribution of E.
 adenochlora in 2023. The distribution of E. adenochlora
 in 2023 was recorded using the method described by Niwa (2022); images
 were taken on April 5, 2023 using a DJI Matrice 300 RTK equipped with DJI
 P1. The images were processed by photogrammetry to produce orthomosaic
 images (1.1 mm/pixel), which were displayed in GIS at a scale of 1/15 to
 produce patch polygons of E. adenochlora via visual
 decipherment. DTMs were generated from data measured by
 LiDAR mounted on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The measurements were
 taken on February 28, 2023, during the winter season when vegetation was
 scarce, using the DJI Matrice 300 equipped with DJI L1. The system
 accuracy of DJI L1 is 10 cm horizontal and 5 cm vertical. A flight route
 was created with a flight altitude of 60 m and a side lap of 70%, and
 measurements were taken at a flight speed of 5 m/s. The measured data were
 postprocessed in DJI Terra to obtain a 3D point cloud model, and
 GreenValley LiDAR360 v5.4 was used to remove outliers from the 3D point
 cloud model and classify the ground surface point cloud using default
 parameters. The point cloud of the ground surface was interpolated using
 the triangulated irregular network method to create a 5-cm DTM.
 The water area on May 9, 2023, was estimated by locating the
 drift line on the orthomosaic image and extracting the elevation (water
 level) of the drift line from the DTM. Based on the data published by the
 Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism, the water level
 of Lake Biwa on May 9, which was used as the reference date, and the
 maximum water level of Lake Biwa during the period when capsules can
 float, which was obtained from the buoyancy experiment, were determined.
 The water level difference from the base date was used to estimate the
 water area of the inner lake on the day when the maximum water level was
 reached. The water area of the maximum water level
 during when capsules could float was defined as the area where the
 floating capsules could disperse. In addition, a buffer of the maximum
 seed dispersal distance, derived from the seed dispersal distance
 measurement, was created from the drift line on the day when the maximum
 water level was reached. This buffer was defined as the potential range of
 seed dispersal from the drift line. The area of the patch polygons of E.
 adenochlora in the water area and buffer on the day when the maximum water
 level was achieved was tabulated.
description: # Estimation of potential seed dispersal regions based on floating and
 ballochory of <i>Euphorbia adenochlora</i> capsules
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.rn8pk0pnc](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.rn8pk0pnc) ## Description of the data and file structure 1.    The ability to disperse individuals and seeds among subpopulations is required for the sustainability of plant metapopulations. Understanding the mechanism of seed dispersal is essential for the conservation and restoration of plant diversity. 2.    In this study, *Euphorbia adenochlora* growing on floodplains was used as a research target to obtain new knowledge about hydrochory and ballochory and estimate potential dispersal range related to hydrological regimes. A wetland spreading around the Omi Maiko Inner Lake in Minami-Komatsu, Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan, was the study site. ### Files and variables #### File: The\_buoyancy\_and\_ballochory\_experiment.xlsx **Description:** Result of the buoyancy and ballochory experimen ##### Variables * Distance: The distance between the dispersed seeds and the original place of the capsule was measured. * Split: The number of capsules that split open * Floating: Number of floating capsules. #### File: GIS.zip **Description:** Result of 2.4. Estimation of the seed dispersal potential The images were processed by photogrammetry to produce orthomosaic images (1.1 mm/pixel), which were displayed in GIS at a scale of 1/15 to produce patch polygons of E. adenochlora via visual decipherment.