Defaunation affects carbon storage in tropical forests

Autor(es)

Bello, Carolina ; Galetti, Mauro ; Pizo, Marco A. ; Magnago, Luiz Fernando S. ; Rocha, Mariana F. ; Lima, Renato A. F. ; Peres, Carlos A. ; Ovaskainen, Otso ; Jordano, Pedro

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: SCIENCE ADVANCES; v. 1, n. 11 DEC 2015.
• Citações Web of Science: 100

Resumo

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. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 14/01986-0 - Consequências ecológicas da defaunação na Mata Atlântica
• Beneficiário: Mauro Galetti Rodrigues
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 13/08722-5 - O papel da diversidade funcional na estruturação de comunidades arbóreas tropicais: uma abordagem baseada em modelos
• Beneficiário: Renato Augusto Ferreira de Lima
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 13/22492-2 - Ligando defaunação e os serviços de ecossistemas de armazenamento de carbono em florestas atlânticas
• Beneficiário: Laura Carolina Bello Lozano
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Doutorado Direto