Secondary seed dispersal by dung beetles of seeds defecated by black lion tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysopygus)

• Grant number: 18/12391-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: October 01, 2018
• End date: July 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Applied Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Laurence Marianne Vincianne Culot
• Grantee: Giovana Cristina Magro de Souza
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 14/14739-0 - The effect of fragmentation on primate ecological functions, AP.JP

Abstract

The continuity of vegetal species happens through their seeds dispersal and their seedlings establishment. An animal order of great importance for the zoochory is the Primates once it represents 25 to 40% of frugivory biomass in the tropical forests. By their primary seed dispersal, the seeds can escape of the density-dependent mortality which occurs near the mother plant. Futhermore, can happen the secondary seed dispersal by dung beetles which allow the movement horizontally and vertically of the seeds to microhabitats, action that can benefit the germination and the seedlings establishment to be more protected of their predators. Thus, the aim of my work is to determine the probability of secondary seed dispersal, the burial depth by dung beetles and the factors that influence this process. The present study will be developed in the Parque Estadual Morro do Diabo and will include the following of a black lion tamarin group. Always there is a defecation, your GPS location will be noted, the defecation time, the amount of faecal matter and the number of seeds per feces. The vegetation characterization of the defecation place will be determined by the canopy cover and the undergrowth cover, percentage of bare ground and the height of the litter. To demonstrate the probability of secondary seed dispersal and the depth burial, the seeds will be marked with nylon thread tied to a piece of raffia. After 48 hours, we will check the fate of the seeds. Using generalized nonlinear models and model selection, we will determine which environmental factors and faecal characteristics influence burial probability and depth by dung beetles.