TY - JOUR
T1 - Meta-analysis of anthropogenic habitat disturbance effects on animal-mediated seed dispersal
AU - Fontúrbel, Francisco E.
AU - Candia, Alina B.
AU - Malebrán, Javiera
AU - Salazar, Daniela A.
AU - González-Browne, Catalina
AU - Medel, Rodrigo
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
PY - 2015/11
Y1 - 2015/11
N2 - Anthropogenic habitat disturbance is a strong biodiversity change driver that compromises not only the species persistence but also the ecological interactions in which they are involved. Even though seed dispersal is a key interaction involved in the recruitment of many tree species and in consequence critical for biodiversity maintenance, studies assessing the effect of different anthropogenic disturbance drivers on this interaction have not been performed under a meta-analytical framework. We assessed the way habitat fragmentation and degradation processes affect species diversity (abundance and species richness) and interaction rates (i.e., fruit removal and visitation rates) of different groups of seed-disperser species at a global scale. We obtained 163 case studies from 37 articles. Results indicate that habitat degradation had a negative effect on seed-disperser animal diversity, whereas habitat fragmentation had a negative effect on interaction rates. Birds and insects were more sensitive in terms of their diversity, whereas mammals showed a negative effect on interaction rates. Regarding habitat, both fragmentation and degradation had a negative effect on seed-disperser animal diversity only in temperate habitats, and negative effects on interaction rates in tropical and temperate habitats. Our results indicate that the impact of human disturbance on seed-disperser species and interactions is not homogeneous. On the contrary, the magnitude of effects seems to be dependent on the type of disturbance, taxonomic group under assessment, and geographical region where the human impact occurs.
AB - Anthropogenic habitat disturbance is a strong biodiversity change driver that compromises not only the species persistence but also the ecological interactions in which they are involved. Even though seed dispersal is a key interaction involved in the recruitment of many tree species and in consequence critical for biodiversity maintenance, studies assessing the effect of different anthropogenic disturbance drivers on this interaction have not been performed under a meta-analytical framework. We assessed the way habitat fragmentation and degradation processes affect species diversity (abundance and species richness) and interaction rates (i.e., fruit removal and visitation rates) of different groups of seed-disperser species at a global scale. We obtained 163 case studies from 37 articles. Results indicate that habitat degradation had a negative effect on seed-disperser animal diversity, whereas habitat fragmentation had a negative effect on interaction rates. Birds and insects were more sensitive in terms of their diversity, whereas mammals showed a negative effect on interaction rates. Regarding habitat, both fragmentation and degradation had a negative effect on seed-disperser animal diversity only in temperate habitats, and negative effects on interaction rates in tropical and temperate habitats. Our results indicate that the impact of human disturbance on seed-disperser species and interactions is not homogeneous. On the contrary, the magnitude of effects seems to be dependent on the type of disturbance, taxonomic group under assessment, and geographical region where the human impact occurs.
KW - Bats
KW - Birds
KW - Habitat degradation
KW - Habitat fragmentation
KW - Insects
KW - Regeneration
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84944088997&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/gcb.13025
DO - 10.1111/gcb.13025
M3 - Article
C2 - 26149368
AN - SCOPUS:84944088997
VL - 21
SP - 3951
EP - 3960
JO - Global Change Biology
JF - Global Change Biology
SN - 1354-1013
IS - 11
ER -