Abstract:As one important fruit plant,wild cherry (Prunus pseudocerasus) is widely distributed in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests in China.In 2007 and 2008,fruit removal by frugivorous birds and its potential impacts on seed dispersal and natural regeneration of wild cherry were investigated in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Dujiangyan City of Sichuan Province,Southwest China.The results showed that the falling peak of ripe fruits occurred from late April to early May,but the proportion of fruits removed by birds was significantly lower in 2007(4.0%±1.0%) than in 2008(27.7%±5.7%).In the study site,we identified at least 16 bird species consuming cherry fruits or seeds,which belong to the following three functional groups based on their fruit/seed handling behaviors:legitimate seed dispersers,which swallowed whole fruits and defecated intact seeds away from parent plants through the end of gut,including Pycnontus sinensis,Spizixos semitorques,Hypisipetes leucocephalus,Garrulax snnio and Urocissa erythorhyncha; pulp consumers,which only consumed fruit pulps but dropped seeds under parent plants,e.g.Alcippe morrisonia and Zosterops iaponicus; and pure seed consumers such as Carpopacus erythrinus and Paradoxornis gularis. Among the legitimate seed dispersers,the total visiting frequency by three Pycnonotidae birds (P.sinensis,S.semitorques and H.leucocephalus) was very high in both years,up to 55.3%(2007) and 35.3%(2008),respectively.This suggests that the three Pycnonotidae birds are main seed dispersers to wild cherry and could have a substantial impact on spatial patterns and natural regeneration of wild cherry in the Dujiangyan forest.