Hidden destruction of older forests threatens Brazil’s Atlantic Forest and challenges restoration programs

Understanding the dynamics of native forest loss and gain is critical for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services, especially in regions experiencing intense forest transformations. We quantified native forest cover dynamics on an annual basis from 1990 to 2017 in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. Despite the relative stability of native forest cover during this period (~28 Mha), the ongoing loss of older native forests, mostly on flatter terrains, have been hidden by the increasing gain of younger native forest cover, mostly on marginal lands for mechanized agriculture. Changes in native forest cover and its spatial distribution increased forest isolation in 36.4% of the landscapes. The clearance of older forests associated with the recut of 27% of younger forests has resulted in a progressive rejuvenation of the native forest cover. We highlight the need to include native forest spatiotemporal dynamics into restoration programs to better estimate their expected benefits and unexpected problems.

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Ecology of the Atlantic Forest

Ecology ◽

10.1093/obo/9780199830060-0233 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Elise Damstra ◽

Cristina Banks-Leite

Keyword(s):

Atlantic Forest ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Time Lag ◽

Native Forest ◽

Important Species ◽

Habitat Transformation ◽

Golden Lion Tamarin ◽

Palm Heart ◽

In The Wild ◽

Unique Domain

Extending along the southern coast of Brazil, into Argentina and Paraguay, the Atlantic Forest is a domain that once covered 150 Mha and includes many distinct forest subtypes and ecosystems. Its large latitudinal (29˚) and altitudinal (0–2,800 m above sea level) range, as well as complex topography in the region, has created microclimates within forest subtypes, which has led to biodiversity specifically adapted to narrow ecological ranges. The region is incredibly species-rich and is home to charismatic or economically important species such as the black and golden lion tamarin, the red-browned Amazon parrot, and the highly prized palm heart from Euterpe edulis. Through widespread human-driven change dating back to the arrival of European settlers in 1500, this realm has been extensively reduced, fragmented, and modified. Nowadays, this region is home to about 130 million people (60 percent of the Brazilian population) and is responsible for producing 70 percent of Brazil’s GDP, putting a strain on natural resources and providing challenges to conservation. Due to its high levels of endemic species coupled with a high threat of habitat loss and fragmentation, the Atlantic Forest has been identified as a “biodiversity hotspot.” Numerous studies have assessed the effects of habitat transformation on biodiversity and the consensus is that the majority of species are negatively affected. It is puzzling however that few species have actually gone extinct in the wild, even if some extinctions might have gone undetected. Extinctions do not immediately follow habitat change, there is often a time lag of many decades between habitat transformation and extinction. This may suggest that many species in the Atlantic Forest are “living deads,” as despite their presence the available habitat no longer supports their requirements. It also suggests that there is a window of opportunity to restoring the domain to avert extinctions before they are realized. Current research and policy actions are geared toward optimizing restoration and increasing the extent of native forest cover, bringing hope to the conservation of this unique domain.

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Examining the Sustainability of Tropical Island Forests: Advances and Challenges in Measurement, Monitoring, and Reporting in the U.S. Caribbean and Pacific

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10110946 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. 946 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kathleen A. McGinley ◽

Guy C. Robertson ◽

Kathleen S. Friday

Keyword(s):

Forest Cover ◽

Reference Conditions ◽

Timber Harvest ◽

Native Forest ◽

Recent Effort ◽

Anthropogenic Pressures ◽

Tropical Island ◽

Native Forests ◽

Sustainability Assessments ◽

The U.S

Forests across the U.S. and U.S. affiliated islands of the Caribbean and Pacific constitute rich and dynamic social-ecological systems that, while heterogeneous in many ways, share certain characteristics and trends that underscore the utility of sustainability assessments that go beyond single jurisdictional efforts. This paper summarizes a recent effort to assess the sustainability of tropical island forests of and politically affiliated with the U.S. using the Montréal Process criteria and indicator framework (MP C&I), which address ecological, social, economic, and institutional dimensions of forests. Forests cover 45 percent of the total area and more than 50 percent of each island jurisdiction, except Hawaii (36 percent). Forest cover is generally stable over much of the area in terms of recent reference conditions. The history of human occupation and land alteration is a prominent determinant of current conditions throughout the islands, which exhibit relatively high rates of threatened species in comparison to mainland counterparts and particularly where endemism is high. The islands also harbor significant areas of new or novel assemblages of native and non-native forest species, predominately on abandoned agricultural lands cleared of native forests long ago, which have been shown to contribute to the restoration of these degraded lands and provide many other ecosystem services at levels as high as and in some cases higher than native forests. Although industrial-level commercial timber harvest is small to nonexistent on most islands, socioeconomic and cultural linkages to forests are extensive but difficult to quantify. Amassing a foundation of data sufficient to address the MP C&I was challenging, in part due to the heterogeneity of the islands, island geography, and limited reporting capacities. We document significant improvements in the availability of data important for sustainability assessments in the last decade or so, especially with the extension of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Forest Inventory and Analysis program to the islands. Likewise, we find the MP C&I to be a useful tool for organizing and presenting information important for assessing forest sustainability. Nevertheless, considerable data gaps remain in the areas of biodiversity, forest functions and processes, and socioeconomic conditions of forests, which are critical elements to track across the islands, particularly in the context of climate change and ongoing anthropogenic pressures.

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Trap-nesting Bees Communities from Protected Areas of Atlantic Forest, Southeastern Brazil

Sociobiology ◽

10.13102/sociobiology.v66i2.3448 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 66 (2) ◽

pp. 306

Author(s):

Guaraci Cordeiro ◽

Samuel Boff ◽

Isabel Alves-dos-Santos

Keyword(s):

Protected Areas ◽

Atlantic Forest ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Landscape Composition ◽

Solitary Bees ◽

Southeastern Brazil ◽

Native Forest ◽

Nesting Biology ◽

Trap Nests ◽

Accumulated Rainfall

The solitary bees that use preexisting cavities can be captured in trap-nests allowing to collect data on nesting biology and associated organisms. This man-made trap-nest facilitates the understanding of environmental components and landscape composition in the fauna of solitary bees. Here, we aimed to increase the knowledge about trap-nesting bee species from four protected areas Atlantic Forest in southeastern Brazil and to test how abiotic local environmental components (temperature and rainfall) and forest cover affects the trap-nesting bee fauna. We recorded occupants from 847 nests founded by 17 bee species and seven cleptoparasite bees, associated to their host, summing 24 bee species sampled. The family with highest species richness was Megachilidae, and the species with the largest number of founded nests was Tetrapedia diversipes Klug (Apidae). Diptera, coleoptera, and hymenoptera parasitized 15.2% of the founded nests. The period of highest nest occupation occurred between November and February, which correspond to the warmest and most humid months in the region. We found significant positive correlation between the number of nests and monthly accumulated rainfall. We verified that Boraceia and Ilhabela have the best status conservation based on native forest cover and we sampled the highest diversity of species in these areas. We improved the knowledge on trap-nesting bees communities from Atlantic Forest on new species sampled in this biome with their nesting biology and highlighted that rainfall influences positively the nest founding throughout the year and native forest cover influences diversity of species.

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How Changes in Legally Demanded Forest Restoration Impact Ecosystem Services: A Case Study in the Atlantic Forest, Brazil

Tropical Conservation Science ◽

10.1177/1940082919882885 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

pp. 194008291988288 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Victor A. C. Rosário ◽

João C. Guimarães ◽

Ricardo A. G. Viani

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Atlantic Forest ◽

Soil Loss ◽

Forest Restoration ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Carbon Stocks ◽

Native Vegetation ◽

Native Forest ◽

Forest Code ◽

The Impact

The recent change in Brazilian laws reduced the amount of area that is set aside for native vegetation restoration in rural private properties. However, we lack estimates of its impacts on the provisioning of key ecosystem services at local scales. Therefore, in a microwatershed in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest hot spot, we quantified the impact of the change from the Forest Code (1965) to the Native Vegetation Protection Law in Brazil (2012) on future native forest cover, biomass carbon stocks, and soil loss and sedimentation. We analyzed three scenarios: (a) the land use and cover as of 2016, (b) the Forest Code, 1965, and (c) the Native Vegetation Protection Law, 2012. In each scenario, we modeled soil loss and sedimentation (InVEST, Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation) and calculated the carbon stocks. The 2012 law implementation would increase forest cover (15.6%), decrease soil sedimentation (1.12%) and loss (1.13%), and increase carbon stock (5.4%). However, compared to the Forest Code, it would reduce the area for restoration and the potential for native forest cover growth, increase soil loss and sedimentation potential, and limit increases in carbon stocks at the landscape level. In both restoration scenarios, the potential percent increase in forest cover in the microwatershed owing to the laws is higher than the percent decrease in soil loss and sedimentation. These findings have the potential to elucidate the effect of laws on ecosystem services and be useful to those planning the creation, modification, and implementation of laws for forest restoration in private properties.

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Feasibility of Sustainable Management of Secondary Atlantic Forest: Recovery and Mortality Rates of Damaged Trees Two Years After Harvesting

Environmental Sciences Proceedings ◽

10.3390/iecf2020-08484 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 39

Author(s):

Pedro C. Britto ◽

Dirk Jaeger ◽

Stephan Hoffmann ◽

Renato C. G. Robert ◽

Alexander C. Vibrans ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atlantic Forest ◽

Sustainable Management ◽

Sustainable Forest Management ◽

Strong Relationship ◽

Mortality Rates ◽

Timber Harvesting ◽

Forest Recovery ◽

Native Forest ◽

Harvesting Method ◽

Conservation And Management

Subject to overexploitation in past centuries, the Atlantic Forest is now strictly protected, including a ban on timber harvesting. However, this strict protection is a very controversial issue. It resulted in a lack of willingness of landholders to conserve and possibly even expand native forest areas. The lack of knowledge on impacts of potential timber-harvesting causes conflicts between conservation and management of the remnant Atlantic Forest. We believe that sustainable forest management, with reduced harvesting impact, has the potential to generate income for the landowners while sustaining important ecological services of the forest. Therefore, we assessed the harvesting impact of a conventional harvesting method (CM) and compared it to an alternative harvesting method (AM) in three different stands. We measured damage intensities of all remnant trees directly after harvesting and two years after harvesting. Tree damages were recorded in three different tree zones (crown, bole and leaning) and rated in three different intensity classes (minor, moderate and severe). Furthermore, we assessed the recovery and mortality rates of each damaged tree two years after harvesting. Improved AM harvesting reduced the impacts on trees with multiple damages, in particular to crown and bole damages combined. There is a strong relationship between steep terrains and crown damage. High mortality rates were related to stands with a high density of smaller trees and also to trees with leaning damage. Moreover, completely recovered trees were related to trees with light bole damage.

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Relief influence on the spatial distribution of the Atlantic Forest cover on the Ibiúna Plateau, SP

Brazilian Journal of Biology ◽

10.1590/s1519-69842007000300004 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 67 (3) ◽

pp. 403-411 ◽

Cited By ~ 50

Author(s):

WG. Silva ◽

JP. Metzger ◽

S. Simões ◽

C Simonetti

Keyword(s):

Atlantic Forest ◽

Urban Areas ◽

Large Scale ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Agricultural Land ◽

Environmental Gradients ◽

Aerial Photographs ◽

General Distribution ◽

Successional Stage ◽

Slope Orientation

Several studies suggest that, on a large scale, relief conditions influence the Atlantic Forest cover. The aim of this work was to explore these relationships on a local scale, in Caucaia do Alto, on the Ibiúna Plateau. Within an area of about 78 km², the distribution of forest cover, divided into two successional stages, was associated with relief attribute data (slope, slope orientation and altitude). The mapping of the vegetation was based on the interpretation of stereoscopic pairs of aerial photographs, from April 2000, on a scale of 1:10,000, while the relief attributes were obtained by geoprocessing from digitalized topographic maps on a scale of 1:10,000. Statistical analyses, based on qui-square tests, revealed that there was a more extensive forest cover, irrespective of the successional stage, in steeper areas (>10 degrees) located at higher altitudes (>923 m), but no influence of the slope orientation. There was no sign of direct influence of relief on the forest cover through environmental gradients that might have contributed to the forest regeneration. Likewise, there was no evidence that these results could have been influenced by the distance from roads or urban areas or with respect to permanent preservation areas. Relief seems to influence the forest cover indirectly, since agricultural land use is preferably made in flatter and lower areas. These results suggest a general distribution pattern of the forest remnants, independent of the scale of study, on which relief indirectly has a strong influence, since it determines human occupation.

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Ticks infesting birds in Atlantic Forest fragments in Rio Claro, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil

Revista Brasileira de Parasitologia Veterinária ◽

10.1590/s1984-29612013000100003 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

pp. 6-12 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Gustavo Seron Sanches ◽

Thiago Fernandes Martins ◽

Ileyne Tenório Lopes ◽

Luís Flávio da Silva Costa ◽

Pablo Henrique Nunes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atlantic Forest ◽

Tick Species ◽

Native Species ◽

Sao Paulo ◽

Native Forest ◽

Forest Fragments ◽

São Paulo ◽

Eucalyptus Tereticornis ◽

New Host ◽

New Host Records

In the present study, we report tick infestations on wild birds in plots of the Atlantic Forest reforested fragments with native species and plots reforested with Eucalyptus tereticornis in the municipality of Rio Claro, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. A total of 256 birds were captured: 137 individuals of 33 species, in planted native forest; and 128 individuals of 37 species, in planted Eucalyptus tereticornis forest. Nymphs of two tick species were found on the birds: Amblyomma calcaratumand Amblyomma longirostre, the former was more abundant in the fragments reforested with Atlantic forest native species, and the latter in the fragment reforested with E. tereticornis. New host records were presented for A. calcaratum.

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Assesment of soil erosion by 137Cs technique in native forests in Londrina City, Parana, Brazil

Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology ◽

10.1590/s1516-89132007000700016 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 50 (6) ◽

pp. 1051-1060 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Avacir Casanova Andrello ◽

Carlos Roberto Appoloni ◽

Virgílio Franco do Nascimento Filho

Keyword(s):

Soil Erosion ◽

Soil Loss ◽

Balance Model ◽

Native Forest ◽

Mass Balance Model ◽

Erosion Process ◽

137Cs Inventory ◽

Native Forests ◽

137Cs Distribution ◽

137Cs Technique

The aim of this work was to assess the soil erosion process in native forest by the 137Cs methodology. The mass balance model was applied to assess the rates of soil loss in three native forests around of Londrina city, Paraná, Brazil. 137Cs distribution depth was of exponential type for the three forests and 137Cs inventory was 241 Bq m-2 for Mata 1, 338 Bq m-2 for Mata 2 and 325 Bq m-2 for Mata UEL. The soil loss value calculated for three native forests was: 6,684 kg ha-1 yr-1 for Mata 1, 1,788 kg ha-1 yr-1 for Mata 2 and 4,524 kg ha-1 yr-1 for Mata UEL.

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Mexican agricultural frontier communities differ in forest dynamics with consequences for conservation and restoration

10.32942/osf.io/qxje8 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Madelon Lohbeck ◽

Ben DeVries ◽

Frans Bongers ◽

Miguel Martinez-Ramos ◽

Armando Navarrete-Segueda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Temporal Variation ◽

Forest Conservation ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Secondary Forest ◽

Forest Loss ◽

Secondary Forests ◽

High Quality ◽

Agricultural Frontier ◽

Forest Regrowth ◽

Land Availability

Forest regrowth is key to achieve restoration commitments, but we need to better understand under what circumstances it takes place and how long secondary forests persist. We studied a recently colonized agricultural frontier in southern Mexico. We quantified the spatiotemporal dynamics of forest loss and regrowth and tested how temporal variation in climate, and spatial variation in land availability, land quality and accessibility affect forest disturbance, regrowth and secondary forest persistence. Marqués de Comillas consistently exhibits more forest loss than regrowth, resulting in a net decrease of 30% forest cover (1991-2016). Secondary forest cover remained relatively constant while secondary forest persistence increased, suggesting that farmers are moving away from shifting cultivation. Temporal variation in disturbance and regrowth were explained by the annual variation in the Oceanic El Niño index combined with dry season rainfall and key policy and market interventions.Across communities the availability of high-quality soil overrules the effects of land availability and accessibility, but that at the pixel-level all three factors contributed to explaining forest conservation and restoration. Communities with more high-quality soils were able to spare land for forest conservation, and had less secondary forest that persisted for longer. Old forest and secondary forests were better represented on low-quality lands and on communal land. Both old and secondary forest were less common close to the main road, where secondary forests were also less persistent. Forest conservation and restoration can be explained by a complex interplay of biophysical and social drivers across time, space and scale. We warrant that stimulating private land ownership may cause remaining forest patches to be lost and that conservation initiatives should benefit the whole community. Forest regrowth and secondary forest persistence competes with agricultural production and ensuring farmers can access restoration benefits is key to success.

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Albedo Trend Analyses in Atlantic Forest Biome Areas

Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.5539/jas.v10n10p298 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 298 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Elisiane Alba ◽

Rudiney S. Pereira ◽

Juliana Marchesan ◽

Emanuel A. Silva ◽

Fábio de J. Batista ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Atlantic Forest ◽

Surface Albedo ◽

Forest Canopy ◽

Forest Cover ◽

Kendall Test ◽

Important Variable ◽

Landsat 8 ◽

Increasing Trends ◽

Atmospheric Transmissivity ◽

Forest Biome

The albedo is an important variable that controls the balance of radiation and energy of the atmosphere, so changes in land cover cause alterations in albedo values, influencing changes in climate behavior at different scales. The goal in this work was to investigate the possible occurrence and causes associated with surface albedo trends within the Atlantic Forest biome (São Francisco de Paula, state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil), during the last thirty years (1987-2017), evaluating the impacts of the forest cover structure on albedo trends. The study included images of the TM/Landsat 5 and OLI/Landsat 8 sensors over the period 1987 to 2017. The surface albedo was obtained from the SEBAL algorithm, which includes in its variables the reflectance values of each band, reflected solar radiation and atmospheric transmissivity. The trend analysis was performed by the Mann-Kendall test verifying the existence of significant trends over 30 years. Subsequently, the influence of vegetation greenness on the trend presented by the albedo surface was evaluated. Approximately 92% of the pixels with significant tendency are associated with the decreasing tendency of the albedo. The downward trend was observed with the change from the field to the forest cover, while increasing trends were influenced by the change in forest cover, such as the suppression of individuals from the upper forest canopy. The forest populations in areas of the Mata Atlântica biome had a large participation in the energy balance, which exposed a reduction of approximately 60% of the surface albedo with its implantation, showing its importance for reducing the emission of energy to the atmosphere. The spatial pattern of the trend distribution of the surface albedo is related to the concentration and vigor of the arboreal vegetation.

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