Relations between fruits and disperser assemblages in a Malagasy littoral forest: a community-level approach

2004 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 599-612 ◽  
Author(s):  
An Bollen ◽  
Linda Van Elsacker ◽  
Jörg U. Ganzhorn
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Physical Factors ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Eulemur Fulvus ◽  
Fruit Species ◽  
Littoral Forest ◽  
Fruit Productivity

Interactions among fleshy fruits and frugivore assemblages are presented from a 1-y study in the littoral forest of Sainte Luce, south-eastern Madagascar. This community-level approach allowed us to determine food selection by all consumer species and to evaluate the role different frugivores play in seed dispersal and predation. For this, interactions between 136 consumed fruit species and 13 frugivorous species were studied. Fruit and seed size were the most important physical factors determining food selection of all consumer species. Nutritionally birds favoured and mammals avoided lipid-rich fruits. For Cheirogaleus spp., that go into torpor, there was a trend to select sugar-rich fruit pulp. However, for numerous fruit traits the consumer species had no clear feeding preferences and they seemed to be quite flexible, eating whatever was available. This might be related to unpredictable fruit availability and low fruit productivity in the littoral forest, which may also partially explain the low number of frugivores present. Nevertheless frugivores have different impacts on seed dispersal. Eulemur fulvus collaris is particularly important for the dispersal of large-seeded species, while frugivorous birds and flying foxes ensure plant regeneration between and outside forest fragments. In terms of conservation, heterogeneous seed transport is particularly important for this severely degraded littoral forest.

scholarly journals Conservation status of the littoral forest of south-eastern Madagascar: a review

Oryx ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
An Bollen ◽  
Giuseppe Donati
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Endemic Plant ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Littoral Forest ◽  
Plant Animal Interactions ◽  
Conservation Plans ◽  
Near Future

The littoral forest of the Fort Dauphin region of south-east Madagascar is expected to lose numerous endemic plant and animal species in the near future as a result of deforestation and consequent habitat changes. The disruption of plant-animal interactions is of particular concern. This review describes the conservation status of the littoral forest of Sainte Luce, Fort Dauphin, and examines the role of animal-facilitated seed dispersal in regeneration. The main threats to this habitat are described and possible management implications are discussed in relation to existing initiatives. Protection of the largest remaining forest fragments has been agreed by local communities and a draft plan for forest management is currently under evaluation. Over the next few years plantations will be created to provide local people with wood for fuel and other purposes. An important flying fox Pteropus rufus roost site needs to be included in conservation plans because of its importance for long-distance seed dispersal. Despite the presence of natural barriers, the creation of forest corridors will be crucial for connecting isolated fragments and facilitating genetic exchange between subpopulations. Increased attention needs to be given to the need to promote conservation-related income activities.

Fruits foraging patterns and seed dispersal effect of frugivorous birds on Hippophae rhamnoides sinensis

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xianwen Lu ◽  
Kun Sun ◽  
Ruijun Ma ◽  
Hui Zhang ◽  
Xue Su ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Hippophae Rhamnoides ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Foraging Patterns ◽  
Hippophaë Rhamnoides

scholarly journals Fruit color preference by birds and applications to ecological restoration

2016 ◽  
Vol 76 (4) ◽  
pp. 955-966 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. L. Gagetti ◽  
A. J. Piratelli ◽  
F. C. M. Piña-Rodrigues
Keyword(s):  
Ecological Restoration ◽  
Fruit Color ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Forest Species ◽  
Fruit Consumption ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Color Preferences ◽  
Second Growth ◽  
Modeling Clay ◽  
Effect Of Light

Abstract Ecological restoration aims to retrieve not only the structure but also the functionality of ecosystems. Frugivorous birds may play an important role in this process due to their efficiency in seed dispersal. Color perception in these animals is highly developed, and then the colors of fleshy fruits may provide important clues for choosing plant species for restoration plans. This study aims to integrate bird color preferences and restoration of degraded areas, with an objective to evaluate the potential attractiveness to birds by colored fruits. We carried out an experiment with 384 artificial fruits made of edible modeling clay with the following colors: black, blue, green and red, with 96 fruits of each color in six sites, including four restored areas and two second-growth forest fragments. We also tested the possible effect of light intensity on fruit consumption by color. A total of 120 (38.6%) were assumed to be consumed by birds, and the fruit consumption varied in response to the location and light incidence. Consumption of black and blue fruits was not related to site by chance. Notwithstanding, red and black fruits were consumed significantly more than any other colors, emphasizing bird preference to these colors, regardless of location. Enrichment with shade tolerant shrubs or forest species with black or red fruits may be an alternative way to manage established restorations. In recently established or new restorations, one may introduce pioneer shrubs or short-lived forest species which have blue fruits, but also those having black or red ones.

scholarly journals Seed dispersal of Solanum thomasiifolium Sendtner (Solanaceae) in the Linhares Forest, Espírito Santo state, Brazil

2009 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 1171-1179 ◽  
Author(s):  
João Vasconcellos-Neto ◽  
Lidiamar Barbosa de Albuquerque ◽  
Wesley Rodrigues Silva
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Control Bird ◽  
Brazilian Coast ◽  
Espírito Santo ◽  
Bird Droppings ◽  
Fruit Productivity ◽  
Habitat Colonization ◽  
Viable Seeds ◽  
Espirito Santo ◽  
And Control

The aim of this study was to analyse seed dispersal and establishment of Solanum thomasiifolium in an area of "nativo" vegetation in Espirito Santo state on the southeastern Brazilian coast. Ten species of birds, the crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous), and one species of lizard (Tropidurus torquatus) fed on S. thomasiifolium fruits and dispersed viable seeds in their faeces. The proportional contribution of each of these groups to seed dispersal was 77% (birds), 19% (crab-eating fox) and 4% (lizards). Ants also contributed to seed dispersal. More seeds were deposited in vegetation islands than in the surrounding open areas. Germination rates of seeds collected directly from fruit (control), bird droppings, the faeces of crab-eating foxes and lizards were, respectively, 64, 64, 53, and 80 %. Differences among these rates were all significant, except between birds and control. Lizards were important as seed carriers between nearby islands and they expelled a higher proportion of viable seeds. Birds and the crab-eating foxes did not enhance seed germination, but promoted seed dispersal over a wider area. Plant architecture, fruit productivity, fruit characteristics and the diversity of frugivores are important for the success of S. thomasiifolium in habitat colonization.

scholarly journals Defaunation precipitates the extinction of evolutionarily distinct interactions in the Anthropocene

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
pp. eaav6699 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carine Emer ◽  
Mauro Galetti ◽  
Marco A. Pizo ◽  
Pedro Jordano ◽  
Miguel Verdú
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Ecological Interactions ◽  
Rescue Effect ◽  
History Of ◽  
Local Extinctions ◽  
Functional Features ◽  
Avian Seed Dispersal

Species on Earth are interconnected with each other through ecological interactions. Defaunation can erode those connections, yet we lack evolutionary predictions about the consequences of losing interactions in human-modified ecosystems. We quantified the fate of the evolutionary history of avian–seed dispersal interactions across tropical forest fragments by combining the evolutionary distinctness of the pairwise-partner species, a proxy to their unique functional features. Both large-seeded plant and large-bodied bird species showed the highest evolutionary distinctness. We estimate a loss of 3.5 to 4.7 × 104 million years of cumulative evolutionary history of interactions due to defaunation. Bird-driven local extinctions mainly erode the most evolutionarily distinct interactions. However, the persistence of less evolutionarily distinct bird species in defaunated areas exerts a phylogenetic rescue effect through seed dispersal of evolutionarily distinct plant species.

Traits of perch trees promote seed dispersal of endemic fleshy-fruit species in degraded areas of endangered Mediterranean ecosystems

2019 ◽  
Vol 170 ◽  
pp. 103995
Author(s):  
Alejandro Miranda ◽  
Inao A. Vásquez ◽  
Pablo Becerra ◽  
Cecilia Smith-Ramírez ◽  
Cristian A. Delpiano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Mediterranean Ecosystems ◽  
Fleshy Fruit ◽  
Fruit Species

Seed dispersal effectiveness by frugivorous birds: Identifying functional equivalent species in bird assemblages

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 103-108
Author(s):  
Facundo Xavier Palacio
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Statistical Significance ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Kernel Functions ◽  
Bird Conservation ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Seed Dispersal Effectiveness ◽  
Bird Assemblages ◽  
Functional Equivalent ◽  
Dispersal Effectiveness

Seed dispersal by birds is a pivotal ecosystem function worldwide; yet, the rapid and ongoing global biodiversity loss poses a major threat to this essential ecosystem service. Seed dispersal effectiveness (SDE) is a key outcome of the interaction, represented by the product of seed dispersal quantity (number of seed dispersed) and quality (probability of recruitment of dispersed seeds). Therefore, identifying functional equivalent species in terms of SDE should become a key issue for bird conservation, since the effects of local extinctions on seed dispersal services may be weakened by remaining equivalent species. However, a method to quantitatively identify functional equivalent species in frugivorous bird assemblages is still lacking. To estimate SDE overlap between seed dispersers and assess whether two species may be functionally equivalent, I apply a novel nonparametric niche overlap index based on kernel functions and null models to test its statistical significance. For each bird species, I account for intraspecific variation in seed dispersal effectiveness to obtain a distribution of seed dispersal effectiveness values, an often neglected source of variation in seed dispersal assemblages. Non-significant differences in seed dispersal effectiveness overlap support the hypothesis that two species are functional equivalent, thus playing similar functional roles. The model proposed is applicable to any other quantity or quality component and is independent from the method or sampling design used to quantify SDE. The identification of functional equivalent species in seed dispersal assemblages adds to the theoretical framework of seed dispersal effectiveness and offers new insights into the ecology of the seed dispersal service provided by birds.

Distribution of the community of frugivorous birds along a successional gradient in a tropical dry forest in south-western Mexico

2014 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-68 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Carlos Almazán-Núñez ◽  
María del Coro Arizmendi ◽  
Luis E. Eguiarte ◽  
Pablo Corcuera
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Dry Forest ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Dry Forests ◽  
Bird Abundance ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Seed Predators ◽  
Western Mexico ◽  
Successional Forests

Abstract:Few reports have described the relationship between the distribution of frugivorous birds and vegetation successional changes in dry forests. We assessed the abundance and behaviour of frugivorous birds in early, intermediate and mature dry forests in the Balsas river basin, Guerrero, Mexico. We selected nine dry-forest fragments, three fragments per stage, in these three stages of succession. We analysed the vegetation, estimated bird abundances in 10-min count periods, and recorded the way birds process fruits in circular plots (11–15 plots per fragment, 123 plots in total). Birds were classified as seed predators (15% of all individuals in this study), pulp consumers (15%) or legitimate dispersers (70%). Bird abundance was higher in mature forests in the dry season, while abundance and richness of legitimate dispersers and seed predators were positively related to vegetation complexity. Mature forests have a high vegetation complexity and a high cover ofBurseraspecies that produce fruit during the dry season. During the rains, abundance was higher in early-successional sites when the zoochorous plants produced fruit. Legitimate disperser migrants (i.e.Tyrannus vociferans, Myiarchus cinerascensandM. tyrannulus) were widespread, helping the establishment of zoochorous trees such asBurseraspp. in early-successional forests.

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