scholarly journals Linking Plant Functional Traits to Demography in a Fragmented Landscape

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita de Cássia Quitete Portela ◽  
Sara Lucía Colmenares-Trejos ◽  
Eduardo Arcoverde de Mattos

Habitat loss in highly deforested landscapes such as the Brazilian Atlantic Forest has been severely affecting the diversity and survival of palm species. As some species are more sensitive than others, trait responses to the environment, as well as environmental effects on fecundity, growth, and mortality rates, may affect species demography. Considering this context, we studied functional and demographic responses of three palm species (Astrocaryum aculeatissimum, Euterpe edulis, and Geonoma schottiana) to habitat loss in the Atlantic Forest in southeastern Brazil by measuring morpho-physiological traits related to plant growth and light acquisition for photosynthesis. We also tested the response of population fitness to fragment size. Plant survival and growth was subsequently monitored in 2006 and 2007, and population dynamics were summarized in pool matrices for large and small forest fragments in the monitoring periods comprehending one full year between 2005–2006 and 2006–2007. The asymptotic growth rate of populations (defined here as population fitness, λ) in five forest fragments was then calculated. Diameter of individuals of the demography plots (from year 2005 to 2007) was used to calculate the relative diameter growth rate. Later, in 2015, we measured a set of morpho-physiological functional traits in palms in the same plots used in the demographic studies. While A. aculeatissimum populations were stable in both monitoring periods in small and large fragments, E. edulis populations were predicted to decline due to intense predation by monkeys in the large fragment, but were stable in the smaller fragments, and G. schottiana populations were stable in the large fragments in both monitoring periods, but populations in the smaller fragments were predicted to decline in the second period, i.e., with lower fitness in these fragments. In addition, the functional traits analyzed showed that G. schottiana is a forest interior species associated with the shade/understory environment response. E. edulis was also affected by the size of the fragment, but due to a disruptive interaction with a predator and showed intermediate functional traits values. On the other hand, A. aculeatissimum thrived in areas with higher and lower incidence of light and was not demographically affected by forest remnant size. This suggests that E. edulis and A. aculeatissimum are habitat generalists. We concluded that differences in the ecophysiological performance of palms due to distinct morpho-physiological functional traits related to leaf economic spectrum, such as LDMC or specific leaf area (SLA) and to photosynthetic responses to light environment as electron transport rate (ETR) and saturation irradiance (Ik) were linked to the demographic variation observed in forest remnants of different size.

Diversity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bayron R. Calle-Rendón ◽  
Renato R. Hilário ◽  
José Julio de Toledo

Fragmentation threatens biodiversity and forest-dwelling animals can be especially vulnerable. Neotropical primates inhabit forests and play ecological roles in maintaining forest biodiversity. Currently, many primate communities are restricted to forest fragments. We (1) evaluated the influence of environmental, matrix, and site attributes on species richness and functional traits of primates in the Neotropics; and (2) evaluated the effect of the sub-region on the relationships between primates and environmental, matrix, and site attributes. We conducted literature searches to find published data on primate communities in forest fragments throughout the Neotropics. Each fragment was assigned to 1 of 11 sub-regions: Mesoamerica, Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena, Caribbean, Orinoco, Amazon, Atlantic Forest, Cerrado, Chaco, Andes, Caatinga, and Pampa. Based on actual and expected species occurrences, we calculated the proportion of primate species retained in the fragments, the mass retained, and dietary items retained considering reproductive and vegetative plant parts and prey. We used linear mixed models to correlate primate variables with environmental, matrix, and site attributes. Fragment area was more important for primate retention than environmental, matrix, and site attributes, with primate retention being higher in larger fragments. Fragment size was positively correlated with all primate variables, except for retention of prey consumption, whose retention decreased as water bodies and density of buildings in the matrix increased. Fragments within protected areas retained larger species than unprotected fragments. The proportion of extant mass retained and vegetative plant parts in the diet were highest in Mesoamerica and lowest in the Atlantic Forest. Conservation planning of Neotropical primates should consider both the differences among sub-regions, forest restoration to increase fragment size, and the creation of new protected areas, even in fragmented landscapes.


2003 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 1827-1839 ◽  
Author(s):  
RÔMULO RIBON ◽  
JOSÉ EDUARDO SIMON ◽  
GERALDO THEODORO DE MATTOS

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah A. Boyle ◽  
Noé U. de la Sancha ◽  
Pastor Pérez ◽  
David Kabelik

AbstractSpecies that live in degraded habitats often show signs of physiological stress. Glucocorticoid hormones (e.g., corticosterone and cortisol) are often assessed as a proxy of the extent of physiological stress an animal has experienced. Our goal was to quantify glucocorticoids in free-ranging small mammals in fragments of Interior Atlantic Forest. We extracted glucocorticoids from fur samples of 106 small mammals (rodent genera Akodon and Oligoryzomys, and marsupial genera Gracilinanus and Marmosa) from six forest fragments (2–1200 ha) in the Reserva Natural Tapytá, Caazapá Department, Paraguay. To our knowledge, this is the first publication of corticosterone and cortisol levels for three of the four sampled genera (Akodon, Oligoryzomys, and Marmosa) in this forest system. We discovered three notable results. First, as predicted, glucocorticoid levels were higher in individuals living withing small forest fragments. Second, animals captured live using restraint trapping methods (Sherman traps) had higher glucocorticoid levels than those animals captured using kill traps (Victor traps), suggesting that hair glucocorticoid measures can reflect acute stress levels in addition to long-term glucocorticoid incorporation. These acute levels are likely due to urinary steroids diffusing into the hair shaft. This finding raises a concern about the use of certain trapping techniques in association with fur hormone analysis. Finally, as expected, we also detected genus-specific differences in glucocorticoid levels, as well as cortisol/corticosterone ratios.


2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 257-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cybele de Oliveira Araujo ◽  
Thais Helena Condez ◽  
Rafael Parelli Bovo ◽  
Fernanda da Cruz Centeno ◽  
Amom Mendes Luiz

The herpetofauna of São Paulo State, Brazil, can be characterized as the most well-known in the country. However, despite the large number of studies in this area, there are still many sampling gaps within biomes such as the Atlantic Forest that are considered global conservation priorities due to the high rate of endemism and human disturbance. As a result of political and historical pressure, this biome has been reduced to less than 12% of its original extent and, despite its importance for global biodiversity conservation, only a small percentage of its original vegetation cover (1%) has some form of legal protection. This is the case of the Parque Estadual Turístico do Alto Ribeira (PETAR) which, together with the Parque Estadual de Intervales, Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho and Mosaico de Unidades de Conservação de Jacupiranga, forms of an ombrophilous forest continuum of 360 thousand ha in the south of São Paulo State. This study presents a list of amphibians and reptiles from the PETAR, with information on the local distribution and habitat use of the species. The survey was conducted from October to December 2009, completing a total of 15 sampling days using four complementary methods of active sampling: visual encounters, auditory encounters, searches by car and incidental encounters. We recorded a total of 91 species belonging to 53 genera and 24 families. This high diversity can be attributed to the existence of a wide variety of habitats and microhabitats in this region, such as the various aquatic sites used by many species of anuran amphibians. Moreover, the PETAR features a large altitudinal gradient (80 - 1,160 m elevation) that gives a large climatic, geological and hydrological heterogeneity to the area. This inventory is an important contribution to the expansion of knowledge about these assemblages in the Atlantic Forest to the south of Serra de Paranapiacaba mountain range, and provides support for the conservation of these groups in São Paulo State.


Mammalia ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 81 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Leonan M. Novaes ◽  
Renan F. Souza ◽  
Saulo Felix ◽  
André C. Siqueira ◽  
Rafael S. Laurindo ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Brazilian Atlantic Forest is a severely threatened biodiversity hotspot and many remnants exist only as fragments. In order to understand how bat assemblage structure within a forest fragment surrounded by an urban matrix might respond to seasonality and different habitats, we sampled bats over 39 nights in the forest fragment of Gericinó-Mendanha Massif, Rio de Janeiro State. From February 2006 to January 2010, we captured 874 bats, belonging to 25 species and eight different feeding guilds. Frugivorous species were the most abundant, representing 83.33% of captures, and the gleaning insectivores were the least abundant (1.47%). We did not find changes in bat species composition between seasons, although capture rate was higher in the rainy season. However, we did find significant differences in species abundance between seasons. The habitat influence did not significantly differentiate the assemblages, but species richness was higher in the mature ombrophilous forest. The community composition indicates that this conservation unit is an important remaining fragment for maintaining the diversity and richness of bats, although it is possible that historical processes of environmental exploitation have already resulted in a loss of species.


2011 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guilherme do Carmo Silveira ◽  
Anderson Machado Nascimento ◽  
Silvia Helena Sofia ◽  
Solange Cristina Augusto

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1811) ◽  
pp. 20142844 ◽  
Author(s):  
Greet De Coster ◽  
Cristina Banks-Leite ◽  
Jean Paul Metzger

Habitat loss often reduces the number of species as well as functional diversity. Dramatic effects to species composition have also been shown, but changes to functional composition have so far been poorly documented, partly owing to a lack of appropriate indices. We here develop three new community indices (i.e. functional integrity, community integrity of ecological groups and community specialization ) to investigate how habitat loss affects the diversity and composition of functional traits and species. We used data from more than 5000 individuals of 137 bird species captured in 57 sites in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, a highly endangered biodiversity hotspot. Results indicate that habitat loss leads to a decrease in functional integrity while measures of functional diversity remain unchanged or are even positively affected. Changes to functional integrity were caused by (i) a decrease in the provisioning of some functions, and an increase in others; (ii) strong within-guild species turnover; and (iii) a replacement of specialists by generalists. Hence, communities from more deforested sites seem to provide different but not fewer functions. We show the importance of investigating changes to both diversity and composition of functional traits and species, as the effects of habitat loss on ecosystem functioning may be more complex than previously thought. Crucially, when only functional diversity is assessed, important changes to ecological functions may remain undetected and negative effects of habitat loss underestimated, thereby imperiling the application of effective conservation actions.


Hoehnea ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Libia Mayerly Cifuentes-García ◽  
Pedro Bond Schwartsburd ◽  
Denilson Fernandes Peralta

ABSTRACT The objective was to present the floristic survey of the bryophytes of the Parque Estadual da Serra do Brigadeiro. It included an evaluation of the species richness, as well as information about the substrate preference of each species and its geographic distributions in Brazil. We found 208 taxa of bryophytes: one hornwort, 88 liverworts and 119 mosses. This richness represents ca. 26% of the bryoflora of Minas Gerais State and ca. 13% of that known for Brazil. Eighteen of the bryophytes species are endemic to Brazil, whereas 19 species are recorded for the first time in Minas Gerais. The bryoflora showed preference for tree bark (30%) and rock (23%) as substrates. Our data show that the Parque Estadual da Serra do Brigadeiro is an important area for the diversity conservation of Brazilian bryophytes and maintenance of endemic species of the country.


Check List ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana Peres ◽  
José Eduardo Simon

This study provides the first record of Physalaemus maximus in the state of Espírito Santo, southeastern Brazil. Physalaemus maximus was recorded in the Municipality of Castelo (1100 m a.s.l.), where it was observed in explosive reproduction in an Atlantic Forest remnant on 06 January 2010. The advertisement call of P. maximus consisted of a single multipulsed note, with carrier frequency emitted in 1,250 Hz and mean duration of 2.10 s. The record from Castelo extends in approximately 140 km eastward from the previous geographic distribution admitted for the species.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document