Eine Plattform für die Wissenschaft: Bauingenieurwesen, Architektur und Urbanistik
Eine Plattform für die Wissenschaft: Bauingenieurwesen, Architektur und Urbanistik
Taxonomic and functional divergence of tree assemblages in a fragmented tropical forest
AbstractTropical forests are being exposed to increasing levels of habitat loss and fragmentation, threatening the maintenance of global biodiversity. However, the effect that land‐use change may have on the spatial dissimilarities in taxonomic and functional composition of remaining assemblages (i.e., taxonomic/functional β‐diversity) remains poorly understood. We examined a large vegetation database from an old and severely fragmented Atlantic forest landscape to test two alternative hypotheses: (1) tree assemblages experience a taxonomic and functional homogenization (reduced β‐diversity) between forest fragments and along forest edges, or alternatively, (2) these edge‐affected forests show increased taxonomic and functional differentiation (increased β‐diversity) when compared to forest interior (reference) stands. Taxonomic and functional β‐diversity were examined via novel abundance‐based metrics and considering functional traits related to plant dispersion, recruitment, and growth. Overall, taxonomic β‐diversity among fragments was significantly higher than among edge and reference plots. Edge plots also showed higher β‐diversity than reference plots, but only when considering dominant species. In functional terms, β‐diversity among reference plots was also lower than among forest fragments and among edge plots. These patterns support the landscape‐divergence hypothesis, which postulates that variable human disturbances among forest fragments and along forest edges can lead to contrasting trajectories of vegetation changes, thus increasing the compositional and functional differentiation of tree communities in these emerging environments. Our results also show that such differentiation can preserve landscape‐wide biodiversity, thus overriding negative effects of habitat fragmentation on local (α) diversity. Therefore, our findings demonstrate that forest fragments and forest edges can be more valuable for maintaining species diversity and ecosystem function in fragmented tropical landscapes than previously thought.
Taxonomic and functional divergence of tree assemblages in a fragmented tropical forest
AbstractTropical forests are being exposed to increasing levels of habitat loss and fragmentation, threatening the maintenance of global biodiversity. However, the effect that land‐use change may have on the spatial dissimilarities in taxonomic and functional composition of remaining assemblages (i.e., taxonomic/functional β‐diversity) remains poorly understood. We examined a large vegetation database from an old and severely fragmented Atlantic forest landscape to test two alternative hypotheses: (1) tree assemblages experience a taxonomic and functional homogenization (reduced β‐diversity) between forest fragments and along forest edges, or alternatively, (2) these edge‐affected forests show increased taxonomic and functional differentiation (increased β‐diversity) when compared to forest interior (reference) stands. Taxonomic and functional β‐diversity were examined via novel abundance‐based metrics and considering functional traits related to plant dispersion, recruitment, and growth. Overall, taxonomic β‐diversity among fragments was significantly higher than among edge and reference plots. Edge plots also showed higher β‐diversity than reference plots, but only when considering dominant species. In functional terms, β‐diversity among reference plots was also lower than among forest fragments and among edge plots. These patterns support the landscape‐divergence hypothesis, which postulates that variable human disturbances among forest fragments and along forest edges can lead to contrasting trajectories of vegetation changes, thus increasing the compositional and functional differentiation of tree communities in these emerging environments. Our results also show that such differentiation can preserve landscape‐wide biodiversity, thus overriding negative effects of habitat fragmentation on local (α) diversity. Therefore, our findings demonstrate that forest fragments and forest edges can be more valuable for maintaining species diversity and ecosystem function in fragmented tropical landscapes than previously thought.
Taxonomic and functional divergence of tree assemblages in a fragmented tropical forest
Ecological Applications
Sfair, Julia C. (Autor:in) / Arroyo‐Rodríguez, Víctor (Autor:in) / Santos, Bráulio A. (Autor:in) / Tabarelli, Marcelo (Autor:in) / Cleveland, C. C. (Herausgeber:in)
Ecological Applications ; 26 ; 1816-1826
01.09.2016
Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
| BASE | 2016
Tropical Forest Remnants. Ecology, Management and Conservation of Fragmented Communities
| Online Contents | 1996
Tropical Forest Remnants: Ecology Management and Conservation of Fragmented Communities
| Online Contents | 1998