A5030662980- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
- Plant and animal studies
- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Evolution and Paleontology Studies
- Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
- Fire effects on ecosystems
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- African Botany and Ecology Studies
- Mollusks and Parasites Studies
- Yersinia bacterium, plague, ectoparasites research
- Isotope Analysis in Ecology
- Marine Biology and Ecology Research
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Coastal wetland ecosystem dynamics
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Insect and Pesticide Research
- Zoonotic diseases and public health
- Wildlife Conservation and Criminology Analyses
- Plant Parasitism and Resistance
- Vector-borne infectious diseases
- Ecosystem dynamics and resilience
- Wildlife-Road Interactions and Conservation
- Marine and coastal plant biology
University of Connecticut
2015-2024
Eagle Mount
2019
Texas Tech University
2000-2001
The metacommunity framework is a powerful platform for evaluating patterns of species distribution in geographic or environmental space. Idealized (checkerboard, Clementsian, evenly spaced, Gleasonian and nested distributions) give the shape. Each pattern represents an area multidimensional continuum structures; however, current approach to analysis spatial structure metacommunities incomplete. To address this, we describe additional non-random structures illustrate how they may be discerned...
Ecological assessments of the effects anthropogenic change often focus on species richness or abundances. Nonetheless, changes in behavior (e.g., activity patterns) may provide equally important insights into responses to disturbance that have conservation management implications. Because many neotropical bats critical ecosystem services, their be particular concern. We evaluated season and habitat conversion temporal patterns 8 abundant frugivorous lowland tropical rain forest Iquitos,...
ABSTRACT Habitat fragmentation and conversion are among the human activities that pose greatest threat to species persistence conservation of biodiversity. This is particularly true in Neotropics, where bats represent important components biodiversity from taxonomic functional perspectives, provide critical ecosystem services ( e.g ., seed dispersal pollination). We assessed degree which lowland Amazonian rain forest agriculture, its subsequent abandonment secondary succession, affect...
Identification of mechanisms that shape parasite community and metacommunity structures have important implications to host health, disease transmission, the understanding assembly in general. Using a long‐term dataset on parasites from desert rodents, we examined relative contributions traits represent aspects environment, transmission probability between species, phylogeny structure as well for taxonomically restricted metacommunities (coccidians, ectoparasites helminths). This was done...
Summary Research concerning spatial dynamics of biodiversity generally has been limited to considerations the taxonomic dimension, which is insensitive interspecific variation in ecological or evolutionary characteristics that play important roles species assembly and provide linkages ecosystem services. Consequently, assumption dimension a good surrogate for other dimensions remains unconfirmed. We assessed (species richness) as well phylogenetic functional (Rao's quadratic entropy,...
Summary One aspect of biodiversity, functional diversity, reflects the role species within a community as measured by characteristics. We present new metric, trait dispersion, based on concept distinctiveness distance among in multidimensional space defined values. This metric can be decomposed into components richness, evenness and mean parts that measure diversity subgroups. Using an appropriate measure, dispersion ( M ′) is calculated average all possible pairs species. Functional [ q E...
Elevational gradients provide a natural experiment for assessing the extent to which structure of animal metacommunities is molded by biotic and abiotic characteristics that change gradually, or aspects plant community composition physiognomy in more discrete fashion. We used metacommunity framework integrate species‐specific responses environmental as an approach detect emergent patterns at mesoscale Luquillo Mountains Puerto Rico. Elements (coherence, species turnover range boundary...
Relationships among taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic dimensions of biodiversity provide insight about the relative contributions ecological evolutionary processes in structuring local assemblages. We used data for rodent species distributions from an extensive tropical elevational gradient to 1) describe gradients each three biodiversity, 2) evaluate sufficiency richness as a surrogate other dimensions, 3) quantify support mechanisms that increase or decrease functional dispersion....
Abstract: The study of altitudinal gradients has made enduring contributions to the theoretical and empirical bases modern biology. Unfortunately, persistence these systems species that compose them is threatened by land-use change at lower altitudes climate throughout gradients, but especially higher altitudes. In this review, we focus on two broad themes are inspired variation in tropical montane regions: (1) dimensions biodiversity (2) metacommunity structure. Species richness generally...
A number of recent studies have documented long-term declines in abundances important arthropod groups, primarily Europe and North America. These are generally attributed to habitat loss, but a study [B.C. Lister, A. Garcia, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 115, E10397-E10406 (2018)] from the Luquillo Experimental Forest (LEF) Puerto Rico global warming. We analyze data LEF evaluate trends within context hurricane-induced disturbance, secondary succession, temporal variation temperature. Our...
ABSTRACT Aim We evaluate characteristics of species ranges (i.e. coherence, turnover and range boundary clumping) to determine the structure bat metacommunities metaensembles from Caribbean islands. effects endemic on that structure, quantify associations between island latent environmental gradients these metaensembles. Location Sixty‐five islands throughout Bahamas, Greater Antilles Lesser Antilles. Methods Metacommunity is an emergent property a set ecological communities at different...
ABSTRACT Aim We evaluated the structure of metacommunities for each three vertebrate orders (Chiroptera, Rodentia and Passeriformes) along an extensive elevational gradient. Using elevation as a proxy variation in abiotic characteristics known distributions habitat types, we assessed extent to which those factors may metacommunity based on taxon‐specific characteristics. Location Manu Biosphere Reserve Peruvian Andes. Methods Metacommunity is emergent property set species across geographic...
Abstract Aim We tested the hypothesis that distributions of Mexican bats are defined by shared responses to environmental gradients for entire bat metacommunity and each four metaensembles (frugivores, nectarivores, gleaning insectivores, aerial insectivores). Further, we identified main factors which respond multiple spatial extents. Location Mexico. Methods Using presence–absence data, as well vegetation composition 31 sites, analysed structure via a comprehensive, hierarchical approach...
Abstract Aim To determine whether there is evidence of changes in small mammals distributions and emergent metacommunity structure the A tlantic F orest resulting from extensive habitat loss fragmentation associated with anthropogenic activities. Location South merican northeastern B razil to eastern P araguay. Methods Using presence–absence data for non‐volant mammals, we analysed communities 76 fragments distributed throughout orest. We evaluated coherence, range turnover boundary clumping...
Mexico has higher mammalian diversity than expected for its size and geographic position. High environmental hetero geneity throughout is hypothesized to promote high turnover rates (β‐diversity), thus contributing more observed species richness composition within‐habitat (α) diversity. This true if are strongly associated with their environments, such that changes in attributes will result composition. Also, greater heterogeneity an area richness. hypothesis been deemed false bats, as...
Protecting aboveground carbon stocks in tropical forests is essential for mitigating global climate change and assumed to simultaneously conserve biodiversity. Although the relationship between tree diversity generally positive, remains unclear consumers or decomposers. We assessed this multiple trophic levels across of life (10 organismal groups, 3 kingdoms) lowland rainforests Congo Basin. Comparisons regrowth old-growth evinced expected positive trees, but not other groups. Moreover,...
Abstract Aim Conservation planning and prioritization generally have focused on protecting taxa based assessments of their long‐term persistence or habitats sites with high species richness. An implicit assumption these approaches is that are equally different from each other. We propose metrics for conservation include consideration differences among in functional characteristics to ensure maintenance ecosystem functioning services. Innovation define distinctiveness, irregularity...
Summary As human population size increases, demand for natural resources will increase. Logging pressure related to increasing demands continues threaten remote areas of Amazonian forest. A harvest protocol is required provide renewable timber that meet consumer needs while minimizing negative effects on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Reduced‐impact logging (RIL) may be a viable option achieve these goals. Effects RIL (18 m 3 ha −1 ) forest physiognomy were assessed populations bats...
Recognition of the Anthropocene epoch formally acknowledges pervasive and increasingly dominant effects human activities on world's biomes. A defining characteristic is habitat conversion (land-use change) for agricultural urbanized land uses. Within this context, landscape ecology critical importance as it examines influence spatial heterogeneity ecological patterns processes at temporal extents that are larger than those traditionally studied in ecology. The application approaches to...