Land use/cover, landforms and fragmentation patterns in a tropical dry forest in the southern Pacific region of Mexico

Background. Tropical dry forests (TDF) provide numerous environmental services to its residents; this has led them to be humanized landscapes subjected to chronic disturbance with a high risk of disappearing.Research question. To establish the relationship of vegetation structure and composition of a chronically disturbed TDF, with some environmental factors and the intensity of agricultural land use.Study site and period of research. Our study was conducted during six months (July through November) in the TDF of the community of San Nicolas Zoyatlan (Guerrero, Mexico); a territory with a history of over 500 years of agricultural use. This use has led to a complex mosaic of vegetation fragments.Methods. A selection of 36 fragments was studied to determine vegetation structure and composition as well as environmental factors. Representative plants from sampled areas were collected. Data gathered was explored with regression and multivariate statistical analysis techniques.Results. 59 families, 178 genera and 279 species were recorded. Species richness varied widely among fragments, in general with a low dominance and high turnover of species. Slope was the only factor that showed a solid relationship with vegetation variables. Three groups of fragments were established and the statistical differences between them were explained by the duration of fallow. The fragments with longer fallow period showed the best conditions in vegetation variables and 66.9% of the species were found in them.Conclusions. Composition and structure of vegetation were related to intensity of agricultural land use. Although there is a process of impoverishment, vegetation dynamics involving species of the Fabaceae, Asteraceae and Burseraceae families show a potential for their use in the environmental restoration of Zoyatlan.

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Effects of landscape composition and site land-use intensity on secondary succession in a tropical dry forest

Forest Ecology and Management ◽

10.1016/j.foreco.2020.118818 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 482 ◽

pp. 118818 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Nathalia Pérez-Cárdenas ◽

Francisco Mora ◽

Felipe Arreola-Villa ◽

Víctor Arroyo-Rodríguez ◽

Patricia Balvanera ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Secondary Succession ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Landscape Composition ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Land Use Intensity

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Effects of land use on soil erosion in a tropical dry forest ecosystem, Chamela watershed, Mexico

CATENA ◽

10.1016/j.catena.2005.11.004 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 65 (2) ◽

pp. 107-117 ◽

Cited By ~ 64

Author(s):

H. Cotler ◽

M.P. Ortega-Larrocea

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Soil Erosion ◽

Forest Ecosystem ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Effects Of Land Use

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MAMIFEROS EN DOS LOCALIDADES DE SELVA SECA EN EL ESTADO DE GUERRERO

Revista Mexicana de Mastozoologia ◽

10.22201/ie.20074484e.2016.6.2.232 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 50

Author(s):

Alejandro Marín ◽

Gerardo Ceballos ◽

Jesús Pacheco

Keyword(s):

Latin America ◽

Endangered Species ◽

Conservation Status ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Pacific Region ◽

Forest Patches ◽

Mexican Pacific ◽

Global Context ◽

Terrestrial Mammals

RESUMENLas selvas secas son uno de los ecosistemas más diversos y amenazados en Latinoamérica. Se realizó un muestreo de la mastofauna terrestre en dos localidades de las selvas secas del estado de Guerrero en el Pacífico mexicano. En total se registraron 44 especies de mamíferos terrestres que pertenecen a 20 familias y 8 órdenes, lo que representa el 9% de la mastofauna terrestre del país y el 29% para el estado de Guerrero. De las especies encontradas, 9 son endémicas a México. Sobre el estado de conservación, 3 de ellas se encuentran amenazadas y 3 en peligro de extinción de acuerdo a la lista mexicana de especies en riesgo. A nivel mundial, 2 especies son consideradas vulnerables. Destacan los registros del zorrillo pigmeo (Spilogale pygmaea), la rata leñera (Hodomys alleni) y el jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi). Para los murciélagos Musonycteris harrisoni y Myotis carteri se amplía su rango de distribución con los registros aquí presentados. La diversidad de mamíferos registrada enfatiza la importancia de conservar parches de selva en ambientes altamente urbanizados, así como la necesidad de estrategias que incrementen la conectividad entre los diferentes parches y que consideren las amenazas urbanas a la fauna en estos sitios.Palabras clave: Acapulco de Juárez, Guerrero, mamíferos, Omitlán, selva seca.ABSTRACTThe tropical dry forest represents one of the most diverse and threatened ecosystems in Latin America. We carried out a survey of the terrestrial mammals’ community in two locations at the Mexican Pacific region of dry forest in Guerrero state. We registered 44 species of mammals belonging to 20 families and 8 orders, representing 9 % of Mexico’s terrestrial mammals and 29 % of Guerrero’s. About 9 species of the mammals reported in this study are endemic to Mexico. About the conservation status, 3 species are classified as “threatened” and 3 as “endangered” in the Mexican list of endangered species. In the global context, 2 species are listed as vulnerable. Also, the presence of the pygmy skunk (Spilogale pygmaea), the allen’s woodrat (Hodomys alleni) and the presence of the jaguaroundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi), is noteworthy. With the records in this study, we extend the known distribution of the bats Musonycteris harrisoni and Myotis carteri. The great diversity and peculiarity of the found mammals emphasize the importance of conserve forest patches in highly urbanized, also the need of strategies that increment the connectivity between the patches and consider the urban threats, as roadkill’s, in these sites.Key words: Acapulco de Juárez, dry forest, Guerrero, mammals, Omitlan.

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Land-Use Change in a Mexican Dry Forest Promotes Species Turnover and Increases Nestedness in Plant-Hummingbird Networks: Are Exotic Plants Taking Over?

Tropical Conservation Science ◽

10.1177/1940082920978952 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 ◽

pp. 194008292097895

Author(s):

Sergio Díaz Infante ◽

Carlos Lara ◽

María del Coro Arizmendi

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Plant Species ◽

Species Turnover ◽

Land Use Changes ◽

Tropical Dry Forest ◽

Exotic Plants ◽

Dry Forest ◽

Interaction Networks ◽

Native Plant ◽

Plant Interactions

Background Despite the increasing knowledge of plant-pollinator interaction networks, the effects of human-induced disturbances on them have barely been studied. We analyzed whether land-use changes modified the structure and topology of plant-hummingbird interaction networks or promoted the integration of exotic plant species. Methods Fieldwork was carried out in two vegetation areas in Mexico: a protected tropical dry forest and nearby disturbed sites. For two years we registered hummingbird-plant interactions monthly in each area. Then, we constructed interaction matrices from these data and compared their assemblage structure. Results The conversion of original dry forest to disturbed habitats impacted some assemblage attributes of the plant-hummingbird network. In the disturbed sites, there were more plant species, mainly exotics, and one additional hummingbird species. Most network attributes remained the same except niche width and nestedness (pattern of interactions where generalists and specialists tend to interact with generalists whereas specialist-to-specialist interactions are infrequent), which were higher in the disturbed network. The generalist core in the disturbed network contained half of the core species in the conserved network. Implications for conservation Exotic plants that strongly integrated into the disturbed network may exert a large influence on network dynamics in these areas. Identifying the interacting species and their role provides valuable insights for their conservation and protection. Hummingbirds attracting native plant species have a potential for practical or ornamental use, and hummingbirds presence in human-modified landscapes not only provides positive aesthetic value to people but can additionally contribute to conserving native plants and the biodiversity associated with them.

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