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Stevenson PR, Acosta-Rojas DC, Cárdenas S, Francisco Henao-Díaz L. Variation in fruit and seed dimensions is better explained by dispersal system than by leaf size in a tropical rainforest. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 2023; 110:e16211. [PMID: 37459470 DOI: 10.1002/ajb2.16211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023]
Abstract
PREMISE Variation in fruit and seed traits could originate from selection pressures exerted by frugivores or other ecological factors (adaptive hypotheses) and developmental constraints (by-product hypotheses) or chance. METHODS We evaluated fruit and leaf traits for nearly 850 plant species from a rainforest in Tinigua Park, Colombia. Through a series of linear regressions controlling for the phylogenetic signal of the traits (minimum N = 542), we tested (1) whether the allometry between seed width and length depends on seed dispersal system (Mazer and Wheelwright's adaptive hypothesis of allometry for species dispersed in the guts of animals = endozoochory) and (2) whether fruit length is associated with leaf length (i.e., Herrera's by-product hypothesis derived from the assumption that both organs develop from homologous structures). RESULTS We found a strong negative allometric association between seed width and length for seeds of endozoochorous species, as expected; but also, for anemochorous species. We found a positive relationship between fruit and leaf length, but this relationship was not evident for zoochorous species. Fruit size was highly correlated with seed size. CONCLUSIONS The allometry between seed length and width varied among dispersal systems, supporting that fruit and seed morphology has been modified by interactions with frugivores and by the possibility to rotate for some wind dispersed species. We found some support for the hypothesis on developmental constraints because fruit and leaf size were positively correlated, but the predictive power of the relationship was low (10-15%).
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo R Stevenson
- Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas La Macarena, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Diana C Acosta-Rojas
- Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas La Macarena, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
- Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Department of Biological Sciences, Goethe Universität, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Sasha Cárdenas
- Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas La Macarena, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - L Francisco Henao-Díaz
- Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas La Macarena, Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
- Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Jesus ADS, El Bizri HR, Fa JE, Valsecchi J, Rabelo RM, Mayor P. Comparative gastrointestinal organ lengths among Amazonian primates (Primates: Platyrrhini). AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2023. [PMID: 37092603 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24751] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 04/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The morphological features of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) in mammals reflect a species' food niche breadth and dietary adaptations. For many wild mammals, the relationship between the structure of the GIT and diet is still poorly understood, for example, the GIT for frugivorous primates is usually classified as unspecialized and homogeneous. Here, we compare the GIT structure of 13 primate species from the three families of extant platyrrhines (Atelidae, Pitheciidae, and Cebidae) in Amazonia, and discuss possible evolutionary adaptations to different diets and trophic niches. METHODS We measured the length of the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, cecum, colon, and rectum of the digestive tracts of 289 primate specimens. We determined the allometric relationships of the different tubular organs with the total length of the GIT as a proxy of specimen body size. Allometric parameters were used to establish the quotients of differentiation of every organ for each primate specimen. RESULTS There was a high differentiation in structure of the digestive organs among genera. Alouatta specimens clearly separated from the other genera based on dissimilarities in gastric, colonic, and rectal quotients, likely linked to the fermentation of plant contents. In contrast, all cebines (Sapajus, Cebus, and Saimiri) and Cacajao species had similar small intestine quotients, which is expected due to their high rates of animal matter consumed. CONCLUSIONS We show that diverse adaptations in digestive structure exist among frugivorous primates, which in turn reflect different dietary patterns within this group that may enable the geographic coexistence of different primate species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anamélia de Souza Jesus
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde e Produção Animal na Amazônia, Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia, Belém, Brazil
- Grupo de Pesquisa em Ecologia de Vertebrados Terrestres, Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá, Tefé, Brazil
- Grupo de Pesquisa em Biologia e Conservação de Primatas, Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá, Tefé, Brazil
- Rede de Pesquisa para Estudos sobre Diversidade, Conservação e Uso da Fauna na Amazônia (RedeFauna), Manaus, Brazil
| | - Hani R El Bizri
- Grupo de Pesquisa em Ecologia de Vertebrados Terrestres, Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá, Tefé, Brazil
- Rede de Pesquisa para Estudos sobre Diversidade, Conservação e Uso da Fauna na Amazônia (RedeFauna), Manaus, Brazil
- School of Science, Engineering and Environment, University of Salford, Salford, UK
- Comunidad de Manejo de Fauna Silvestre en la Amazonía y en Latinoamérica (ComFauna), Iquitos, Peru
| | - Julia E Fa
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Science and the Environment, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK
- CIFOR Headquarters, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor, Indonesia
| | - João Valsecchi
- Grupo de Pesquisa em Ecologia de Vertebrados Terrestres, Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá, Tefé, Brazil
- Rede de Pesquisa para Estudos sobre Diversidade, Conservação e Uso da Fauna na Amazônia (RedeFauna), Manaus, Brazil
| | - Rafael Magalhães Rabelo
- Grupo de Pesquisa em Ecologia de Vertebrados Terrestres, Instituto de Desenvolvimento Sustentável Mamirauá, Tefé, Brazil
| | - Pedro Mayor
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Saúde e Produção Animal na Amazônia, Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia, Belém, Brazil
- Comunidad de Manejo de Fauna Silvestre en la Amazonía y en Latinoamérica (ComFauna), Iquitos, Peru
- Departamento Sanitat i Anatomia Animals, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
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Elliott S, Tucker NIJ, Shannon DP, Tiansawat P. The framework species method: harnessing natural regeneration to restore tropical forest ecosystems. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210073. [PMID: 36373920 PMCID: PMC9661958 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
As interest in restoring tropical forests surges, so does the need for effective methods to ensure success. The framework species method (FSM) restores forest ecosystems by densely planting open sites, close to natural forest, with woody species, indigenous to the reference ecosystem and selected for their ability to accelerate ecological succession. Criteria for selecting framework species include: (i) representative of the reference forest ecosystem, (ii) tolerant of open conditions, (iii) ability to suppress weeds, (iv) attractiveness to seed-dispersing animals and (v) easily propagated. The method is effective where forest remnants and viable populations of seed dispersers remain. The origins and elements of the FSM are discussed. We review its adoption in 12 countries. Adherence to original principles was mostly high, but some misuse of the term was evident. The need for clearer definitions was identified. We place the FSM on a scale of restoration methods, matched with degradation levels and compare its establishment costs with those of other methods. Obstacles to its wider adoption, both technical and socio-economic, are discussed, along with how these might be overcome. Finally, the FSM is more clearly defined to facilitate its use in contributing towards the goals of the UN Decade on Restoration. This article is part of the theme issue 'Understanding forest landscape restoration: reinforcing scientific foundations for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Elliott
- Forest Restoration Research Unit, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
- Environmental Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Nigel I. J. Tucker
- College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns QLD3811, Australia
| | - Dia Panitnard Shannon
- Forest Restoration Research Unit, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
- Environmental Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
| | - Pimonrat Tiansawat
- Forest Restoration Research Unit, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
- Environmental Science Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand
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Dispersal success of a specialized tropical tree depends on complex interactions among diverse mammalian frugivores. Glob Ecol Conserv 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2022.e02312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
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Arboreal camera trap reveals the frequent occurrence of a frugivore-carnivore in neotropical nutmeg trees. Sci Rep 2022; 12:7513. [PMID: 35525878 PMCID: PMC9079064 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-11568-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Arboreal and flying frugivorous animals represent primary dispersers in the Neotropics. Studies suggest a possible compensation for the loss of large species by smaller ones with expanding rampant anthropogenic pressures and declining populations of larger frugivores. However, studies on seed dispersal by frugivores vertebrates generally focus on the diurnal, terrestrial, canopy, and flying species, with the nocturnal canopy ones being less studied. Setting camera traps high in the canopy of fruiting nutmeg trees revealed for the first time the high frequency of the kinkajou (Potos flavus, Schreber, 1774, Procyonidae), an overlooked nocturnal frugivore species (Order Carnivora) in the Guianas. The diversity of the fruit species consumed by the kinkajou calls for considering it as an important seed disperser. The overlap of the size of seeds dispersed by frugivores observed in nutmeg trees suggests that the small (2-5 kg) kinkajou may compensate for the loss of large (5-10 kg) frugivorous vertebrates in the canopy. Camera traps visualise how the kinkajou is adapted to forage in the nutmeg tree crown and grab the fruit. Such information is vital for conservation because compensation of seed dispersal by small frugivores is crucial in increasing anthropogenic stressors.
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Quintero E, Isla J, Jordano P. Methodological overview and data‐merging approaches in the study of plant–frugivore interactions. OIKOS 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.08379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Jorge Isla
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC Sevilla Spain
| | - Pedro Jordano
- Estación Biológica de Doñana, CSIC Sevilla Spain
- Dept Biología Vegetal y Ecología, Univ. de Sevilla Sevilla Spain
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Cárdenas S, Echeverry‐Galvis MÁ, Stevenson PR. Seed dispersal effectiveness by oilbirds (
Steatornis caripensis
) in the Southern Andes of Colombia. Biotropica 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sasha Cárdenas
- Laboratorio de Ecología de Bosques Tropicales y Primatología Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas Universidad de Los Andes Bogotá Colombia
- Facultad de Estudios Ambientales y Rurales Pontificia Universidad Javeriana Bogotá Colombia
| | | | - Pablo R. Stevenson
- Laboratorio de Ecología de Bosques Tropicales y Primatología Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas Universidad de Los Andes Bogotá Colombia
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Seed Removal Rates in Forest Remnants Respond to Forest Loss at the Landscape Scale. FORESTS 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/f11111144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Seed removal is a key component of seed dispersal and may be influenced by both landscape-scale and local attributes, and it has been used as an indicator of the intensity of interactions between ecosystem components. We examined how the seed removal rates, which integrate the activity of seed dispersers and seed predators, vary with landscape-scale forest cover. We collected data under 34 trees belonging to two zoochoric species (Helicostylis tomentosa (Poepp. and Endl.) J. F. Macbr. and Inga vera Willd.) in 17 remnants in the Brazilian Atlantic forest, with different percentages of forest cover. The seed removal rate was estimated using a fast method based on the abundance of intact fruits and fruit scraps on the ground. The amount of forest cover affected the rate of seed removal in a humpbacked shape, with a maximum seed removal rate at intermediate forest cover. Seed removal rates must be related to the amount of food resources offered and diversity of dispersers and predators in the region. In landscapes with intermediate forest amount, there is a better balance between supply and demand for fruits, leading to a higher seed removal rate than more deforested or forested landscape. Our results also show that local factors, such as crop size and canopy surface, together with forest cover amount, are also important to the removal rate, depending on the species. In addition, our results showed that plant–animal interactions are occurring in all fragments, but the health status of these forests is similar to disturbed forests, even in sites immersed in forested landscapes.
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Messeder JVS, Guerra TJ, Dáttilo W, Silveira FAO. Searching for keystone plant resources in fruit‐frugivore interaction networks across the Neotropics. Biotropica 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- João Vitor S. Messeder
- Departamento de Botânica Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Minas Gerais Brazil
- Center for Ecological Synthesis and Conservation Departamento de Genética, Ecologia e Evolução Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Minas Gerais Brazil
| | - Tadeu J. Guerra
- Departamento de Botânica Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Minas Gerais Brazil
| | - Wesley Dáttilo
- Red de Ecoetología Instituto de Ecología A.C. Veracruz Mexico
| | - Fernando A. O. Silveira
- Center for Ecological Synthesis and Conservation Departamento de Genética, Ecologia e Evolução Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Minas Gerais Brazil
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Buitrón-Jurado G, Sanz V. Specialization increases in a frugivorous bird–plant network from an isolated montane forest remnant. COMMUNITY ECOL 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s42974-020-00010-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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11
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de Almeida A, Morris RJ, Lewis OT, Mikich SB. Complementary roles of two resilient neotropical mammalian seed dispersers. ACTA OECOLOGICA 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2018.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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12
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13
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Almeida AD, Mikich SB. Combining plant-frugivore networks for describing the structure of neotropical communities. OIKOS 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.04774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Adriana de Almeida
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Animal, Inst. de Biociências, Letras e Ciências Exatas, Univ. Estadual Paulista “Júlio de Mesquita Filho”. Rua Cristóvão Colombo 2265, 15054-000; São José do Rio Preto SP Brazil
- Bioenv Monitoramento Ambiental, Rua Pilulares 17, 29199-072; Aracruz ES Brazil
| | - Sandra Bos Mikich
- Embrapa Florestas, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária; Colombo PR Brazil
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14
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Corlett RT. Frugivory and seed dispersal by vertebrates in tropical and subtropical Asia: An update. Glob Ecol Conserv 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2017.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 105] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
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15
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Making dispersal syndromes and networks useful in tropical conservation and restoration. Glob Ecol Conserv 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2016.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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