2024-03-28T20:39:56Zhttp://digital.csic.es/dspace-oai/requestoai:digital.csic.es:10261/1376642022-11-10T10:03:18Zcom_10261_13com_10261_8col_10261_266
Defaunation affects carbon storage in tropical forests
Bello, Carolina
Galetti, Mauro
Pizo, M.A.
Magnago, Luiz Fernando Silva
Rocha, Mariana F.
Lima, Renato A. F.
Peres, Carlos A.
Ovaskainen, O.
Jordano, Pedro
Sao Paulo Research Foundation
Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (Brasil)
Fundaçao Capes (Brasil)
Junta de Andalucía
Academy of Finland
CSIC - Unidad de Recursos de Información Científica para la Investigación (URICI)
Ecosystems
Tropical ecosystems
Defaunation
Carbon storage
Seed dispersal
Conservation
Biodiversity
Rainforests
Bushmeat
Atlantic forest
Carbon storage is widely acknowledged as one of the most valuable forest ecosystem services. Deforestation,
logging, fragmentation, fire, and climate change have significant effects on tropical carbon stocks; however, an
elusive and yet undetected decrease in carbon storage may be due to defaunation of large seed dispersers.
Many large tropical trees with sizeable contributions to carbon stock rely on large vertebrates for seed dispersal
and regeneration, however many of these frugivores are threatened by hunting, illegal trade, and habitat
loss. We used a large data set on tree species composition and abundance, seed, fruit, and carbon-related traits,
and plant-animal interactions to estimate the loss of carbon storage capacity of tropical forests in defaunated
scenarios. By simulating the local extinction of trees that depend on large frugivores in 31 Atlantic Forest communities,
we found that defaunation has the potential to significantly erode carbon storage even when only a
small proportion of large-seeded trees are extirpated. Although intergovernmental policies to reduce carbon
emissions and reforestation programs have been mostly focused on deforestation, our results demonstrate
that defaunation, and the loss of key ecological interactions, also poses a serious risk for the maintenance
of tropical forest carbon storage.
C.B., M.G., and R.A.F.L. thank the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) (grant nos. 2014/01986-0, 2013/22492-2, and 2013/08722-5). P.J. received financial support from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico (CNPq), Excellence Grant-Junta Andalucía. M.G. is a research fellow at Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico. P.J. is a visiting research fellow at CAPES (Programa Ciências Sem Fronteiras). L.F.S.M. was supported by Projeto Floresta Escola and by a postdoctoral grant from CAPES/PNPD. M.F.R. received a postdoctoral grant from Projeto Floresta Escola; O.O. was supported by the Academy of Finland (grant nos. 273523 and 284601). We acknowledge support by the CSIC Open Access Publication Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI)
Peer reviewed
2016-10-04T10:16:39Z
2016-10-04T10:16:39Z
2015-12-18
artículo
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
Science Advances 1: e1501105 (2015)
2375-2548
http://hdl.handle.net/10261/137664
10.1126/sciadv.1501105
http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003593
http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100002341
http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100011011
26824067
en
Publisher's version
http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1501105
Sí
open
American Association for the Advancement of Science