A5056266254- Wildlife Ecology and Conservation
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
- Plant and animal studies
- Animal Ecology and Behavior Studies
- Isotope Analysis in Ecology
- Plant Parasitism and Resistance
- Evolution and Paleontology Studies
- Biological Control of Invasive Species
- Species Distribution and Climate Change
- Food Industry and Aquatic Biology
- Ecosystem dynamics and resilience
- Wildlife-Road Interactions and Conservation
- Primate Behavior and Ecology
- Land Use and Ecosystem Services
- Bat Biology and Ecology Studies
- Conservation, Biodiversity, and Resource Management
- Rangeland Management and Livestock Ecology
- Amphibian and Reptile Biology
- Environmental Philosophy and Ethics
- Animal Behavior and Reproduction
- Avian ecology and behavior
- Genetic diversity and population structure
- Rangeland and Wildlife Management
- Fire effects on ecosystems
Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp)
2017-2024
Netherlands Institute of Ecology
2020-2024
James Hutton Institute
2013-2015
University of Aberdeen
2013-2015
Livestock grazing is a major driver of land‐use change, causing significant biodiversity loss globally. Although the short‐term effects livestock on individual species are well studied, mechanistic understanding long‐term, cascading impacts lacking. We manipulated densities using unique, replicated upland experiment over 10‐year period and found treatment plant arthropod biomass; number Anthus pratensis breeding bird territories; amplitude Microtus agrestis population cycles activity top...
Many angiosperms rely on vertebrates for seed dispersal via gut passage, an interaction that has been traditionally classified as a mutualism. The effectiveness (SDE) framework provides mechanistic approach to evaluate evolutionary and ecological characteristics of animal‐mediated dispersal, by synthesising the quantity quality plant species receives from each its animal dispersers. However, application SDE largely restricted plant–frugivore interactions, whereas results plant–disperser...
The contribution of small mammal ecology to the understanding macroecological patterns biodiversity, population dynamics, and community assembly has been hindered by absence large datasets communities from tropical regions. Here we compile largest dataset inventories for Neotropical region. reviews Atlantic forest South America, one regions with highest diversity mammals a global biodiversity hotspot, though currently covering less than 12% its original area due anthropogenic pressures....
Abstract Tropical rainforests are populated by large frugivores that feed upon fruit‐producing woody species, yet their role in regulating the cycle of globally important biogeochemical elements such as nitrogen is still unknown. This particularly relevant because tropical forests play a prominent and becoming rapidly defaunated. Furthermore, frugivory not considered current plant‐large herbivore‐nutrient cycling frameworks exclusively focused on grazers browsers. Here we used long‐term...
Abstract The world’s terrestrial biomes are broadly classified according to the dominant plant growth forms that define ecosystem structure and processes. Although abundance distribution of different can be strongly determined by factors such as climate soil composition, large mammalian herbivores have a strong impact on communities, thus defaunation (the local or functional extinction animals) has potential alter compositional in natural ecosystems. Tropical rainforests sustain high...
Measures of traits are the basis functional biological diversity. Numerous works consider mean species-level measures while ignoring individual variance within species. However, there is a large amount variation species and it increasingly apparent that important to trait not only between species, but also Mammals an interesting group for investigating trait-based approaches because they play diverse ecological functions (e.g., pollination, seed dispersal, predation, grazing) correlated with...
Abstract Tropical forests hold some of the world's most diverse communities plants. Many populations large‐bodied herbivores are threatened in these systems, yet their ecological functions and contribution towards maintenance high levels plant diversity poorly known. The impact on through antagonistic seed seedling predation has received much attention, whilst relevance as dispersal agents been largely overlooked experimental studies. Here, we tested how two key functionally distinct large...
An often-overlooked question of the biodiversity crisis is how natural hazards contribute to species extinction risk. To address this issue, we explored four hazards, earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, and volcanoes, overlapped with distribution ranges amphibians, birds, mammals, reptiles that have either narrow distributions or populations few mature individuals. assess which are at risk from these combined frequency magnitude each hazard estimate their impact. We considered if they regions...
The UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework aim to restore 30% of degraded ecosystems. Both IPCC IPBES highlight crucial role ecosystem restoration in addressing interconnected crises climate change biodiversity loss. One key strategy is rewilding, which enhances complexity with minimal human intervention. While traditional rewilding strategies often focus benefits for biodiversity, we propose a climate-smart framework as new approach...
Herbivores and their predators have a major impact on restoration outcomes.
Abstract The UN declaration of the Decade Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030 emphasizes need for effective measures to restore ecosystems and safeguard biodiversity. Large herbivores regulate many ecosystem processes functions; yet, their potential as a nature‐based solution buffer against long‐term temporal declines in biodiversity associated with global change diversity secondary forests remains unknown. By means an exclusion experiment, we tested experimentally buffering effects large wild...
Abstract Natural enemies play an important role in controlling plant population growth and vegetation dynamics. Tropical rainforests host the greatest diversity of herbivores, from large mammalian ungulates to microscopic pathogens, generating maintaining diversity. By feeding on same resources, herbivores may interfere with consumption leaf damage by enemy guilds such as invertebrate triggering indirect trophic cascades. However, impact local extinctions plant–enemy interactions is...
Abstract Grazing by domestic ungulates may limit the densities of small herbivorous mammals that act as key prey in ecosystems. Whether this also influences density dependence and regulation herbivore populations, hence their propensity to exhibit multi‐annual population cycles, is unknown. Here, we combine time series analysis with a large‐scale grazing experiment on upland grasslands examine effects livestock intensity dynamics field voles ( Microtus agrestis ). Using log‐linear modelling...
Grazing by domestic ungulates has substantial impacts on ecosystem structure and composition. In grasslands of the northern hemisphere, livestock grazing limits populations small mammals, which are a main food source for variety vertebrate predators. However, no experimental studies have described impact We experimentally manipulated sheep cattle intensity in Scottish uplands to test its relatively abundant mammal, field vole (Microtus agrestis), archetypal generalist predator, red fox...
Abstract In tropical forests, the diets of many frugivorous mammals overlap, yet how hyper-diverse assemblages consumers exploit resources and coexist remains poorly understood. We evaluated competitive interactions among three species terrestrial mammals, ungulate Tayassu pecari (white-lipped peccary), its close relative Pecari tajacu (collared a large rodent (Dasyprocta azarae, agouti), in their exploitation strategies palm different quality. conducted study isolated fragment at Atlantic...
Top-down control by large herbivores is a well-known driver of plant diversity structure and productivity. Yet, for forest ecosystems the sign magnitude herbivore across resource gradients not well understood. We conducted series replicated exclusion experiments in defaunated non-defaunated Atlantic forests Brazil to evaluate effects on tropical communities. hypothesized that top-down impact seedling recruitment, species richness, productivity would change natural gradient density key...
Foraging is essential for animal survival, as it provides the nutritional resources to sustain metabolism and all activities that animals undertake. Communal latrines are sites where multiple individuals of same species defecate can have functions. Latrine behavior has been recorded in many species, including lowland tapirs (Tapirus terrestris), which consume a wide variety plants fruits large piles dung, sometimes containing seeds. Due concentration seeds other defecated material, may thus...
Summary Physiological traits can influence individual fitness and evolutionary changes in stress‐related physiological have been hypothesized to mediate the evolution of life‐history trade‐offs. The hypothesis that such variation could drive ongoing requires non‐zero additive genetic variance traits. However, magnitude environmental components phenotypic has not estimated fully developed vertebrates under natural conditions. We used 490 observations heterophil lymphocyte (H : L) ratio, one...
Abstract How species persist in fragmented habitats is essential to understanding resilience response increasing anthropogenic pressures. It has been suggested that expansion dietary niche allows populations human‐modified landscapes, yet this hypothesis poorly tested highly diverse ecosystems such as tropical forests where frugivory ubiquitous. Here, we measured of a large forest‐dwelling mammal, the white‐lipped peccary ( Tayassu pecari ), Atlantic Forest, Brazil, by comparing its diet...
Abstract In Mediterranean ecosystems, the European rabbit is a keystone species that has declined dramatically, with profound implications for conservation and management. Predation disease acting on juveniles are considered likely causes. field, these processes managed by removing predators, increasing cover to reduce predation risk vaccinating against myxomatosis. These manipulations can be costly and, when protected predators killed, they also damaging interests. Our goal was test...
Foraging is essential for animal survival, as it provides the nutritional resources sustaining metabolism and all activities that animals undertake. Communal latrines are sites where multiple individuals of same species defecate can have functions. Latrine behavior has been recorded in many species, including Lowland tapirs (Tapirus terrestris), which consume a wide variety plants fruits large dung piles, sometimes containing seeds. Due to concentration seeds other defecated material, may...