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opencc-by-nc-4.0Aug 2019View details →

Figure 1 in Medium- and large-sized mammal composition in the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park and adjacent areas, state of Goiás, Brazil

Figure 1. Distribution of camera-traps in the sampled area of Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park (delimited polygon) and its surroundings (10 km from the park boundaries), separated by at least 1 km, in the Cerrado of central Brazil. inserted within the Cerrado biome (coordinates of 13°51' to 14°10'S and 47°25' to 47°42'W). The CVNP is considered the largest area of environmental conservation and the most important ecotourism attraction in the region (Barbosa, 2008). The Cerrado region is located in mid-latitudes and presents the main seasonal climatic type (Aw), with annual temperature between 24°C and 26°C and 90% of rainfall concentrated from October to April, while in the dry season (May to September), the air humidity is very low (below 20% in August and September) and the amount of rainfall can reach zero millimeters in a few months (Marcuzzo et al., 2012). In the region of CVNP, there is a predominance of soils poor in nutrients, which ends up preventing the larger plant colonization, whichever the grasslands of the Cerrado Sensu Strictu (Eiten, 1972; Felfili et al., 2007). In total, the CVNP presents 77% of savanna formation, and 9% corresponds to the forest fragments (Porto et al., 2011). On the other hand, the surrounding of the park has the largest sum of private reserves (Private Reserves of Natural Heritage – RPPN) of the State of Goiás, are 21 RPPNs with 21,515.87 ha (30% of CVNP area) and these are hold a higher percentage of forest cover (Falconi & Diniz-Filho, 2003; Silva et al., 2016). 80% of the RPPNs area, located in the Alto Paraiso region, are protected near the areas sampled in this study (Silva et al., 2016).

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2017View details →

Text-fig. 7. Oligocene fossil wood localities of Tunisia. in Arsinoitherium (Embrithopoda) And Other Large Mammals And Plants From The Oligocene Of Tunisia

Text-fig. 7. Oligocene fossil wood localities of Tunisia.

opencc-zeroDec 2006View details →

FIG. 15 in Fossil large mammals from the early Pliocene locality of Alcoy (Spain) and their importance in biostratigraphy

FIG. 15. — Biochronological distribution of taxa represented in the Alcoy fauna.

opencc-zeroDec 2022View details →

Behavioral responses of a large, heat-sensitive mammal to climatic variation at multiple spatial scales

1. Climate warming creates energetic challenges for endothermic species by increasing metabolic and hydric costs of thermoregulation. Although endotherms can invoke an array of behavioral and physiological strategies for maintaining homeostasis, the relative effectiveness of those strategies in a climate that is becoming both warmer and drier is not well understood. 2. In accordance with the heat dissipation limit theory, which suggests that allocation of energy to growth and reproduction by endotherms is constrained by the ability to dissipate heat, we expected that patterns of habitat use by large, heat-sensitive mammals across multiple scales are critical for behavioral thermoregulation during periods of potential heat stress and that they must invest a large portion of time to maintain heat balance. 3. To test our predictions, we evaluated mechanisms underpinning the effectiveness of bed sites for ameliorating daytime heat loads and potential heat stress across the landscape while accounting for other factors known to affect behavior. We integrated detailed data on microclimate and animal attributes of moose Alces alces, into a biophysical model to quantify costs of thermoregulation at fine and coarse spatial scales. 4. During summer, moose spent an average of 67.8% of daylight hours bedded, and selected bed sites and home ranges that reduced risk of experiencing heat stress. For most of the day, shade could effectively mitigate the risk of experiencing heat stress up to 10°C, but at warmer temperatures (up to 20℃) wet soil was necessary to maintain homeostasis via conductive heat loss. Consistent selection across spatial scales for locations that reduced heat load underscores the importance of the thermal environment as a driver of behavior in this heat-sensitive mammal. 5. Moose in North America have long been characterized as riparian-obligate species because of their dependence on woody plant species for food. Nevertheless, the importance of dissipating endogenous heat loads conductively through wet soil suggests riparian habitats also are critical thermal refuges for moose. Such refuges may be especially important in the face of a warming climate in which both high environmental temperatures and drier conditions will likely exacerbate limits to heat dissipation, especially for large, heat-sensitive animals.

opencc-zeroJan 2023View details →

Differential effects of ecosystem engineering by the superb lyrebird Menura novaehollandiae and herbivory by large mammals on floristic regeneration and structure in wet eucalypt forests

Ecosystem engineers that modify soil and ground-layer properties exert a strong influence on vegetation communities in ecosystems worldwide. Understanding the interactions between animal engineers and vegetation is challenging when in the presence of large herbivores, as many vegetation communities are simultaneously affected by both engineering and herbivory. The superb lyrebird Menura novaehollandiae, an ecosystem engineer in wet forests of south-eastern Australia, extensively modifies litter and soil on the forest floor. The aim of this study was to disentangle the impacts of engineering by lyrebirds and herbivory by large mammals on the composition and structure of ground-layer vegetation. We carried out a two-year, manipulative exclusion experiment in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. We compared three treatments: fenced plots with simulated lyrebird foraging; fenced plots excluding herbivores and lyrebirds; and open controls. This design allowed assessment of the relative impacts of engineering and herbivory on germination rates, seedling density, vegetation cover and structure, and community composition. Engineering by lyrebirds enhanced the germination of seeds in the litter layer. After two years, more than double the number of germinants were present in 'engineered' than 'non-engineered' plots. Engineering did not affect the density of seedlings, but herbivory had strong detrimental effects. Herbivory also reduced the floristic richness and structural complexity (< 0.5 m) of forest vegetation, including the cover of herbs. Neither process altered the floristic composition of the vegetation within the 2-year study period. Ecosystem engineering by lyrebirds and herbivory by large mammals both influence the structure of forest-floor vegetation. The two-fold increase in seeds stimulated to germinate by engineering may contribute to the evolutionary adaptation of plants by allowing greater phenotypic expression and selection than would otherwise occur. Over long timescales, engineering and herbivory likely combine to maintain a more-open forest floor conducive to ongoing ecosystem engineering by lyrebirds.

opencc-by-4.0Jun 2023View details →

Data for Multidimensional diversity drives stability of mammal communities with large carnivores in temperate forests

R code and data for Multidimensional diversity drives stability of mammal communities with large carnivores in temperate forests

Figure 5 in Medium and large sized mammals and the effect of habitat heterogeneity from a Caatinga shrubby forest at Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil

Figure 5. Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling of medium-large mammal community structure according to different phytophysiognomies (a) and presence of water bodies (b), recorded in the Serra de Santa Catarina, Northeast Brazil, between August 2012 and November 2014. The ANOSIM (one-way) analysis showed no difference between phytophysiognomies (R = 0.1124, p> 0.05) and a significant difference between the presence of water bodies (R = 0.3907, p <0.05).

Figure 4 in Medium and large sized mammals and the effect of habitat heterogeneity from a Caatinga shrubby forest at Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil

Figure 4. Average of abundance of medium-large mammal species according to different phytophysiognomies (a) and presence of water bodies (b), recorded in the Serra de Santa Catarina, Northeast Brazil, between August 2012 and November 2014. The Mann-Whitney analysis showed no difference between both phytophysiognomies (U = 29.5, p> 0.05) and presence of water bodies (U = 48.5, p> 0.05).

Figure 2 in Medium and large sized mammals and the effect of habitat heterogeneity from a Caatinga shrubby forest at Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil

Figure 2. Different habitats analyzed in Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil. A = Arboreal; B = Shrub; C = Arboreal-shrub; D = Water spot with a capuchin monkey in the foreground.

Figure 1 in Medium and large sized mammals and the effect of habitat heterogeneity from a Caatinga shrubby forest at Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil

Figure 1. Study area, the Serra de Santa Catarina, extreme West of Paraíba state, northeastern Brazil. In light gray Caatinga biome and in dark gray Atlantic Forest Biome; in green, Serra de Santa Catarina limits.

Figure 3 in Medium and large sized mammals and the effect of habitat heterogeneity from a Caatinga shrubby forest at Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, Brazil

Figure 3. Rarefaction curve for camera-trap sampling to medium-large mammal species of the Serra de Santa Catarina, Paraíba, northeastern Brazil, sampled between August 2012 and November 2014. Observed richness (S = 10 ± 1.76) has no significant difference to estimated richness (S = 12.97 ± 1.7) through the non-parametric Jackknife 1. Sample unit were defined as days with effective records in different camera-traps.

opencc-zeroOct 2023View details →

Effects of large mammal exclusion on seedling communities depend on plant species traits and landscape protection in human-modified Costa Rican forests

<ol> <li>Large terrestrial herbivorous mammals (LTH-mammals) influence plant community structure by affecting seedling establishment in mature tropical forests. Many of these LTH-mammals frequent secondary forests, but their effects on seedling establishment in them are understudied, hindering our understanding of how LTH-mammals influence forest regeneration in human-modified landscapes.</li> <li>We tested the hypothesis that the strength of LTH-mammals' effects on seedling establishment depends on landscape protection, forest successional stage, and plant species' traits using a manipulative field experiment in six 1-ha sites with varying successional age and landscape protection. In each site, we established forty seedling plot-pairs, with one plot excluding LTH-mammals and one not, and monitored seedlings of 116 woody species for 26 months.</li> <li>We found significant effects of LTH-mammal exclusion on seedling survival contingent upon the protection of forests at the landscape level and forest stage. After 26 months, survival differences between LTH-mammal exclusion and non-exclusion treatments were greater in protected than unprotected landscapes. Additionally, plant species' traits were related to the LTH-mammals' differential effects, as LTH-mammals reduced the survival of seedlings of larger-seeded species the most. Overall, LTH-mammals' effects translated into significant shifts in community composition as seedling communities inside and outside the exclosures diverged. Moreover, lower density and higher species diversity were found as early as 12 and 18 months outside than inside exclosures.</li> <li> Synthesis and applications. Insight into the interactions between LTH-mammals and seedling communities in forest regeneration can be instrumental in planning effective restoration efforts. We highlight the importance of landscape protection in seedling survival and the role of LTH-mammals in promoting seedling diversity in mature forests but also in secondary successional forests. The findings suggest that conservation efforts and possibly trophic rewilding can be important approaches for preserving diversity and influencing the trajectory of secondary tropical forest succession. However, we also caution that an overabundance of LTH-mammals may adversely impact the pace of forest succession due to their preference for large-seeded species. Therefore, a comprehensive wildlife management plan is indispensable. Additionally, longer-term studies on LTH-mammals are necessary to understand the effects of temporal fluctuations that are undetected in short-term studies.</li> </ol>