Primate communities: Their structure and role in tropical ecosystems

Bourlière, F

doi:10.1007/bf02693694

Cited by 134 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…The crowned lemur is not yet fearful of man there since it is protected by local fady (taboo) against hunting. It seems to be thriving at Ankarana, indeed our estimates of population density of up to 5 adults per hectare in the canopy forests are high compared with other forest primates of similar size (Bourliere, 1985;Robinson and Redford, 1986). Ankarana is the westernmost extent of its range.…”

Section: Lemursmentioning

confidence: 68%

Ankarana—a rediscovered nature reserve in northern Madagascar

Wilson¹,

Stewart

Fowler

1988

Oryx

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Section: Lemursmentioning

confidence: 68%

Ankarana—a rediscovered nature reserve in northern Madagascar

Wilson¹,

Stewart

Fowler

1988

Oryx

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“…Similar relationships have been reported for rain-forest bats (9). It is notable that the Asian "areas" fall below the regression line, emphasizing the relatively low primate species diversity on that continent, as noted by several other authorities (5,6). Madagascar falls well above the regression line for the area of rain forest on that island.…”

mentioning

confidence: 71%

“…In addition to numerous studies of autoecology, there have been outstanding studies of the comparative ecology of sympatric species in many different parts of the world that have contributed greatly to our understanding of the comparative ecology and competitive interactions of sympatric species in local communities (1)(2)(3)(4). In contrast, there have been few comparisons of the composition of primate communities between major continental regions or attempts to understand the factors underlying species diversity at either the local or continental level (5,6). This is in striking contrast with many other groups of vertebrates (especially, birds, lizards, and among mammals, bats) for which there are numerous studies of the geographical and climatic factors underlying species diversity (7)(8)(9).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographic and climatic control of primate diversity.

Reed

Fleagle

1995

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

105

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Although the comparative ecology of primates has been relatively well studied and there have been a number of outstanding studies of individual primate communities, the factors determining primate species diversity on either a local or regional level are largely unexplored. Understanding the determinants of species abundance is an important aspect of biodiversity and is critical for interpreting the comparative ecology of these different communities and for designing effective strategies of conservation. Comparative analysis of species diversity in more than 70 primate communities from South America, Africa, Madagascar, and Asia shows that on major continental areas and large tropical islands, there is a high positive correlation between the number of primate species and the area of tropical forest. Within major continental areas, the species diversity at individual sites is highly correlated with mean annual rainfall for South America, Africa, and Madagascar, but not Asia.As relatively large, often brightly colored, diurnal mammals, primates are among the best studied mammals. In addition to numerous studies of autoecology, there have been outstanding studies of the comparative ecology of sympatric species in many different parts of the world that have contributed greatly to our understanding of the comparative ecology and com-

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“…At least for plant ecosystem processes, ecological characteristics of individual species have been shown to rival the importance of species diversity (4,5). Likewise, primate species can have critical ecological roles, in particular as plant pollinators and seed dispersers and can be used to estimate the overall human impact on ecosystems (17)(18)(19)(20). This also stresses the importance of acquisition and inclusion of ecological data in successful conservation of biodiversity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Ecology of primate species is extensively studied and primates play a key role in many ecosystem processes (17)(18)(19)(20). First, we analyzed ecological richness (number of ecological types such as dietary specializations) and ecological composition of extant primate faunas in four geographical regions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diversity components of impending primate extinctions

Jernvall

Wright

1998

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Many extant species are at risk to go extinct. This impending loss of species is likely to cause changes in future ecosystem functions. Ecological components of diversity, such as dietary or habitat specializations, can be used to estimate the impact of extinctions on ecosystem functions. As an approach to estimate the impact of future extinctions, we tested interdependency between ecological and taxonomic change based on current predictions of extinction rates in primates. We analyzed the ecological characteristics of extant primate faunas having species in various categories of endangerment of extinction and forecasted the future primate faunas as if they were paleontological faunas. Diversity of future ecosystems can be predicted to decline because present-day extinction rates of organisms may rival those in the fossil record and many living species are at risk to go extinct in the near future (1, 2). In extant ecosystems, ecological attributes of species can influence ecosystem processes more than number of species (species richness) per se (3-5). For example, loss of all of the species that perform a specific ecological function, such as seed dispersal, may limit long-term ecosystem competence. Therefore, full appraisal of the impact of loss in biological diversity requires the inclusion of ecological components of diversity.To simulate large time scale (i.e., paleontological or macroevolutionary) diversity losses using living faunas, in this paper we introduce an approach. We analyzed the ecological characteristics of extant faunas having species in various categories of endangerment of extinction and forecasted ecological integrity of faunas in the future, assuming extinctions proceed according to current rankings of endangerment. Predicting future faunas allows us to circumvent the problem that living species represent only one geological instant in the history of earth and fossil record-like changes in diversity cannot be directly observed. On the other hand, the use of extant fauna avoids the problem that fossils provide limited information on the ecological components of diversity, such as dietary or habitat specializations. These factors can be known from extinct species only indirectly via morphology (6-10).Of mammals, the order Primates has the highest proportion of endangered species (11,12), mainly because of humancaused habitat destruction and hunting (11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16). Ecology of primate species is extensively studied and primates play a key role in many ecosystem processes (17)(18)(19)(20). First, we analyzed ecological richness (number of ecological types such as dietary specializations) and ecological composition of extant primate faunas in four geographical regions. Ecological composition is conceptually different from richness and characterizes the resource use (e.g., diet and habitat) of faunas. This allows measuring of ecological dissimilarity and range of adaptations. Then, using endangerment categories, we made projections of the integrity of extant primate faunas in the...

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Primate communities: Their structure and role in tropical ecosystems

Cited by 134 publications

References 43 publications

Ankarana—a rediscovered nature reserve in northern Madagascar

Ankarana—a rediscovered nature reserve in northern Madagascar

Geographic and climatic control of primate diversity.

Diversity components of impending primate extinctions

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