The role of forest structure, fragment size and corridors in maintaining small mammal abundance and diversity in an Atlantic forest landscape

Autor(es)

Pardini, Renata ^[1] ; Souza, Sergio Marques de ^[2] ; Braga-Neto, Ricardo ^[3] ; Metzger, Jean Paul ^[4]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências - Brasil

^[2] Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências - Brasil

^[3] Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências - Brasil

^[4] Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências - Brasil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: Biological Conservation; v. 124, n. 2, p. 253-266, July 2005.
• Área do conhecimento: Ciências Biológicas - Ecologia
• Assunto(s): Florestas Mamíferos Biodiversidade Mata Atlântica

Resumo

Using the abundance and distribution of small mammals at 26 sites in an Atlantic forest landscape, we investigated how species abundance and alpha and beta diversity are affected by fragment size and the presence of corridors. To account for the variability in forest structure among fragments, we described and minimized the influence of foliage density and stratification on small mammal data. Sites were distributed among three categories of fragment size and in continuous forest. For small and medium-sized categories, we considered isolated fragments and fragments connected by corridors to larger remnants. Small mammal abundance and alpha and beta diversity were regressed against site scores from the first axis of a Principal Component Analysis on forest structure variables. Residuals were used in analyses of variance to compare fragment size and connectivity categories. Forest structure influenced total abundance and abundance of some species individually, but not the diversity of small mammal communities. Total abundance and alpha diversity were lower in small and medium-sized fragments than in large fragments and continuous forest, and in isolated compared to connected fragments. Three species were less common, but none was more abundant in smaller fragments. At least one species was more abundant in connected compared to isolated fragments. Beta diversity showed an opposite relationship to fragment size and corridors, increasing in small and isolated fragments. Results highlight the importance of secondary forest for the conservation of tropical fauna, the hyper-dynamism of small isolated fragments and the potential of corridors to buffer habitat fragmentation effects in tropical landscapes. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 02/02126-7 - Estudo da importância relativa do grau de conectividade e da estrutura da vegetação para a comunidade de pequenos mamíferos em fragmentos florestais de Mata Atlântica
• Beneficiário: Sérgio Marques de Souza
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Iniciação Científica
• Processo FAPESP: 99/05123-4 - Conservação da biodiversidade em paisagens fragmentadas no Planalto Atlântico de São Paulo (Brasil)
• Beneficiário: Jean Paul Walter Metzger
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 01/13309-2 - Efeitos da fragmentação de Mata Atlântica: um estudo comparativo entre paisagens e grupos de espécies de pequenos vertebrados
• Beneficiário: Renata Pardini
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Pós-Doutorado
• Processo FAPESP: 02/02125-0 - Efeitos da fragmentação da Mata Atlântica: investigando a importância relativa do tamanho do fragmento e da qualidade do habitat na estruturação da comunidade de pequenos mamíferos
• Beneficiário: Ricardo Braga Neto
• Modalidade de apoio: Bolsas no Brasil - Iniciação Científica