Defaunation affects carbon storage in tropical forests

Bello, Carolina; Galetti, Mauro; Pizo, Marco Aurélio; Magnago, Luiz Fernando Silva; Rocha, Mariana Ferreira; Lima, Renato A. F. de; Peres, Carlos A.; Ovaskainen, Otso; Jordano, Pedro

doi:10.1126/sciadv.1501105

Cited by 356 publications

(393 citation statements)

References 98 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

358

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The authors concluded that trees with seeds larger than 12 mm wide present high carbon storage capacity, and that large dispersers are functionally connected to the planet's climate regulation, given their distinct link with these trees. The study found a robust support for the hypothesis that the absence of large trees (larger in stature and harder wood) would affect carbon stocks in defaunated tropical rainforests (Bello et al 2015).…”

Section: Effects On the Provision Of Ecosystem Servicessupporting

confidence: 54%

“…Koerner et al (2016), for example, have shown a strong correlation between hunting intensity promoted by around 60 villages in northern Gabon and a defaunation gradient, evidenced by changes in diversity, relative abundance and composition of the mammal community. Because the various levels that make up an ecosystem are interdependent, changes in communities of hunted species Brazilian Atlantic Forest fragments (≥ minimum area 1000 ha) were analyzed, the important contribution of large tree seeds for the storage of atmospheric carbon was observed (Bello et al 2015). The authors concluded that trees with seeds larger than 12 mm wide present high carbon storage capacity, and that large dispersers are functionally connected to the planet's climate regulation, given their distinct link with these trees.…”

Section: Effects On the Provision Of Ecosystem Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Loss of Seed-Dispersing Animals and Its Impacts on Humanity

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Seed dispersal is a key ecological process for the maintenance of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning and is undoubtedly critical to the provision of valuable ecosystem benefits to humanity. However, the loss or population reduction of seeddispersing animals, especially the medium and large ones, has increasingly compromised important ecological processes and associated ecosystem benefits. Thus, we aimed to present a brief review of the how the loss or reduction of seeddispersing fauna affects the functioning of ecosystems and, consequently, humanity. We believe that this review provides new directions for future research in the field of conservation science that may contribute to policy initiatives and management and conservation plans.

show abstract

Section: Effects On the Provision Of Ecosystem Servicessupporting

confidence: 54%

Section: Effects On the Provision Of Ecosystem Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Loss of Seed-Dispersing Animals and Its Impacts on Humanity

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Conceptual frameworks predict that large-seeded species are mostly at risk from the negative impacts of defaunation owing to the extirpation of their large-bodied primary dispersers [23,24]. Here, we demonstrate that large seeds may also be differentially vulnerable to the loss of their secondary dispersers through anthropogenic driven reductions in large-bodied dung beetles [33,48].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 78%

“…We therefore have a poor understanding of direct effects of diversity within higher trophic levels or the indirect, cascading effects of biodiversity loss across tropic levels (but see [14]). There is mounting evidence that changes in forest vertebrate communities can lead to direct top-down consequences for plant demography, community composition and diversity [15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22], with knock-on effects for forest services and resilience [23,24]. However, because the indirect, multitrophic consequences of changing mammal communities are rarely experimentally tested, we have limited understanding of the ecosystem-wide consequences of anthropogenic impacts on tropical forests.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The value of trophic interactions for ecosystem function: dung beetle communities influence seed burial and seedling recruitment in tropical forests

et al. 2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Anthropogenic activities are causing species extinctions, raising concerns about the consequences of changing biological communities for ecosystem functioning. To address this, we investigated how dung beetle communities influence seed burial and seedling recruitment in the Brazilian Amazon. First, we conducted a burial and retrieval experiment using seed mimics. We found that dung beetle biomass had a stronger positive effect on the burial of large than small beads, suggesting that anthropogenic reductions in large-bodied beetles will have the greatest effect on the secondary dispersal of large-seeded plant species. Second, we established mesocosm experiments in which dung beetle communities buried Myrciaria dubia seeds to examine plant emergence and survival. Contrary to expectations, we found that beetle diversity and biomass negatively influenced seedling emergence, but positively affected the survival of seedlings that emerged. Finally, we conducted germination trials to establish the optimum burial depth of experimental seeds, revealing a negative relationship between burial depth and seedling emergence success. Our results provide novel evidence that seed burial by dung beetles may be detrimental for the emergence of some seed species. However, we also detected positive impacts of beetle activity on seedling recruitment, which are probably because of their influence on soil properties. Overall, this study provides new evidence that anthropogenic impacts on dung beetle communities could influence the structure of tropical forests; in particular, their capacity to regenerate and continue to provide valuable functions and services.

show abstract

“…The main change is the increase in the abundance of plant species that have no dispersion associated with vertebrates, to the detriment of other species with large seeds that are dispersed by large vertebrates (Terborgh et al 2008, Culot et al 2017. Such a change in plant community caused by defaunation is detrimental to the carbon market, since large biomass trees can have their recruitment reduced by the absence of their dispersers, reducing the carbon stock of the areas (Bello et al 2015, Peres et al 2016 Acre is considered of extreme importance for the conservation of mammals. The State has approximately 86% of its territory covered by forests and is situated in one of the areas with the most endemic plants of the Amazon (Maury 2002, INPE 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abundance and composition of the medium to large-sized mammals in a private area of a REDD+ project in Acre, Brazil

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The implementation of private areas focused on conservation of species and habitats, combined with REDD+ policies, has become an important ally for biodiversity conservation, expanding the conservation areas of the most varied habitats, covering key groups such as large mammals, which are extremely important for the maintenance of ecosystem services. In the upper region of the Purus River in Acre, Brazil, an inventory was carried out using camera-traps, of medium and large mammals community in a private REDD+ area, known as the Purus Project. A total of 19 species of mammals were recorded with an effort of 1859 trap-nigths, including rare, endangered and key species. It is estimated that the richness for the area is of 22 species. Endangered and rare species such as the tapir (Tapirus terrestris) and the short-eared dog (Atelocynus microtis) presented high rates of relative abundance compared to other Conservation Units (UCs). The richness of medium to large-sized mammals recorded in the Purus Project underscores the importance of REDD+ in private areas for the conservation of this group, given the challenges for inclusion and creation of new protected areas. REDD+ projects in privates' areas become an important component for conservation of species and the connection between public conservation units favoring the spread of species and populations between areas, and consequently the gene flow. Keywords: Private Areas, Conservation, Camera-trap, Maintenance of Biodiversity. Abundância e composição de mamíferos de médio e grande porte em uma área privada de projeto REDD+ no Acre, BrasilResumo: A implementação de áreas privadas voltadas para conservação de espécies e habitats, aliadas a políticas de REDD+, tem se tornado importante aliada para conservação da biodiversidade, ampliando as regiões de conservação dos mais variados habitats, abrangendo grupos chaves como grandes mamíferos, extremamente importantes para manutenção dos serviços ecossistêmicos. Na região do alto rio Purus, Acre, Brasil, foi realizado um inventário utilizando armadilhas fotográficas, da comunidade de mamíferos de médio e grande porte de uma área privada de REDD+, o Projeto Purus. Foram registradas 19 espécies de mamíferos, com um esforço de 1.859 armadilhas-noite, incluindo chaves, raras e ameaçadas de extinção. Estima-se que a riqueza esperada para a área seja de 22 espécies. Espécies ameaçadas e raras como a Anta (Tapirus terrestris) e o Cachorro-do-mato (Atelocynus microtis) apresentaram taxas de abundância relativa elevadas, comparadas com outras UCs. A riqueza de médios e grandes mamíferos registrados na região do Projeto Purus ressalta a importância de REDD+ em áreas privadas para conservação deste grupo, dado os desafios para inclusão e criação de novas áreas protegidas públicas. Assim projetos de REDD+ em áreas privadas se tornam um importante componente para conservação de espécies e para a conexão entre Unidades de Conservação públicas favorecendo a dispersão de espécies e populações entre áreas, e consequentemente o flu...

show abstract

Defaunation affects carbon storage in tropical forests

Abstract: Populations of large frugivores are declining in tropical rainforests with potential consequences for carbon storage and climate.

Cited by 356 publications

References 98 publications

Loss of Seed-Dispersing Animals and Its Impacts on Humanity

Loss of Seed-Dispersing Animals and Its Impacts on Humanity

The value of trophic interactions for ecosystem function: dung beetle communities influence seed burial and seedling recruitment in tropical forests

Abundance and composition of the medium to large-sized mammals in a private area of a REDD+ project in Acre, Brazil

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About