1
|
Gonçalves‐Sousa JG, Cavalcante LA, Mesquita DO, Ávila RW. Determinants of resource use in lizard assemblages from the semiarid Caatinga, Brazil. Biotropica 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.13174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- José Guilherme Gonçalves‐Sousa
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Ecologia e Recursos Naturais, Departamento de Biologia, Centro de Ciências Universidade Federal do Ceará Fortaleza Brazil
| | - Leonides Azevedo Cavalcante
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Diversidade Biológica e Recursos Naturais, Departamento de Química Biológica Universidade Regional do Cariri Crato Brazil
| | - Daniel Oliveira Mesquita
- Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Centro de Ciências Exatas e da Natureza Universidade Federal da Paraíba João Pessoa Brazil
| | - Robson Waldemar Ávila
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Ecologia e Recursos Naturais, Departamento de Biologia, Centro de Ciências Universidade Federal do Ceará Fortaleza Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Diversity patterns of lizard assemblages from a protected habitat mosaic in the Brazilian Cerrado savanna. JOURNAL OF TROPICAL ECOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1017/s0266467422000244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Differences in habitat complexity and structure can directly influence the composition, diversity, and structure of species assemblages. Measurements of functional and phylogenetic diversity complement the commonly used measurements of taxonomic diversity, elucidating the relationships between species, their traits, and their evolutionary history. In this study, we evaluated how the mosaic of open and forested formations in a federal conservation unit in the western portion of the Brazilian Cerrado savanna influences the taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic structure of lizard assemblages. Lizards were sampled for 15 months using pitfall traps set in open and forested formations. We recorded 292 lizards distributed among 16 species from eight families, with species composition differing among the formations. Richness was greater in the assemblages from open formations, while functional diversity and phylogenetic variability were greater in those of forested formations. Lizard assemblages in open formations were functionally and phylogenetically clustered, probably as a result of environmental filters acting on species, while the assemblages from forested formations were randomly structured. Different environmental and historical mechanisms have apparently shaped the current diversity of lizards in the region. This study shows that Cerrado vegetation mosaics can promote wide variation in different aspects of the taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic structure from the lizard assemblages.
Collapse
|
3
|
Murru V, Farris E, Santo A, Grillo O, Piazza C, Gaio A, Bacchetta G, Thompson JD. Niche Differentiation at Multiple Spatial Scales on Large and Small Mediterranean Islands for the Endemic Silene velutina Pourr. ex Loisel. (Caryophyllaceae). PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 10:plants10112298. [PMID: 34834661 PMCID: PMC8618681 DOI: 10.3390/plants10112298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this work is to investigate niche variations in endemic Silene velutina (Caryophyllaceae, Angiosperms) on Mediterranean islands that differ in size. Six populations on both large and small islands were sampled across the geographic range of the species. For each population, 10 plots (1 × 2 m, with a 25 cm grill) were randomly placed to quantify environmental (abiotic and biotic factors and disturbance) and population (demographic structure and reproductive success) parameters. Niche parameters related to substrate, plant cover, community diversity and composition and disturbance showed significant variation in relation to island size. At the regional scale, we detected a broader niche on large islands associated with spatial heterogeneity and island size. In contrast, at the local scale, populations on small islands showed a broader niche, potentially due to a release from competition (low diversity and plant cover and absence of phanerophytes). Populations on large islands had a demographic structure biased towards vegetative individuals (seedlings and juveniles) with few reproductive individuals, while those on small islands had a majority of adults. Together, the results on niche breadth and demographic structure concord with the idea of a strategy based on adult persistence on small islands.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Murru
- Centro Conservazione Biodiversità (CCB), Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell’Ambiente (DISVA), Università degli Studi di Cagliari, V.le S. Ignazio da Laconi 13, 09123 Cagliari, Italy; (V.M.); (A.S.); (O.G.); (G.B.)
| | - Emmanuele Farris
- Dipartimento di Chimica e Farmacia, Università degli Studi di Sassari, Via Piandanna, 4-07100 Sassari, Italy
| | - Andrea Santo
- Centro Conservazione Biodiversità (CCB), Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell’Ambiente (DISVA), Università degli Studi di Cagliari, V.le S. Ignazio da Laconi 13, 09123 Cagliari, Italy; (V.M.); (A.S.); (O.G.); (G.B.)
| | - Oscar Grillo
- Centro Conservazione Biodiversità (CCB), Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell’Ambiente (DISVA), Università degli Studi di Cagliari, V.le S. Ignazio da Laconi 13, 09123 Cagliari, Italy; (V.M.); (A.S.); (O.G.); (G.B.)
| | - Carole Piazza
- Conservatoire Botanique National de Corse, Avenue Jean Nicoli, 20250 Corte, France;
| | - Antonella Gaio
- Parco Nazionale Arcipelago di La Maddalena, Via Giulio Cesare, 7-07024 La Maddalena, Italy;
| | - Gianluigi Bacchetta
- Centro Conservazione Biodiversità (CCB), Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell’Ambiente (DISVA), Università degli Studi di Cagliari, V.le S. Ignazio da Laconi 13, 09123 Cagliari, Italy; (V.M.); (A.S.); (O.G.); (G.B.)
- Hortus Botanicus Karalitanus (HBK), Università degli Studi di Cagliari, V.le S. Ignazio da Laconi 9-11, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
| | - John D. Thompson
- Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionelle et Evolutive, UMR 5175, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, Université Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, Route de Mende 1919, 34293 Montpellier, France;
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Slavenko A, Allison A, Meiri S. Elevation is a stronger predictor of morphological trait divergence than competition in a radiation of tropical lizards. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:917-930. [PMID: 33410529 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Adaptations for efficient performance are expected to shape animal morphology based on selection for microhabitat use and ecological forces. The presence of competitor species is predicted to cause niches to contract and enhance trait divergence. Therefore, increased species richness is expected to lead to greater trait divergence, and to result in reduced overlap and similarity between morphologies of sympatric species. We examined patterns of morphospace occupancy and partitioning in the skink fauna of New Guinea, the world's largest tropical island. Because skink species richness is largely decoupled from elevation in New Guinea, we could examine the effects of both factors (as proxies for competition and abiotic conditions), on morphospace occupancy and partitioning. We measured 1,860 specimens from 79 species of skinks throughout Papua New Guinea, and examined their morphospace occupancy in a spatial context. We calculated, for each assemblage within equal-area cells, the volume of morphospace occupied by all skinks, the mean volume occupied per species, and the mean distance and overlap between all species pairs. We then examined whether these metrics are related to species richness and elevation. Elevation is a stronger predictor of morphospace occupancy than species richness. As elevation increases, intraspecific variation decreases and morphologies become more similar to each other such that overall morphospace occupancy decreases. Highland skinks are, on average, smaller, thinner and shorter limbed than lowland species. We hypothesise that harsh climates in the New Guinea highland habitats impose strong selection on skinks to occupy specific areas of morphospace that facilitate efficient thermoregulation in suboptimal thermal conditions. We conclude that the effect of competition on trait divergence on a community and assemblage scale is eclipsed by abiotic selection pressures in these harsh environments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alex Slavenko
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | | | - Shai Meiri
- School of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Megía-Palma R, Arregui L, Pozo I, Žagar A, Serén N, Carretero MA, Merino S. Geographic patterns of stress in insular lizards reveal anthropogenic and climatic signatures. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 749:141655. [PMID: 32836132 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Revised: 08/09/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Anthropization of insular ecosystems may have negative impacts on native populations of lizards, which provide core ecosystem services on islands. We aimed to identify environmental factors to explain the interlocal variation in faecal glucocorticoids, parasite intensity, and body condition in populations of insular lizards. A cross-sectional design during the summer of 2017 and 2018 was used to sample 611 adult lizards, Gallotia galloti. Interlocal variation of three stress indicators was analysed in response to environmental variables across a wide environmental gradient in Tenerife (Canary Islands): (i) concentration of faecal glucocorticoids, (ii) intensities of infection by hematic parasites, and (iii) body condition. The data, with low spatial autocorrelation, were analysed using multimodel inference and model cross-validation. Bioclimatic variables associated with the extreme hot and dry climate of summer were the most informative predictors. Interlocal variation in faecal corticosterone in males was best fitted to a model that included the maximum temperature of the warmest month, although the best predictor was habitat anthropization. The thermal annual range, associated with extreme thermal events, was positively related to faecal corticosterone in females. Extreme hot temperatures were positively related to the median parasite intensities in both sexes, while the highest mean intensities of infection were found in females from the most xeric coastal localities. None of the predictors tested, including faecal glucocorticoids, explained individual or interlocal variation in body condition. Effects of human pressure and climate change on insular populations of lizards can be additive. However, the uncoupled relationship found between body condition and the faecal glucocorticoid content suggests that current negative effects may be aggravated during drought periods in summer. Given the impact of climate change on islands, our results may be of application to other archipelagos, where lizards also play key ecological roles.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- R Megía-Palma
- CIBIO, InBIO - Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal; Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC, Calle José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid E-28006, Spain.
| | - L Arregui
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC, Calle José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid E-28006, Spain
| | - I Pozo
- Geoimagine Ltd., Paseo de Ginebra 35, Madrid E-28022, Spain
| | - A Žagar
- CIBIO, InBIO - Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal; Department of Organisms and Ecosystem Research, National Institute of Biology, Večna pot 111, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - N Serén
- CIBIO, InBIO - Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal; Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
| | - M A Carretero
- CIBIO, InBIO - Research Network in Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Universidade do Porto, Campus de Vairão, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal; Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
| | - S Merino
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC, Calle José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid E-28006, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Ecological release in lizard endoparasites from the Atlantic Forest, northeast of the Neotropical Region. Parasitology 2020; 147:491-500. [PMID: 31965954 DOI: 10.1017/s0031182020000025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
We compared lizard endoparasite assemblages between the Atlantic Forest and naturally isolated forest enclaves to test the ecological release hypothesis, which predicts that host specificity should be lower (large niche breadth) and parasite abundance should be greater for parasites from isolated forest enclaves (poor assemblages) than for parasites from the coastal Atlantic Forest (rich assemblages). Parasite richness per specimen showed no difference between the isolated and non-isolated areas. Parasite abundance did not differ between the isolated and non-isolated areas but showed a positive relationship with parasite richness considering all areas (isolated and non-isolated). Furthermore, host specificity was positively related to parasite richness. Considering that host specificity is inversely proportional to the host range infected by a parasite, our results indicate that in assemblages with greater parasite richness, parasites tend to infect a smaller range of hosts than do those in simple assemblages. In summary, our study partially supports the ecological release hypothesis: in assemblages with greater parasite richness, lizard parasites from Atlantic Forest are able to increase their parasite abundance (per host), possibly through facilitated infection; however, the amplitude of infected hosts only expands in poor assemblages (lower parasite richness).
Collapse
|
7
|
Gonçalves-Sousa JG, Mesquita DO, Ávila RW. Structure of a Lizard Assemblage in a Semiarid Habitat of the Brazilian Caatinga. HERPETOLOGICA 2019. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-19-00026.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- José Guilherme Gonçalves-Sousa
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Bioprospecção Molecular, Departamento de Química Biológica, Universidade Regional do Cariri, CE 60020-181, Brazil
| | - Daniel Oliveira Mesquita
- Laboratório de Herpetologia, Departamento de Sistemática e Ecologia, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, PB 60440-900, Brazil
| | - Robson Waldemar Ávila
- Laboratório de Herpetologia, Departamento de Química Biológica, Universidade Regional do Cariri, CE 63100-000, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Seasonal variation of hypoxic and hypercarbic ventilatory responses in the lizard Tropidurus torquatus. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2019; 237:110534. [PMID: 31401309 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.110534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2019] [Revised: 07/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2) influence the breathing pattern of reptiles, especially when CO2 is in excess or O2 at low concentrations and the effects of these gases on the respiratory response varies according to the species. In addition to respiratory gases, seasonal changes can also modulate breathing pattern and ventilatory responses to hypoxia and hypercarbia. Therefore, the present study investigated the breathing pattern and ventilatory responses to hypercarbia (5% CO2) and hypoxia (5% O2) of the Neotropical lizard Tropidurus torquatus over a period of one year, covering all seasons (summer, autumn, winter and spring). Our data suggest that like other ectothermic sauropsids, Tropidurus torquatus possesses distinct ventilatory responses to hypoxia and hypercarbia, being more sensitive to changes in CO2 than in O2. Additionally, the ventilatory responses to hypoxia were more pronounced during summer and hypercanic and pos-hypercapnic ventilatory response was reduced during spring, suggesting that seasonality modulates the control of ventilation in this species.
Collapse
|
9
|
Mustin K, Carvalho WD, Hilário RR, Costa-Neto SV, Silva C, Vasconcelos IM, Castro IJ, Eilers V, Kauano ÉE, Mendes-Junior RNG, Funi C, Fearnside PM, Silva JMC, Euler AMC, Toledo JJ. Biodiversity, threats and conservation challenges in the Cerrado of Amapá, an Amazonian savanna. NATURE CONSERVATION 2017. [DOI: 10.3897/natureconservation.22.13823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
|
10
|
Lizards on newly created islands independently and rapidly adapt in morphology and diet. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:8812-8816. [PMID: 28760959 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1709080114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Rapid adaptive changes can result from the drastic alterations humans impose on ecosystems. For example, flooding large areas for hydroelectric dams converts mountaintops into islands and leaves surviving populations in a new environment. We report differences in morphology and diet of the termite-eating gecko Gymnodactylus amarali between five such newly created islands and five nearby mainland sites located in the Brazilian Cerrado, a biodiversity hotspot. Mean prey size and dietary prey-size breadth were larger on islands than mainlands, expected because four larger lizard species that also consume termites, but presumably prefer larger prey, went extinct on the islands. In addition, island populations had larger heads relative to their body length than mainland populations; larger heads are more suited to the larger prey taken, and disproportionately larger heads allow that functional advantage without an increase in energetic requirements resulting from larger body size. Parallel morphological evolution is strongly suggested, because there are indications that, before flooding, relative head size did not differ between future island and future mainland sites. Females and males showed the same trend of relatively larger heads on islands, so the difference between island and mainland sites is unlikely to be due to greater male-male competition for mates on islands. We thus discovered a very fast (at most 15 y) case of independent parallel adaptive change in response to catastrophic human disturbance.
Collapse
|
11
|
Meiri S, Kadison AE, Novosolov M, Pafilis P, Foufopoulos J, Itescu Y, Raia P, Pincheira-Donoso D. The number of competitor species is unlinked to sexual dimorphism. J Anim Ecol 2014; 83:1302-12. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2013] [Accepted: 05/03/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shai Meiri
- Department of Zoology; Tel Aviv University; Tel Aviv 6997801 Israel
| | - Amy E. Kadison
- Department of Zoology; Tel Aviv University; Tel Aviv 6997801 Israel
| | - Maria Novosolov
- Department of Zoology; Tel Aviv University; Tel Aviv 6997801 Israel
| | - Panayiotis Pafilis
- Section of Zoology and Marine Biology; Department of Biology; University of Athens; Panepistimioupolis, Ilissia Athens 157-84 Greece
| | - Johannes Foufopoulos
- School of Natural Resources and Environment; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Ann Arbor MI 48109 USA
| | - Yuval Itescu
- Department of Zoology; Tel Aviv University; Tel Aviv 6997801 Israel
| | - Pasquale Raia
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, dell'Ambiente e delle Risorse; Università Federico II; L.go San Marcellino 10 Naples 80138 Italy
| | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
LaPoint SD, Belant JL, Kays RW. Mesopredator release facilitates range expansion in fisher. Anim Conserv 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/acv.12138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S. D. LaPoint
- Max-Planck-Institute for Ornithology; Radolfzell Germany
- Department of Biology; University of Konstanz; Konstanz Germany
| | - J. L. Belant
- Carnivore Ecology Laboratory; Forest and Wildlife Research Center; Mississippi State University; Starksville MS USA
| | - R. W. Kays
- North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences; Raleigh NC USA
- Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources; North Carolina State University; Raleigh NC USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Siqueira CC, Kiefer MC, Sluys MV, Rocha CFD. Variation in the diet of the lizard Tropidurus torquatus along its coastal range in Brazil. BIOTA NEOTROPICA 2013. [DOI: 10.1590/s1676-06032013000300012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The diet composition of lizards of a given species may vary among different populations. The feeding ecology of the tropidurid lizard Tropidurus torquatus was studied in 10 coastal areas in Brazil in order to detect to what extent the diet varies along its geographic range. A non-metric multidimensional scaling technique revealed three groups of localities according to the diet composition: one characterized by a relatively high consumption of Isoptera, one characterized by a relatively high proportion of plant matter, and one in which there was a great importance of Formicidae. We found a weak pattern of latitudinal differences in restingas regarding the general consumption of items by T. torquatus, probably because this is a generalist and opportunistic lizard, which consumes most of the available types of potential food items in the habitat. However, lizards from northern populations consumed a larger quantity of smaller items (e.g., Isoptera) than those from southern populations. In the southern populations, on the other hand, larger items such as Coleoptera, Lepidoptera larvae and fruits were more frequently consumed. It is likely that the observed interpopulational variation in some aspects of the feeding ecology of coastal T. torquatus is mainly given by food availability.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Mara Cíntia Kiefer
- Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro – UERJ, Brazil; Universidade Federal Fluminense – UFF, Brazil
| | - Monique Van Sluys
- Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro – UERJ, Brazil; Taronga Conservation Society Australia, Australia
| | | |
Collapse
|
14
|
Novelli IA, Lucas PDS, Carvalho RGD, Santos RC, Sousa BMD. Lagartos de áreas de cerrado na Reserva Biológica Unilavras-Boqueirão, Ingaí, Sul de Minas Gerais, Brasil. BIOTA NEOTROPICA 2012. [DOI: 10.1590/s1676-06032012000300017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Estudos com ênfase em levantamentos e quantificação da diversidade biológica das espécies devem ser reconhecidos como ferramentas importantes no processo de produção de conhecimento básico principalmente onde dados sobre a fauna são escassos. O presente estudo objetivou caracterizar a fauna de lagartos da Reserva Biológica Unilavras-Boqueirão (21º 20' 47" S e 44º 59' 27" W), inserida no domínio do Cerrado, situada no município de Ingaí, Sul de Minas Gerais, Sudeste do Brasil. A amostragem ocorreu entre junho de 2008 a fevereiro de 2010, em excursões semanais no período diurno em campo. As capturas foram realizadas por meio de armadilhas de queda, distribuídas em seis conjuntos, três em área de Cerrado sensu stricto e três em Mata de galeria, perfazendo um esforço amostral de 6.120 baldes/dia. Animais visualizados, encontrados ocasionalmente ou coletados por terceiros também foram incluídos na amostragem. Um total de 10 espécies de lagartos foram capturados, distribuídos em sete famílias. A fitofisionomia onde foi amostrado o maior número de espécies foi o Cerrado sensu stricto, com nove espécies. Apenas Heterodactylus imbricatus esteve restrita à fitofisionomia de mata de galeria, onde as armadilhas de queda capturaram 74,12% dos lagartos. A fauna de lagartos é representada por espécies típicas de áreas abertas como Ameiva ameiva, Polychrus acutirostris e Mabuya frenata e espécies florestais como Urostrophus vautieri e Heterodactylus imbricatus até então não registradas para o Cerrado.
Collapse
|
15
|
Sousa BMD, Nascimento AERD, Gomides SC, Rios CHV, Hudson ADA, Novelli IA. Répteis em fragmentos de Cerrado e Mata Atlântica no Campo das Vertentes, Estado de Minas Gerais, Sudeste do Brasil. BIOTA NEOTROPICA 2010. [DOI: 10.1590/s1676-06032010000200016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Os dados sobre a fauna reptiliana em Minas Gerais são pontuais e revelam carência de informações sobre esse grupo, principalmente em regiões de transição entre a Mata Atlântica e o Cerrado. A área do estudo está situada no município de Ritápolis (21° 01' 37.07" S e 44° 19' 11.84" O), microrregião Campo das Vertentes, Estado de Minas Gerais, Sudeste do Brasil. Pretendeu-se com a presente pesquisa conhecer a composição da fauna de répteis local. As observações, capturas e coletas foram realizadas quinzenalmente, durante dois dias consecutivos, de agosto de 2005 a julho de 2006. As capturas foram realizadas por meio de armadilhas de interceptação e queda, distribuídas em oito sítios, sendo quatro em área de mata de galeria e quatro em área aberta, perfazendo um esforço amostral de 6.912 horas-balde. Foi também realizada procura ativa e encontros ocasionais com registros fotográficos dos espécimes, e, no caso de serpentes, alguns exemplares foram entregues por terceiros quando encontradas mortos. Registrou-se a presença de 31 espécies de répteis, sendo duas espécies de cágados, nove de lagartos, duas de anfisbenas e 18 de serpentes. Apenas os lagartos Cercosaura ocellata, Enyalius bilineatus e Tupinambis merianae e as serpentes Leptodeira annulata e Apostolepis assimilis foram capturados nas armadilhas de queda. Os lagartos mais comuns foram Ameiva ameiva e Mabuya frenata, e as serpentes mais abundantes foram Oxyrhophus guibei e Sibynomorphus mikanii. Os lagartos estão bem representados na área, com espécies típicas de mata, como Enyalius bilineatus, e de áreas aberta de cerrado, como Ameiva ameiva e Mabuya frenata. A fauna de serpentes possui representantes típicos de áreas abertas do Cerrado, como O. guibei e Micrurus frontalis, e de regiões florestadas, como Liophis poecilogyrus e Philodryas olfersii. A diversidade de espécies de répteis e o registro prévio de Amphisbaena dubia e Hydromedusa tectifera para o Estado de Minas Gerais indicam a grande potencialidade do Campo das Vertentes em revelar a ocorrência de espécies novas ou a ampliação na distribuição de outras.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Samuel Campos Gomides
- Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Brasil; Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, Brasil
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
16
|
Palmuti CFDS, Cassimiro J, Bertoluci J. Food habits of snakes from the RPPN Feliciano Miguel Abdala, an Atlantic Forest fragment of southeastern Brazil. BIOTA NEOTROPICA 2009. [DOI: 10.1590/s1676-06032009000100028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
We present data on the diet of 15 species of snakes belonging to a community from Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural Feliciano Miguel Abdala, an Atlantic Forest fragment of Southeastern Brazil, based on their stomach contents. For 12 items we were able to determine the direction of the ingestion. Most snakes ingested the prey head-first. A cluster analysis was conducted with items grouped as chilopods, mollusks, adult anurans, anuran tadpoles, lizards, amphisbaenians, snakes, and rodents. The phylogenetic influence on diet preferences is discussed.
Collapse
|
17
|
Costa GC, Mesquita DO, Colli GR, Vitt LJ. Niche expansion and the niche variation hypothesis: does the degree of individual variation increase in depauperate assemblages? Am Nat 2009; 172:868-77. [PMID: 18950275 DOI: 10.1086/592998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The niche expansion and niche variation hypotheses predict that release from interspecific competition will promote niche expansion in depauperate assemblages. Niche expansion can occur by different mechanisms, including an increase in within-individual, among-individual, or bimodal variation (sexual dimorphism). Here we explore whether populations with larger niche breadth have a higher degree of diet variation. We also test whether populations from depauperate lizard assemblages differ in dietary resource use with respect to variation within and/or among individuals and sexual dimorphism. We found support for the niche expansion and niche variation hypotheses. Populations in assemblages with low phylogenetic diversity had a higher degree of individual variation, suggesting a tendency for niche expansion. We also found evidence suggesting that the mechanism causing niche expansion is an increase in variation among individuals rather than an increase in within-individual variation or an increase in bimodal variation due to sexual dimorphism.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel C Costa
- Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and Zoology Department, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma 73072, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
18
|
França FGR, Mesquita DO, Nogueira CC, Araújo AFB. Phylogeny and Ecology Determine Morphological Structure in a Snake Assemblage in the Central Brazilian Cerrado. COPEIA 2008. [DOI: 10.1643/ch-05-034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
|