02365naa a2200229 a 450000100080000000500110000800800410001902000220006002400560008210000160013824500810015426000090023552016950024465000150193965000170195465000150197165000120198665300200199865300230201870000180204177300760205921266562020-11-17       2020    bl uuuu     u00u1 u    #d  a978-3-030-17854-37 ahttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-17854-3_50-12DOI1 aSEAL, C. E.  aGermination functional traits in seeds of halophytes.h[electronic resource]  c2020  aMany families of halophytes rely on seeds for their natural regeneration. As a functional trait, germination is highly responsive to the environment including salinity. For some halophyte species, their seeds may avoid periods of high salinity through dormancy, which may be present in only one seed morph in species with heteromorphic seeds, and can be influenced by the maternal environment and transgenerational effects. Avoidance strategies are plastic and can vary among and within species as well as with habitat. Other species of halophytes are highly tolerant to salinity, with germination occurring in conditions more than twice the concentration of sodium chloride found in seawater, utilizing physiological mechanisms such as ion compartmentalization and osmotic adjustment. However, these strategies are not exclusive to halophytes and are sometimes found in germinating seeds of salt-tolerant non-halophytes. Quantification of the germination niche to the environment can be made using the population-based germination models thermal time (temperature), hydro time (water potential), and halo time (salinity). These models estimate environmental thresholds to germination and germination rate changes with the environment. Of the few examples of applying these models to salinity, the germination of halophytes appears no more tolerant to salinity than non-halophytes. More frequent application of these models is required to build a global view. As demonstrated by a case study in the Brazilian Caatinga (a semiarid ecosystem), validation of these germination models in situ, combined with climate and soil data, can be used to predict germination responses to climate change.  aHalophytes  aGerminação  aSalinidade  aSemente  aPlanta halofita  aTraços funcionais1 aDANTAS, B. F.  tIn: GRIGORE, M. N. (Ed.). Handbook of halophytes. Cham: Springer, 2020.