Larger Fish Disperse Larger Seeds in Oligotrophic Wetlands of the Central Amazon

Costa, Gilvan; Weiss, Bianca; Piedade, Maria Teresa Fernandez

doi:10.1007/s13157-024-01779-7

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…However, our results did not show this pattern, as both the size of the fish and the size of the seeds found in the digestive tracts were not related to specialisation (d′). This can be explained by the tendency for smaller fish to consume smaller-sized seeds, while larger fish consume larger-sized seeds (Costa et al, 2023(Costa et al, , 2024, thus making the number of interactions between fish of different sizes more similar.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structure and vulnerability of the ichthyochory network in wetland forests of Central Amazonia

Costa,

Weiss,

Piedade

et al. 2024

Ecology of Freshwater Fish

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The interaction between fish and plants is vital for the dynamics of ecosystems since it influences plant distribution and regeneration patterns. In the floodable areas of the Amazon, these interactions are mainly structured by the flood pulse, which enables seed dispersal via water (hydrochory) and fish (ichthyochory), and which contributes to the formation of complex mutualistic networks. Our study evaluated the structure (modularity, nestedness, specialisation, and robustness) of the network of dispersal of seeds by frugivorous fish in a floodplain forest in Central Amazonia. We expect the binary network to have a nested pattern, while the weighted network is expected to have a non‐nested structure; that generalist frugivorous species should constitute the core of the network, while specialist frugivorous species will be peripheral; that the size of fish and seeds is related to specialisation, and that the robustness of the network weakens as generalist frugivorous fish are removed. We found 5012 intact seeds from 49 plant species in the digestive tracts of 11 species of frugivorous fish. A nested and modular pattern was found for the binary and weighted networks, albeit with a low degree of nestedness. Our network proved relatively robust when the frugivores were removed, whereby all the fish and plant species became peripheral. No relationship was found between the size of the fish and the seeds and the degree of specialisation. Considering the anthropogenic impacts that can cause modifications in seed dispersal networks, knowing the structure of mutualistic networks is fundamental in order to be able infer the vulnerability of the interactions as a result of changes in the ecosystem.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%