A study 20 years later: seasonal diet of primates in a rainforest fragment

• Grant number: 19/22766-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2020
• End date: February 28, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Eleonore Zulnara Freire Setz
• Grantee: João Victor de Amorim Verçosa
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biologia (IB). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The Atlantic Rainforest presents one of the largest diversity of tropical forests in the world, however it has been threatened by human activities. Forest fragmentation is one of these threats, which can lead to forest edge problems and to changes in forest structure. These effects are responsible for changing the composition of the vegetation. The Forest Reserve ARIE Mata de Santa Genebra is an example of a forest fragment, which has been suffering edge effects and isolation from other fragments. Moreover, this Forest Reserve has suffered from small fires and tornadoes recently. All these modifications may lead to floristic changes, interfering with the composition and abundance of resources available to frugivores. Among the larger mammalian fruit frugivores are the Capuchin Monkey (Sapajus nigritus) and Brown Howler Monkey (Alouatta guariba clamitans). These monkeys are important to seed dispersal, contributing to the maintenance and recovery of the forest. However, 20 years have passed since the last studies on these monkey's diet, 20 years suffering edge effects and wildlife loss. Therefore, it would be interesting to study these diets again, to compare and to understand how these primates have adapted their diet to these alterations of resources in this fragmented remain.