scholarly journals Loss of dominant caterpillar genera in a protected tropical forest

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle M. Salcido ◽  
Matthew L. Forister ◽  
Humberto Garcia Lopez ◽  
Lee A. Dyer
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Insect Diversity ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Low Latitude ◽  
Tropical Diversity ◽  
Primary Consumers ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Weather Anomalies

ABSTRACTReports of biodiversity loss have increasingly focused on the abundance and diversity of insects, but it is still unclear if substantive insect diversity losses are occurring in intact low-latitude forests. We collected 22 years of plant-caterpillar-parasitoid data in a protected tropical forest and found reductions in diversity and density of these insects that appear to be partly driven by a changing climate and weather anomalies. The decline in parasitism represents a reduction in an important ecosystem service: enemy control of primary consumers. The consequences of these changes are in many cases irreversible and are likely to be mirrored in nearby forests; overall declines in the region will have negative consequences for surrounding agriculture. The decline of important tropical taxa and associated ecosystem function illuminates the consequences of numerous threats to global insect diversity and provides additional impetus for research on tropical diversity.

Are local losses of biodiversity causing degraded ecosystem function?

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Vellend
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Species Interactions ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Large Degree ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Degraded Ecosystem ◽  
Biodiversity Change ◽  
Local Extirpation

This chapter highlights the scale dependence of biodiversity change over time and its consequences for arguments about the instrumental value of biodiversity. While biodiversity is in decline on a global scale, the temporal trends on regional and local scales include cases of biodiversity increase, no change, and decline. Environmental change, anthropogenic or otherwise, causes both local extirpation and colonization of species, and thus turnover in species composition, but not necessarily declines in biodiversity. In some situations, such as plants at the regional scale, human-mediated colonizations have greatly outnumbered extinctions, thus causing a marked increase in species richness. Since the potential influence of biodiversity on ecosystem function and services is mediated to a large degree by local or neighborhood species interactions, these results challenge the generality of the argument that biodiversity loss is putting at risk the ecosystem service benefits people receive from nature.

scholarly journals Threatened Neotropical seasonally dry tropical forest: evidence of biodiversity loss in sap-sucking herbivores over 75 years

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Pinedo-Escatel ◽  
G. Moya-Raygoza ◽  
C. H. Dietrich ◽  
J. N. Zahniser ◽  
L. Portillo
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Tropical Forests ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Distribution Patterns ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Data Matrix ◽  
Dry Tropical Forest ◽  
Seasonally Dry ◽  
Strong Trend ◽  
Arthropod Species

Tropical forests cover 7% of the earth's surface and hold 50% of known terrestrial arthropod species. Alarming insect declines resulting from human activities have recently been documented in temperate and tropical ecosystems worldwide, but reliable data from tropical forests remain sparse. The sap-sucking tribe Athysanini is one herbivore group sensitive to anthropogenic perturbation and the largest within the diverse insect family Cicadellidae distributed in America's tropical forests. To measure the possible effects of deforestation and related activities on leafhopper biodiversity, a survey of 143 historic collecting localities was conducted to determine whether species documented in the Mexican dry tropical forests during the 1920s to 1940s were still present. Biostatistical diversity analysis was performed to compare historical to recent data on species occurrences. A data matrix of 577 geographical records was analysed. In total, 374 Athysanini data records were included representing 115 species of 41 genera. Historically, species richness and diversity were higher than found in the recent survey, despite greater collecting effort in the latter. A strong trend in species decline was observed (−53%) over 75 years in this endangered seasonally dry ecosystem. Species completeness was dissimilar between historic and present data. Endemic taxa were significantly less important and represented in the 1920s–1940s species records. All localities surveyed in the dry tropical forest are disturbed and reduced by modern anthropogenic processes. Mexico harbours highly endemic leafhopper taxa with a large proportion of these inhabiting the dry forest. These findings provide important data for conservation decision making and modelling of distribution patterns of this threatened seasonally dry tropical ecosystem.

Biodiversity–ecosystem function

2021 ◽  
pp. 137-146
Author(s):  
Simon F. Thrush ◽  
Judi E. Hewitt ◽  
Conrad A. Pilditch ◽  
Alf Norkko
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Functional Performance ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Soft Sediment ◽  
Multiple Functions ◽  
Service Relationships ◽  
Biodiversity And Ecosystem Function ◽  
Up Scaling

This chapter looks at the links between biodiversity and ecosystem function in soft sediments to help understand the implications of biodiversity loss on ecosystem services. The chapter contains a focus on the challenges in developing real-world tests of biodiversity–ecosystem function (BEF) relationships. The various forms of BEF relationships, their implications and the different elements of biodiversity that link to function are described. Given the multiple functions that occur in soft-sediment ecosystems, this has important implications for the assessment and implications of BEF relationships and functional performance in the up-scaling of BEF relationships. The role of BEF in underpinning many ecosystem services and the interconnections in biodiversity and ecosystem service relationships close out the chapter.

scholarly journals On the inconsistency of pollinator species traits for predicting either response to agricultural intensification or functional contribution

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ignasi Bartomeus ◽  
Daniel P. Cariveau ◽  
Tina Harrison ◽  
Rachael Winfree
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Crop Pollination ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Pollination Services ◽  
Species Response ◽  
Pollination Systems

AbstractThe response and effect trait framework, if supported empirically, would provide for powerful and general predictions about how biodiversity loss will lead to loss in ecosystem function. This framework proposes that species traits will explain how different species respond to disturbance (i.e. response traits) as well as their contribution to ecosystem function (i.e. effect traits). However, predictive response and effect traits remain elusive for most systems. Here, we present detailed data on crop pollination services provided by native, wild bees to explore the role of six commonly used species traits in determining how crop pollination is affected by increasing agricultural intensification. Analyses were conducted in parallel for three crop systems (watermelon, cranberry, and blueberry) located within the same geographical region (mid-Atlantic USA). Bee species traits did not strongly predict species’ response to agricultural intensification, and the few traits that were weakly predictive were not consistent across crops. Similarly, no trait predicted species’ overall functional contribution in any of the three crop systems, although body size was a good predictor of per capita efficiency in two systems. So far, most studies looking for response or effect traits in pollination systems have found weak and often contradicting links. Overall we were unable to make generalizable predictions regarding species responses to land-use change and its effect on the delivery of ecosystem services. Pollinator traits may be useful for understanding ecological processes in some systems, but thus far the promise of traits-based ecology has yet to be fulfilled for pollination ecology.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of protected areas in conserving tropical forest birds

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor Cazalis ◽  
Karine Princé ◽  
Jean-Baptiste Mihoub ◽  
Joseph Kelly ◽  
Stuart H.M. Butchart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Forest Birds ◽  
Bird Diversity ◽  
Bird Species Richness ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Global Biodiversity ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

AbstractProtected areas are the cornerstones of global biodiversity conservation efforts1,2, but to fulfil this role they must be effective at conserving the ecosystems and species that occur within their boundaries. This is particularly imperative in tropical forest hotspots, regions that concentrate a major fraction of the world’s biodiversity while also being under intense human pressure3–5. But these areas strongly lack adequate monitoring datasets enabling to contrast biodiversity in protected areas with comparable unprotected sites6,7. Here we take advantage of the world’s largest citizen science biodiversity dataset – eBird8 – to quantify the extent to which protected areas in eight tropical forest biodiversity hotspots are effective at retaining bird diversity, and to understand the underlying mechanisms. We found generally positive effects of protection on the diversity of bird species that are forest-dependent, endemic to the hotspots, or threatened or Near Threatened, but not on overall bird species richness. Furthermore, we show that in most of the hotspots examined this is driven by protected areas preventing both forest loss and degradation. Our results support calls for increasing the extent and strengthening the management efforts within protected areas to reduce global biodiversity loss9–11.

scholarly journals Linking Terrestrial and Aquatic Biodiversity to Ecosystem Function Across Scales, Trophic Levels, and Realms

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyla M. Dahlin ◽  
Phoebe L. Zarnetske ◽  
Quentin D. Read ◽  
Laura A. Twardochleb ◽  
Aaron G. Kamoske ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Biodiversity Loss ◽  
Relative Strength ◽  
Trophic Levels ◽  
Aquatic Biodiversity ◽  
Patterns And Processes ◽  
The Impact

Global declines in biodiversity have the potential to affect ecosystem function, and vice versa, in both terrestrial and aquatic ecological realms. While many studies have considered biodiversity-ecosystem function (BEF) relationships at local scales within single realms, there is a critical need for more studies examining BEF linkages among ecological realms, across scales, and across trophic levels. We present a framework linking abiotic attributes, productivity, and biodiversity across terrestrial and inland aquatic realms. We review examples of the major ways that BEF linkages form across realms–cross-system subsidies, ecosystem engineering, and hydrology. We then formulate testable hypotheses about the relative strength of these connections across spatial scales, realms, and trophic levels. While some studies have addressed these hypotheses individually, to holistically understand and predict the impact of biodiversity loss on ecosystem function, researchers need to move beyond local and simplified systems and explicitly investigate cross-realm and trophic interactions and large-scale patterns and processes. Recent advances in computational power, data synthesis, and geographic information science can facilitate studies spanning multiple ecological realms that will lead to a more comprehensive understanding of BEF connections.

scholarly journals Importance of Wetland Refugia in Agricultural Landscape Provided Based on the Community Characteristics of Small Terrestrial Mammals

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 358-368
Author(s):  
Michaela Kalivodová ◽  
Róbert Kanka ◽  
Peter Miklós ◽  
Veronika Hulejová Sládkovičová ◽  
Dávid Žiak
Keyword(s):  
Food Webs ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Clethrionomys Glareolus ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Terrestrial Mammals ◽  
Living Space ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Release Method

AbstractIntensification of agriculture has led, among other negative consequences, also to drying out of wetlands. Nevertheless, some of the wetland biotopes were preserved as small spots. This paper discusses the importance of those areas serving as refugia for small terrestrial mammals. Because small terrestrial mammals in the middle of food webs, they serve as an indicator for the presence of food sources (plants and invertebrates) and suggest the potential of the area as a living space for predators. The experiment took place at lowland agricultural landscape with wetland patches in west and west-east Slovakia (Záhorská and Podunajská nížina lowlands) using catch-mark-release method from 2015 to 2017. The importance was assessed according to abundance, biodiversity, persistence of species during seasons and habitat preference of small terrestrial mammals and equitability of the biotopes. Overall 368 individuals belonging to 12 species were recorded. The lowest abundance and diversity were registered at field biotopes where Apodemus sylvaticus was the most abundant. Microtus arvalis, Clethrionomys glareolus and Sorex araneus dominate at wetland biotopes. The higher biodiversity and abundance of small mammals were recorded at the wetland refugia. The results, together with position of small mammals in food webs, lead to conclusion that the wetland refugia are important habitats for the overall preservation of biodiversity and maintaining them is a part of the strategy for sustainable agriculture.

scholarly journals Vertical stratification of Diptera abundance and species richness in an Amazonian tropical forest

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dalton Souza Amorim ◽  
Brian V. Brown ◽  
Danilo Boscolo ◽  
Rosaly Ale-Rocha ◽  
Deivys Moises Alvarez-Garcia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Tropical Diversity ◽  
High Species Richness ◽  
Associated Species ◽  
Two Peaks ◽  
Early Cenozoic ◽  
Precise Assessment

Abstract Measuring species richness of tropical forests is a major challenge. Such measurement is a key information in many senses, from an evolutionary perspective to conservation of threatened, fragile habitats. Data has gradually shown that the canopy of tropical forest is a hugely complex component of the forest, but a precise assessment of the diversity of megadiverse groups in the canopy is still wanting. We collected large samples of insects were along a period of two weeks using 6-meter Gressitt-style Malaise traps set at five heights on a metal tower in a tropical forest north of Manaus—one trap at the ground level, one trap above the canopy (32 m) and three traps at intermediate levels (8, 16 and 24 m). The samples contained 37,778 specimens belonging to 18 order of insects. Fifty-seven families of flies (Diptera) were found, 39 of which were identified to 368 genera and 856 species. The species of these 39 families of flies fit into eight patterns of vertical distribution of abundance and species richness of the fauna, with patterns of one or two peaks of species at different levels. A total of 527 (61.6%) of the 856 fly species recognized in the samples were not collected at the ground level. The canopy-associated species of Diptera showed a high species richness and a relatively low abundance indicating that they represent vulnerable components of tropical diversity. The biology of the flies families and genera we collected in the canopy suggest that the evolution of flies went through a unique process: independent clades of Diptera explored in different ways the resources originated along the very evolution of the angiosperm forest canopy along the early Cenozoic. Unlike other primarily phytophagous groups of insects, flies radiated into a large array of biologies associated with the canopies: parasitoids, hematophagous, phytosaprophagous, kleptoparasites, sap feeders, gall-makers etc. The results only stress the need of additional strategies to protect this diversity.

scholarly journals KEANEKARAGAMAN HAMA DAN MUSUH ALAMI PADA TANAMAN PALA (Myristica fragrans HOUTT.) DI ACEH SELATAN

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumeinika Fitria Lizmah ◽  
Agustinur Agustinur
Keyword(s):  
Natural Enemies ◽  
Wiener Index ◽  
Insect Diversity ◽  
Light Traps ◽  
Yellow Traps ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Myristica Fragrans Houtt ◽  
Plantation Crops ◽  
Number Of Individuals ◽  
Insect Sampling

The diversity of insects, both pests and natural enemies in each place differently is influenced by environmental factors and technical culture of cultivation. This study aims to determine the diversity of pests and natural enemies in nutmeg plants in South Aceh. Insect sampling was carried out at nutmeg plantations in South Aceh, followed by identification in the Faculty of Agriculture laboratory, Teuku Umar University. Methods of data collection using purposive sampling, using light traps, pit fall traps, yellow traps. The Parameters of this study are number of individuals, families, and insect diversity obtained. The results showed that the abundance of pests and natural enemies in Meukek was higher compared to Samadua. The Shannon-Wiener index shows a variety of pests in Meukek high (H'=3.029) and moderate in Samadua (H'=2,788). While the diversity of natural enemies in both Meukek and Samadua is relatively low, namely H'= 1.230 and H' = 1.049. Planting patterns and crop management affect the abundance and diversity of both pests and natural enemies in both locations. Plantations in Meukek tend to be heterogeneous which are planted with a variety of plantation crops (polyculture) while nutmeg plants in the same two are relatively homogeneous (monoculture of nutmeg). Keywords: diversity, pests, parasitoids, predators, nutmeg

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