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Dar AA, Babu KN, Sundarapandian S, Parthasarathy N. Disentangling the response of species diversity, forest structure, and environmental drivers to aboveground biomass in the tropical forests of Western Ghats, India. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 957:177684. [PMID: 39615171 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177684] [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: 07/08/2024] [Revised: 10/31/2024] [Accepted: 11/19/2024] [Indexed: 12/21/2024]
Abstract
Tropical forests are crucial to the global carbon cycle, but a significant knowledge gap in the precise distribution patterns of forest aboveground biomass (AGB) hinders our ability to formulate effective conservation efforts. A key unresolved issue is the lack of understanding of how forest AGB interacts with biotic and abiotic factors on large spatial scale. To address this, we used Structural Equation Modeling to disentangle the direct and indirect effects of environmental, anthropogenic, structural diversity species diversity and edaphic factors on AGB of trees, lianas and regenerating communities using the data from 96 1-ha plots in the central Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot, India. We hypothesized that the effect of structural attributes overrides AGB distribution, with relative contributions varying among plant communities. The landscape-level mean AGB was 245.12 ± 19.74 Mg ha-1, with SEM explaining 68-85 % of variations across the three vegetation communities. Structural diversity emerged as the primary mediator of the positive effects of taxonomic diversity on AGB in the regeneration community, whereas canopy cover and stem density linked diversity to AGB in adult tree and liana communities. Further, AGB showed a positive association with soil organic carbon in adult tree and regeneration communities, underscoring the significance of belowground resource availability on AGB. The results indicate that structural features were consistently the strongest AGB predictors at all levels of data aggregation, indicating the predominant role of niche complementarity and efficient space utilization in driving AGB, albeit differently across the plant communities. Our study emphasizes the importance of maintaining high structural features and managing taxonomic diversity while promoting soil fertility and minimizing disturbances to support AGB in tropical forests. We recommend testing the effects of predictor variables on biomass of vegetation communities independently to better understand the ecological principles of forest functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashaq Ahmad Dar
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Pondicherry University, Puducherry 605014, India; Natural Resource Division, Faculty of Forestry, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Benhama Ganderbal, Jammu and Kashmir, 191201, India
| | - Kanda Naveen Babu
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Pondicherry University, Puducherry 605014, India; Department of Ecology, French Institute of Pondicherry, 11, Saint Louis Street, White town, 605001 Puducherry, India.
| | - Somaiah Sundarapandian
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Pondicherry University, Puducherry 605014, India.
| | - Narayanaswamy Parthasarathy
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Pondicherry University, Puducherry 605014, India; Natural Resource Division, Faculty of Forestry, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Benhama Ganderbal, Jammu and Kashmir, 191201, India
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Chaturvedi RK, Tripathi A, Pandey R, Raghubanshi AS, Singh JS. Assessment of habitat features modulated carbon sequestration strategies for drought management in tropical dry forest fragments. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 951:175703. [PMID: 39179036 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175703] [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: 05/23/2024] [Revised: 07/17/2024] [Accepted: 08/20/2024] [Indexed: 08/26/2024]
Abstract
Habitat features, such as species diversity, functional diversity, tree size, disturbances and fragment sizes have differential impacts on carbon (C) storage and C-sequestration in forest ecosystems. Present study attempted to understand the tree strategies for modulating C-sequestration capacity across tropical dry forest fragments with variable edge distances. We evaluated the differences between drought strategies (i.e., drought avoiding and drought tolerant) for variations in stem density, relative growth rate (RGR), C-storage and C-sequestration, species diversity, functional diversity, tree size and disturbance indicators along edge distance gradient, besides analyzed the differences between drought strategies for responses of C-storage and C-sequestration to variations in species diversity, functional diversity, tree size and disturbance indicators. Various traits and functional indices were analyzed using standard statistical techniques. For total trees and for the two drought strategies, generalized linear modeling results showed a significant decline in stem density, RGR, C-stock, C-sequestration, species diversity, functional diversity and tree size indicators, while a considerable increase in disturbance indicators, along decreasing edge distance across the fragments. The drought strategies exhibited a high degree of variation in the slope of associations for above variables with edge distance across fragments. For predicting C-sequestration, structural equation modeling results showed highly significant influence of functional diversity indicators for drought avoiding strategy, while species diversity indicators were strongly significant for drought tolerant strategy. Moreover, fire index and drought index were critical predictors for C-sequestration for drought avoiding and drought tolerant strategies, respectively. This study provide inputs to understand the largely ignored processes of C-storage and C-sequestration in fragmented forests, which are currently prevalent due to heavy anthropogenic pressures. Our findings are useful for forest managers to understand vegetation responses to interactions of species diversity, functional diversity, tree size and disturbance indicators, for predicting the stability of larger fragments and for planning restoration of smaller fragments.
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Affiliation(s)
- R K Chaturvedi
- Center for Integrative Conservation & Yunnan Key Laboratory for Conservation of Tropical Rainforests and Asian Elephant, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Menglun 666303, Yunnan, China.
| | - Anshuman Tripathi
- National Mineral Development Corporation Limited, Bailadila Iron Ore Mine, Bacheli Complex, Dantewada, 494553, Chhattisgarh, India
| | - Rajiv Pandey
- Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), Dehradun, India
| | - A S Raghubanshi
- Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - J S Singh
- Ecosystems Analysis Laboratory, Department of Botany, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005, Uttar Pradesh, India
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Tian Q, Zhang X, Yi H, Li Y, Xu X, He J, He L. Plant diversity drives soil carbon sequestration: evidence from 150 years of vegetation restoration in the temperate zone. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 14:1191704. [PMID: 37346142 PMCID: PMC10279892 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1191704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023]
Abstract
Large-scale afforestation is considered a natural way to address climate challenges (e.g., the greenhouse effect). However, there is a paucity of evidence linking plant diversity to soil carbon sequestration pathways during long-term natural restoration of temperate vegetation. In particular, the carbon sequestration mechanisms and functions of woody plants require further study. Therefore, we conducted a comparative study of plant diversity and soil carbon sequestration characteristics during 150 years of natural vegetation restoration in the temperate zone to provide a comprehensive assessment of the effects of long-term natural vegetation restoration processes on soil organic carbon stocks. The results suggested positive effects of woody plant diversity on carbon sequestration. In addition, fine root biomass and deadfall accumulation were significantly positively correlated with soil organic carbon stocks, and carbon was stored in large grain size aggregates (1-5 mm). Meanwhile, the diversity of Fabaceae and Rosaceae was observed to be important for soil organic carbon accumulation, and the carbon sequestration function of shrubs should not be neglected during vegetation restoration. Finally, we identified three plants that showed high potential for carbon sequestration: Lespedeza bicolor, Sophora davidii, and Cotoneaster multiflorus, which should be considered for inclusion in the construction of local artificial vegetation. Among them, L. bicolor is probably the best choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qilong Tian
- The Research Center of Soil and Water Conservation and Ecological Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Education, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Water Resources, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoping Zhang
- The Research Center of Soil and Water Conservation and Ecological Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Education, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Water Resources, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A&E University, Yangling, China
| | - Haijie Yi
- The Research Center of Soil and Water Conservation and Ecological Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Education, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Ministry of Water Resources, Yangling, Shaanxi, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yangyang Li
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A&E University, Yangling, China
| | - Xiaoming Xu
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A&E University, Yangling, China
- College of Urban, Rural Planning and Architectural Engineering, Shangluo University, Shangluo, China
| | - Jie He
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A&E University, Yangling, China
| | - Liang He
- Institute of Soil and Water Conservation, Northwest A&E University, Yangling, China
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Mwambala AN, Nyundo BA, Kalumanga E. Tree biomass, carbon stock characteristics and ground beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) diversity in the Uzungwa Scarp Forest Nature Reserve, Tanzania. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2023; 71:190-200. [PMID: 36264374 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-022-01733-5] [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: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 10/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Reducing carbon emission from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) has drawn attention and remain one of the main options for climate change mitigation. However, the extent to which conservation for carbon may enhance biodiversity conservation in both disturbed and relatively undisturbed (control) environment remain unclear in most forest types. The extent to which anthropogenic disturbances affect carbon stock and ground beetle diversity is also far from clear. This paper addressed these knowledge gaps using data based on ground beetles, carbon stock in live trees and tree species sampled in Uzungwa Scarp Nature Forest Reserve (USNFR). All trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 5 cm were measured for height and DBH in twelve clusters of 1 ha in size. In the same clusters, ground beetles were sampled using pitfall traps, active night search and active day search. The species diversity of ground beetles differed significantly between control sites and disturbed sites (p < 0.05). The mean total biomass and carbon stock in live trees were high in disturbed sites (323.72 t/ha) when compared to control sites (289.72 t/ha) but the difference was not statistically significant (U = 14, p > 0.05). Carbon in live trees and ground beetle diversity showed a weak positive correlation, while richness and abundance showed weak negative in control sites. Results show that REDD+ related activities in a tropical forest may enhance ground beetle diversity and carbon stock if ground beetles conservation is explicitly taken into account. Thus forest conservation planning that pursues both carbon storage and ground-dwelling invertebrate diversity is recommended.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna N Mwambala
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam, Mkwawa University College of Education, P.O. Box Private Bag, Iringa, Tanzania.
| | - Bruno A Nyundo
- Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, University of Dar es Salaam, P.O. Box 35064, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Elikana Kalumanga
- Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, University of Dar es Salaam, P.O. Box 35064, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
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Baldo M, Buldrini F, Chiarucci A, Rocchini D, Zannini P, Ayushi K, Ayyappan N. Remote sensing analysis on primary productivity and forest cover dynamics: A Western Ghats India case study. ECOL INFORM 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoinf.2022.101922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Mohanta MR, Rout Y, Pradhan B, Bhoi D, Chand PK, Sahu SC. Anthropogenic interventions regulate forest structure and carbon stock in transitional dry forests of Similipal Biosphere Reserve, India. ECOSCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/11956860.2022.2030130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Manas R. Mohanta
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
| | - Yasaswinee Rout
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
| | - Bikram Pradhan
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
| | - Dhiren Bhoi
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
| | - Pradeep K. Chand
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
| | - Sudam C. Sahu
- Department of Botany, Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjadeo University (Erstwhile: North Orissa University), Baripada- India
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Meyfroidt P, de Bremond A, Ryan CM, Archer E, Aspinall R, Chhabra A, Camara G, Corbera E, DeFries R, Díaz S, Dong J, Ellis EC, Erb KH, Fisher JA, Garrett RD, Golubiewski NE, Grau HR, Grove JM, Haberl H, Heinimann A, Hostert P, Jobbágy EG, Kerr S, Kuemmerle T, Lambin EF, Lavorel S, Lele S, Mertz O, Messerli P, Metternicht G, Munroe DK, Nagendra H, Nielsen JØ, Ojima DS, Parker DC, Pascual U, Porter JR, Ramankutty N, Reenberg A, Roy Chowdhury R, Seto KC, Seufert V, Shibata H, Thomson A, Turner BL, Urabe J, Veldkamp T, Verburg PH, Zeleke G, Zu Ermgassen EKHJ. Ten facts about land systems for sustainability. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2109217118. [PMID: 35131937 PMCID: PMC8851509 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2109217118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Land use is central to addressing sustainability issues, including biodiversity conservation, climate change, food security, poverty alleviation, and sustainable energy. In this paper, we synthesize knowledge accumulated in land system science, the integrated study of terrestrial social-ecological systems, into 10 hard truths that have strong, general, empirical support. These facts help to explain the challenges of achieving sustainability in land use and thus also point toward solutions. The 10 facts are as follows: 1) Meanings and values of land are socially constructed and contested; 2) land systems exhibit complex behaviors with abrupt, hard-to-predict changes; 3) irreversible changes and path dependence are common features of land systems; 4) some land uses have a small footprint but very large impacts; 5) drivers and impacts of land-use change are globally interconnected and spill over to distant locations; 6) humanity lives on a used planet where all land provides benefits to societies; 7) land-use change usually entails trade-offs between different benefits-"win-wins" are thus rare; 8) land tenure and land-use claims are often unclear, overlapping, and contested; 9) the benefits and burdens from land are unequally distributed; and 10) land users have multiple, sometimes conflicting, ideas of what social and environmental justice entails. The facts have implications for governance, but do not provide fixed answers. Instead they constitute a set of core principles which can guide scientists, policy makers, and practitioners toward meeting sustainability challenges in land use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Meyfroidt
- Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium;
- Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique F.R.S.-FNRS, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Ariane de Bremond
- Centre for Environment and Development, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland;
- Department of Geographical Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742
| | - Casey M Ryan
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FF, United Kingdom;
| | - Emma Archer
- Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Richard Aspinall
- Independent Scholar, James Hutton Institute, Aberdeen AB15 8QH, Scotland
| | - Abha Chhabra
- Space Applications Centre, Indian Space Research Organisation, Ahmedabad 380015, India
| | - Gilberto Camara
- Earth Observation Directorate, National Institute for Space Research, São José dos Campos, SP 12227-010, Brazil
| | - Esteve Corbera
- Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
- Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona 08010, Spain
| | - Ruth DeFries
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027
| | - Sandra Díaz
- Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas and Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, X5000HUA Córdoba, Argentina
| | - Jinwei Dong
- Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Erle C Ellis
- Department of Geography and Environmental Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250
| | - Karl-Heinz Erb
- Institute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1070 Vienna, Austria
| | - Janet A Fisher
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FF, United Kingdom
| | | | - Nancy E Golubiewski
- Joint Evidence, Data, and Insights Division, Ministry for the Environment, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - H Ricardo Grau
- Instituto de Ecología Regional, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Yerba Buena, Tucumán 4107, Argentina
| | - J Morgan Grove
- Baltimore Urban Field Station, USDA Forest Service, Baltimore, MD 21228
| | - Helmut Haberl
- Institute of Social Ecology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, 1070 Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreas Heinimann
- Wyss Academy for Nature at the University of Bern, 3011 Bern, Switzerland
- Centre for Development and Environment (CDE), University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Patrick Hostert
- Geography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Integrative Research Institute on Transformations of Human-Environment Systems, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
| | - Esteban G Jobbágy
- Grupo de Estudios Ambientales, Instituto de Matemática Aplicada de San Luis, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, 5700 San Luis, Argentina
| | - Suzi Kerr
- Economics and Global Climate Cooperation, Environmental Defense Fund, New York, NY 10010
| | - Tobias Kuemmerle
- Geography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Integrative Research Institute on Transformations of Human-Environment Systems, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
| | - Eric F Lambin
- Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Sandra Lavorel
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie Alpine, CNRS, Université Grenoble Alpes, Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Sharachandra Lele
- Centre for Environment & Development, ATREE, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560064, India
- Indian Institute of Science Education & Research, Pune 411008, India
| | - Ole Mertz
- Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, 1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark
| | - Peter Messerli
- Wyss Academy for Nature at the University of Bern, 3011 Bern, Switzerland
- Institute of Geography, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Graciela Metternicht
- Earth and Sustainability Science Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW 2052, Australia
| | - Darla K Munroe
- Department of Geography, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43202
| | - Harini Nagendra
- School of Development, Azim Premji University 562125 Karnataka, India
| | - Jonas Østergaard Nielsen
- Geography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
- Integrative Research Institute on Transformations of Human-Environment Systems, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
| | - Dennis S Ojima
- Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523
- Ecosystem Science and Sustainability Department, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523
| | - Dawn Cassandra Parker
- School of Planning, Faculty of the Environment, Waterloo Institute for Complexity and Innovation, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada N2L 3G1
| | - Unai Pascual
- Centre for Environment and Development, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
- Basque Centre for Climate Change, BC3 48940 Leioa, Bizkaia, Spain
- Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain
| | - John R Porter
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2630 Taastrup, Denmark
| | - Navin Ramankutty
- Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability, School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z4
| | - Anette Reenberg
- Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management, University of Copenhagen, 1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark
| | | | - Karen C Seto
- Yale School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
| | - Verena Seufert
- Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Sustainable Use of Natural Resources (430c), Institute of Social Sciences in Agriculture, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Hideaki Shibata
- Field Science Center for Northern Biosphere, Hokkaido University, 060-0809 Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Allison Thomson
- Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, Washington, DC 20002
| | - Billie L Turner
- School of Geographical Science and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- Global Institute of Sustainability and Innovation, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
| | - Jotaro Urabe
- Aquatic Ecology Laboratory, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8578, Japan
| | - Tom Veldkamp
- Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC), University of Twente, Enschede 7522 NB, The Netherlands
| | - Peter H Verburg
- Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Gete Zeleke
- Water and Land Resource Centre, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Erasmus K H J Zu Ermgassen
- Earth and Life Institute, UCLouvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique F.R.S.-FNRS, B-1000 Brussels, Belgium
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Chiew LY, Hackett TD, Brodie JF, Teoh SW, Burslem DFRP, Reynolds G, Deere NJ, Vairappan CS, Slade EM. Tropical forest dung beetle-mammal dung interaction networks remain similar across an environmental disturbance gradient. J Anim Ecol 2021; 91:604-617. [PMID: 34954816 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Conservation outcomes could be greatly enhanced if strategies addressing anthropogenic land-use change considered the impacts of these changes on entire communities as well as on individual species. Examining how species interactions change across gradients of habitat disturbance allows us to predict the cascading consequences of species extinctions and the response of ecological networks to environmental change. We conducted the first detailed study of changes in a commensalist network of mammals and dung beetles across an environmental disturbance gradient, from primary tropical forest to plantations, which varied in above-ground carbon density (ACD) and mammal communities. Mammal diversity changed only slightly across the gradient, remaining high even in oil palm plantations and fragmented forest. Dung beetle species richness, however, declined in response to lower ACD and was particularly low in plantations and the most disturbed forest sites. Three of the five network metrics (nestedness, network specialization, and functionality) were significantly affected by changes in dung beetle species richness and ACD, but mammal diversity was not an important predictor of network structure. Overall, the interaction networks remained structurally and functionally similar across the gradient, only becoming simplified (i.e., with fewer dung beetle species and fewer interactions) in the most disturbed sites. We suggest that the high diversity of mammals, even in disturbed forests, combined with the generalist feeding patterns of dung beetles, confer resilience to the commensalist dung beetle-mammal networks. This study highlights the importance of protecting logged and fragmented forests to maintain interaction networks and potentially prevent extinction cascades in human-modified systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Yuen Chiew
- Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation, University Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, 88400, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.,South East Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP), Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
| | - Talya D Hackett
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK
| | - Jedediah F Brodie
- Division of Biological Sciences and Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana Missoula, MT, 59802, USA
| | - Shu Woan Teoh
- Division of Biological Sciences and Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana Missoula, MT, 59802, USA
| | - David F R P Burslem
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, AB24 3UU, UK
| | - Glen Reynolds
- South East Asia Rainforest Research Partnership (SEARRP), Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
| | - Nicolas J Deere
- Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
| | - Charles S Vairappan
- Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation, University Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, 88400, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
| | - Eleanor M Slade
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS, UK.,Asian School of the Environment, Nanyang Technological University, 62 Nanyang Dr, 637459, Singapore
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Rastogi S, Chanchani P, Sankaran M, Warrier R. Grasslands half‐full: investigating drivers of spatial heterogeneity in ungulate occurrence in Indian Terai. J Zool (1987) 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S. Rastogi
- Post‐Graduate Program in Wildlife Biology and Conservation National Centre for Biological Sciences Bangalore Karnataka India
| | - P. Chanchani
- World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) New Delhi India
| | - M. Sankaran
- Ecology and Evolution National Centre for Biological Sciences Bangalore Karnataka India
- School of Biology University of Leeds Leeds UK
| | - R. Warrier
- School of Global Environmental Sustainability Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado USA
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10
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Drivers of Bornean Orangutan Distribution across a Multiple-Use Tropical Landscape. REMOTE SENSING 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/rs13030458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Logging and conversion of tropical forests in Southeast Asia have resulted in the expansion of landscapes containing a mosaic of habitats that may vary in their ability to sustain local biodiversity. However, the complexity of these landscapes makes it difficult to assess abundance and distribution of some species using ground-based surveys alone. Here, we deployed a combination of ground-transects and aerial surveys to determine drivers of the critically endangered Bornean Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus morio) distribution across a large multiple-use landscape in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. Ground-transects and aerial surveys using drones were conducted for orangutan nests and hemi-epiphytic strangler fig trees (Ficus spp.) (an important food resource) in 48 survey areas across 76 km2, within a study landscape of 261 km2. Orangutan nest count data were fitted to models accounting for variation in land use, above-ground carbon density (ACD, a surrogate for forest quality), strangler fig density, and elevation (between 117 and 675 m). Orangutan nest counts were significantly higher in all land uses possessing natural forest cover, regardless of degradation status, than in monoculture plantations. Within these natural forests, nest counts increased with higher ACD and strangler fig density, but not with elevation. In logged forest (ACD 14–150 Mg ha−1), strangler fig density had a significant, positive relationship with orangutan nest counts, but this relationship disappeared in a forest with higher carbon content (ACD 150–209 Mg ha−1). Based on an area-to-area comparison, orangutan nest counts from ground transects were higher than from counts derived from aerial surveys, but this did not constitute a statistically significant difference. Although the difference in nest counts was not significantly different, this analysis indicates that both methods under-sample the total number of nests present within a given area. Aerial surveys are, therefore, a useful method for assessing the orangutan habitat use over large areas. However, the under-estimation of nest counts by both methods suggests that a small number of ground surveys should be retained in future surveys using this technique, particularly in areas with dense understory vegetation. This study shows that even highly degraded forests may be a suitable orangutan habitat as long as strangler fig trees remain intact after areas of forest are logged. Enrichment planting of strangler figs may, therefore, be a valuable tool for orangutan conservation in these landscapes.
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