EXPLORE • OBSERVE • EXPLAIN

Seeds on the move.

One forest. Four ways to travel. Watch where new plants grow as time passes.

FOREST & RIVER HABITAT

✦ Large symbol: parent plant✦ Small symbol: seedling• Moving dot: seedOrange trail: animal carrying seeds

Why do seeds need to be dispersed?

Seed dispersal reduces overcrowding and competition between young plants, and with the parent plant, for light, mineral salts, water and space. This leads to healthier plant growth.

✅ Check the context: The competition is between the young plants that grow, not between seeds. Say 'young plants'/'seedlings', not 'seeds'. Green plants make their own food, so they do not compete for food. Avoid the word “prevent” which is too strong.

How do [specific features] on a fruit or seed help in its dispersal?

ANSWER PLAN
Name the feature(s) and describe how the features help the fruit or seed move away from the parent plant.

0✦ Wind

A light fruit or seed with wing-like or hair-like structures has a large surface area, so it stays in the air longer and is carried farther away from the parent plant by the wind.

Angsana fruitTap to explore features ▾

Look for: a flat, wing-like structure surrounding the seed-bearing centre.

Usual wind-dispersal features: light fruits or seeds with wings or hair-like structures. These increase surface area and help them stay in the air longer.

0● Water

Air spaces or an air-trapping fibrous husk helps the fruit/seed float on water. A waterproof covering keeps water out of the fruit/seed. Moving water carries the fruit/seed away from the parent plant.

Coconut fruitTap to explore features ▾

Look for: a thick, fibrous husk and outer covering.

Usual features: air spaces or an air-trapping fibrous husk help the fruit float; a waterproof covering keeps water out. Not all water-dispersed fruits have a fibrous husk.

0◆ Animals

Animals eating fruit
Clue: fleshy, brightly coloured, sweet-smelling. The fleshy or juicy fruit attracts animals to eat it. Some seeds pass through the animal's digestive system and are passed out in droppings some distance away from the parent plant. Some seeds may be spat out or dropped by the animal.

Animals carrying fruit
Clue: hooks or sticky hairs. Hooks on the fruit cling to the fur or other coverings of the animal. The fruit is carried away by the animal and later falls off some distance away from the parent plant.

Guava: eaten by animalsTap to explore features ▾

Look for: fleshy fruit with seeds inside.

Usual features: fleshy or juicy fruits; many become brightly coloured or give off a smell when ripe. Animals eat the fruit and may carry the seeds away before passing them out, spitting them out or dropping them.

Hooked fruit: carried by animalsTap to explore features ▾

Look for: hooks on the fruit surface.

Usual features: hooks or sticky hairs that attach to an animal’s fur or other coverings. The fruit travels with the animal and may fall off elsewhere.

0✚ Splitting or explosive action

A dry fruit splits open with force, scattering its seeds a distance away from the parent plant.

Rubber fruitTap to explore features ▾

Look for: a dry fruit wall that splits open to release seeds.

Usual features: the ripe fruit dries and splits open with force, scattering its seeds away from the parent plant.

Illustrated examples, not photographs. Not to scale. Tap an image to open or close its feature guide. Examples show different adaptations; a fruit does not need every feature listed.

Learn more: NParks: Angsana · Coconut · Rubber tree

✅ Check the context: First decide if the question mentions a fruit or a seed. Not every water-dispersed fruit has a fibrous husk.

Think like a scientist: How can the pattern of seedlings help you work out how the seeds were dispersed?
Counts show seedlings. This is a simplified model, not a prediction of exact growth times or distances. Only some seeds grow into seedlings; suitable conditions are needed. Animal routes are simplified wandering paths; real animals also respond to food, shelter and obstacles. Young plants do not produce seeds in this model.