Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach
Habitat loss is the primary driver of the decline of biodiversity in ecological communities. However, which ecological processes are implicated in the removal of species following habitat loss, i.e. the disassembling of the community, remains unclear in many ecosystems. We address this question by i...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2020-10-01
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| Series: | Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2530064420300547 |
| _version_ | 1819075054062796800 |
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| author | Helon Simões Oliveira Sidney F. Gouveia Juan Ruiz-Esparza Stephen F. Ferrari |
| author_facet | Helon Simões Oliveira Sidney F. Gouveia Juan Ruiz-Esparza Stephen F. Ferrari |
| author_sort | Helon Simões Oliveira |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Habitat loss is the primary driver of the decline of biodiversity in ecological communities. However, which ecological processes are implicated in the removal of species following habitat loss, i.e. the disassembling of the community, remains unclear in many ecosystems. We address this question by investigating how the taxonomic and functional diversity of bird assemblages are related to fragment size in the Atlantic Forest from northeastern Brazil. We used complementary metrics of diversity and a randomization procedure to test whether changes in diversity result from either random or deterministic processes, such as limiting similarity or habitat filtering. The species–area (SAR) and functional richness–area (FAR) relationships were positive, as expected. However, the FAR had a lower slope than the SAR, which indicates a slower loss of functional richness than that predicted by the loss of species richness. Communities in smaller fragments contain more functionally overdispersed species and a more even distribution of abundance. These results indicate that limiting similarity drives the disassembling of bird assemblages in small fragments of the Atlantic Forest, which presumably reflects increased competition. This dynamic tends to reduce functional redundancy in the impoverished assemblages, with potentially deleterious consequences for ecosystem functioning and forest conservation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-21T18:19:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0ea019eb8f5d41caa52fa269261b4c67 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2530-0644 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-21T18:19:18Z |
| publishDate | 2020-10-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation |
| spelling | doaj.art-0ea019eb8f5d41caa52fa269261b4c672022-12-21T18:54:35ZengElsevierPerspectives in Ecology and Conservation2530-06442020-10-01184304312Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approachHelon Simões Oliveira0Sidney F. Gouveia1Juan Ruiz-Esparza2Stephen F. Ferrari3Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Federal University of Sergipe, CEP 49100-000, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil; Department of Animal and Plant Biology, Center of Biological Sciences, Paraná State University at Londrina, CEP 86.057-970, Londrina, Paraná, Brazil; Corresponding author at: Graduate Program in Ecology and Conservation, Conservation Biology Lab, Federal University of Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n - Caixa Postal 49.100-000, São Cristóvão, SE, Brazil.Department of Ecology, Federal University of Sergipe, CEP 49100-000, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, BrazilNucleus of Education in Agrarian and Land Sciences, Federal University of Sergipe, CEP 49680-000, Nossa Senhora da Glória, Sergipe, BrazilDepartment of Ecology, Federal University of Sergipe, CEP 49100-000, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, BrazilHabitat loss is the primary driver of the decline of biodiversity in ecological communities. However, which ecological processes are implicated in the removal of species following habitat loss, i.e. the disassembling of the community, remains unclear in many ecosystems. We address this question by investigating how the taxonomic and functional diversity of bird assemblages are related to fragment size in the Atlantic Forest from northeastern Brazil. We used complementary metrics of diversity and a randomization procedure to test whether changes in diversity result from either random or deterministic processes, such as limiting similarity or habitat filtering. The species–area (SAR) and functional richness–area (FAR) relationships were positive, as expected. However, the FAR had a lower slope than the SAR, which indicates a slower loss of functional richness than that predicted by the loss of species richness. Communities in smaller fragments contain more functionally overdispersed species and a more even distribution of abundance. These results indicate that limiting similarity drives the disassembling of bird assemblages in small fragments of the Atlantic Forest, which presumably reflects increased competition. This dynamic tends to reduce functional redundancy in the impoverished assemblages, with potentially deleterious consequences for ecosystem functioning and forest conservation.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2530064420300547Functional diversityFunctional richness–area relationshipHabitat lossLimiting similarityspecies–area relationship |
| spellingShingle | Helon Simões Oliveira Sidney F. Gouveia Juan Ruiz-Esparza Stephen F. Ferrari Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation Functional diversity Functional richness–area relationship Habitat loss Limiting similarity species–area relationship |
| title | Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach |
| title_full | Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach |
| title_fullStr | Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach |
| title_short | Fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the Atlantic Forest: A taxonomic and functional approach |
| title_sort | fragment size and the disassembling of local bird communities in the atlantic forest a taxonomic and functional approach |
| topic | Functional diversity Functional richness–area relationship Habitat loss Limiting similarity species–area relationship |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2530064420300547 |
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