Defaunation and changes in climate and fire frequency have synergistic effects on aboveground biomass loss in the brazilian savanna

Maciel, Everton A.; Martins, Valéria Forni; Paula, Mateus Dantas de; Huth, Andreas; Guilherme, Frederico Augusto Guimarães; Fischer, Rico; Giles, André L.; Barbosa, Reinaldo Imbrózio; Cavassan, Osmar; Martins, Fernando Roberto

doi:10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2021.109628

Cited by 18 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 120 publications

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“…Given that seed dispersal is critical for species to shift ranges with climate changes (Dawson et al, 2011;Corlett and Westcott, 2013;González-Varo et al, 2021;Fricke et al, 2022), the relative lack of theoretical or empirical studies on this topic suggests SDD disruption due to climate change is an area requiring additional focus. We posit that advancing knowledge in this regard is particularly urgent given the omnipresent impact of climate change, which operates at a higher (i.e., global) scale and could thus worsen the consequences of any other driver of SDD (McConkey et al, 2012;Zhou et al, 2013;Maciel et al, 2021). For instance, one of the latest studies showed that the loss of seed dispersal interactions may impair the potential of a palm species to track climate change, especially in combination with fragmentation and forest loss (Sales et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Despite the large amount of information dealing with the effects of SDD, biases in scientific research can limit our understanding of the actual main patterns of SDD at a global scale. Moreover, most studies focus on just one global change driver, when it is widely accepted that such drivers act synergistically on many processes (Tylianakis et al, 2008;González-Varo et al, 2013;Maciel et al, 2021). A previous study by McConkey et al (2012) pointed out that such synergistic interactions between different types of disturbances could exacerbate the negative impacts on seed dispersal, although they were rarely examined (but see Portela and Dirzo, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Drivers of Ecological and Evolutionary Disruptions in the Seed Dispersal Process: Research Trends and Biases

et al. 2022

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As the sole opportunity for most plants to move, seed dispersal influences the biodiversity and functioning of plant communities. Global change drivers have the potential to disrupt seed dispersal processes, affecting plant communities and ecosystem functions. Even though much information is available on the effects of seed dispersal disruption (SDD), we still lack a comprehensive understanding of its main causes at a global scale, as well as the potential knowledge gaps derived from research biases. Here we present a systematic review of biotic and abiotic SDDs to ascertain the global change drivers addressed, dispersal modes impacted, plant processes affected, and spatial focus of existing research on this topic up-to-date. Although there are many modes of dispersal and global change drivers in temperate and tropical ecosystems worldwide, research efforts have predominantly addressed the effect of alien species for biotic seed dispersal in temperate systems and oceanic islands as well as how defaunation of bird or mammal dispersers has affected seed removal in the Neotropics. SDD studies were also biased toward forest ecosystems, with few in shrublands or grasslands. Finally, the effects of climate change, ecological consequences at the whole community level, and evolutionary changes were largely unrepresented in SDD studies. These trends are likely due to a combination of true geographic and ecological patterns in seed dispersal and global change and bias in research focus. We conclude that increased research investment in the less-studied systems and a better understanding of potential synergies and feedback between multiple global change drivers will be important to forecast the threats to plant biodiversity and those ecosystem functions derived from seed dispersal in the Anthropocene.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drivers of Ecological and Evolutionary Disruptions in the Seed Dispersal Process: Research Trends and Biases

et al. 2022

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“…However, the literature on seed dispersal is focused on the dispersal syndrome hypothesis (DSH) or co-adapted syndrome, which states that fruits and dispersal vectors co-evolved (mutualistic interactions) influencing the foraging strategies of dispersers (e.g., [ 9 ]). A large amount of information focuses on only one environmental change driver (e.g., habitat fragmentation) affecting the seed dispersal processes (e.g., [ 10 ]). Although there are overwhelming theoretical studies on the enumeration or assessment of dispersal vectors of a particular group of plants (e.g., [ 11 , 12 , 13 ]), information on how the dispersal mechanisms of many plants evolve in a changing environment remains scarce.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Does Changing Environment Influence Plant Seed Movements as Populations of Dispersal Vectors Decline?

Hernandez

Naeem

Zaman

2023

Plants

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Plants differ widely in their ability to find tolerable climatic ranges through seed dispersal, depending on their life-history traits and habitat characteristics. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, a systematic review on seed dispersal mechanisms was conducted to elucidate plant seed movements amid changing environments. Here, the highest relative count of studies was found in Spain (16.47%), followed by Brazil (14.12%), and the USA (14.12%). The megadiverse, hotspot countries (e.g., Philippines, Vietnam, Myanmar, India, and Indonesia) and Africa (Tanzania, South Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo) have very low to no data about the reviewed topic. The effects of land use changes, habitat degradation/disturbances, climate, and extreme weather conditions on seed dispersal mechanisms and agents had the highest share of studies across topics and countries. Plant diversity and distribution of anemochorous, endozoochorous, epizoochorous, hydrochorous, myrmecochorous, and ornithochorous species are seriously affected by changing environments due to altered long-distance seed dispersal. The fruit types commonly associated with endozoochory and ornithochory are species with achene, capsule, drupe, fleshy, and nut fruits/seeds, whereas achene, capsule, samara/winged seeds are associated with anemochory. The present review provides a summary of evidence on how plants are affected by climate change as populations of dispersal vectors decline. Finally, recommendations for further study were made based on the identified knowledge gaps.

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Declining Dung Beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Abundance and Diversity in the Neotropics: Causes and Conservation Strategies

Arellano,

Ortega-Martínez,

Rivera

et al. 2024

Insect Decline and Conservation in the Neotropics

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Defaunation and changes in climate and fire frequency have synergistic effects on aboveground biomass loss in the brazilian savanna

Cited by 18 publications

References 120 publications

Drivers of Ecological and Evolutionary Disruptions in the Seed Dispersal Process: Research Trends and Biases

Drivers of Ecological and Evolutionary Disruptions in the Seed Dispersal Process: Research Trends and Biases

How Does Changing Environment Influence Plant Seed Movements as Populations of Dispersal Vectors Decline?

Declining Dung Beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) Abundance and Diversity in the Neotropics: Causes and Conservation Strategies

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