Exploring Functional Consequences of Large Mammalian Herbivore Defaunation on Greenhouse Gas Dynamics in Tropical Ecosystems

• Grant number: 25/13959-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Post-doctor
• Start date: December 01, 2025
• End date: November 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Ecology - Ecosystems Ecology
• Principal Investigator: Mauro Galetti Rodrigues
• Grantee: Daiane Cristina Carreira
• Supervisor: Pedro Jordano
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Estación Biológica de Doñana, Spain
• Associated to the scholarship: 24/03562-4 - Indirect effects of large mammalian herbivores on the greenhouse gas emissions in tropical ecosystems, BP.PD

Abstract

Understanding how biodiversity loss affects climate regulation is a central challenge in ecology. Large mammalian herbivores (LMH) play key roles in modulating vegetation dynamics, nutrient cycling, and soil properties - factors that influence greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in forest ecosystems. However, the indirect pathways linking LMH to climate-relevant ecosystem functions remain poorly explored. This project complements my ongoing postdoctoral research, which quantifies LMH impacts on soil properties and GHG emissions in Neotropical forests. I aim to expand the analytical and theoretical scope using existing field data (seedling community structure, camera trap records, soil variables, and GHG fluxes) and a database from the literature. The first objective is to analyze functional links between LMH presence and activity, seedling composition, and soil ecosystem functions related to GHG emissions (CO¿, CH¿, N¿O) by means of last-generation, complex network techniques (e.g., multilayer networks). This analysis will enhance interpretation of the main project by offering a systems-level view of indirect ecological pathways connecting fauna, vegetation, and climate functions. The second objective is to develop a conceptual synthesis on how LMH loss may affect climate regulation in tropical forests, integrating network findings with comparative literature to propose mechanistic scenarios and research priorities. The project will be conducted with the Integrative Ecology Group led by Prof. Pedro Jordano at Estación Biológica de Doñana (EBD-CSIC) and Univ. of Sevilla, whose expertise in ecological networks and biodiversity-function relationships will be fundamental to achieving these goals and generating novel insights into defaunation's effects on climate regulation. (AU)