The importance of lizards as frugivores and seed dispersers.

Valido, Alfredo; Olesen, Jens M.

doi:10.1079/9781845931650.0124

Cited by 59 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 91 publications

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“…Given that saurochory is a common phenomenon on islands, it is likely that our results can be extended to other archipelagos where frugivorous lizards (or other reptiles) have been extinct or are currently threatened [17]. The high vulnerability of island biotas is usually associated with their small size and isolation, higher rates of human-driven habitat loss, and higher sensitivity to biological invasions and climate change [36].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Long-term demographic consequences of a seed dispersal disruption

2012

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The loss or decline of vertebrate frugivores can limit the regeneration of plants that depend on them. However, empirical evidence is showing that this is still very scarce, as functionally equivalent species may contribute to maintain the mutualistic interaction. Here, we investigated the long-term consequences of the extinction of frugivorous lizards on the population persistence of a Mediterranean relict shrub Cneorum tricoccon (Cneoraceae). We examined the demographic parameters among 26 insular and mainland populations, which encompass the entire plant distributional range, comparing populations with lizards with those in which these are extinct, but in which alien mammals currently act as seed dispersers. Plant recruitment was found to be higher on island populations with lizards than on those with mammals, and the longterm effects of the native disperser's loss were found in all vital phases of plant regeneration. The study thus gives evidence of the cascading effects of human-induced changes in ecosystems, showing how the disruption of native ecological processes can lead to species regression and, in the long term, even to local extinctions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies examining the tightness of plant-lizard mutualisms are rare [17], and thus, for most systems, we do not have the information needed to predict the implications of the disruption in such interactions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term demographic consequences of a seed dispersal disruption

2012

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“…epizoochory and diszoochory) and types of abiotic dispersal (wind‐, water‐ and auto‐dispersed seeds) were not examined. Endozoochory by lizards and fishes was not analysed here because they do not characterize distinct dispersal modes (Correa et al ., 2007; Valido & Olesen, 2007) and are not common in the Brazilian Atlantic forest (Da Silva et al ., 1989; Figueira et al ., 1994).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vertebrate dispersal syndromes along the Atlantic forest: broad‐scale patterns and macroecological correlates

Almeida‐Neto

Campassi

Galetti

et al. 2008

Global Ecology and Biogeography

155

118

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Aim To assess the geographical variation in the relative importance of vertebrates, and more specifically of birds and mammals, as seed dispersal agents in forest communities, and to evaluate the influence of geographical and climatic factors on the observed trends.Location One hundred and thirty-five forest communities in the Brazilian Atlantic forest. MethodsWe collected data on dispersal modes for 2292 woody species. By combining species × site with species × trait matrices, we obtained the percentages of endozoochory, ornithochory, mastozoochory and the mean fruit diameter for the local forest communities. We used Spearman's correlation to assess bivariate relationships between variables. Subsequently, we performed paired t-tests to verify if variations in frequency of dispersal modes and mean fruit diameter were influenced by altitude or temperature. Then, we applied multiple linear regressions to evaluate the effect of geographical and climatic variables on variation in the relative frequency of dispersal modes and mean fruit diameter across communities. ResultsWe found no consistent latitudinal or longitudinal trend in the percentage of vertebrate-dispersed species, neither bird-nor mammal-dispersed species along the Atlantic forest. Endozoochory was affected chiefly by annual mean rainfall, increasing towards moister sites. Forest communities located at higher altitudes had a higher percentage of bird-dispersed species. Even when sites with identical values of annual mean temperature were compared, altitude had a positive effect on ornithochory. Conversely, we found a higher percentage of mammal-dispersed species in warmer forests, even when locations at the same altitudinal belts were contrasted. Fruit diameter was clearly related to altitude, decreasing towards higher elevations.Main conclusions This is the first analysis of a large data set on dispersal syndromes in tropical forest communities. Our findings support the hypotheses that: (1) geographical variation in the relative number of fleshy fruit species is mainly driven by moisture conditions and is relatively independent of geographical location, and (2) broad-scale trends in fruit size correspond to geographical variation in the relative importance of mammals and birds as seed dispersal agents at the community level.

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“…Although seed dispersal is key to maintaining plant diversity, seed dispersal by reptiles (saurochory) is sometimes regarded as a rare phenomenon (Valido and Olesen, 2007). This notion is challenged by growing evidence of reptiles as seed dispersers (González-Castro et al, 2015), especially because of the tendency for most reptiles to gulp fruits whole, which provides little opportunity for seed damage.…”

Section: Reptiles As Gene Transportersmentioning

confidence: 93%

The Plight of Reptiles as Ecological Actors in the Tropics

Miranda

Everton²

2017

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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Earth's tropical ecosystems have witnessed several extinctions and a dramatic reduction of the range and abundance of large reptile species, which is directly related to the rise of early and modern humans. The occurrence of such extinctions, range reduction, species loss, and the consequences for several paramount ecosystem processes are poorly documented compared to other large vertebrate species. Here, I reviewed the literature on the ecological processes performed by large tropical reptile species and their human-induced widespread demise in order to determine knowledge gaps and encourage a paradigm shift in understanding on the interactiveness of such species. The interactions and species involved indicate that large abundant reptiles in the tropics are important in ecological processes, and can consequently have an important role in ecosystem function through gene dispersal, nutrient cycling, trophic action, and ecosystem engineering. These important interactions performed by reptiles are not solely performed by few species, or geographically restricted to islands, but instead present a pattern that repeatedly occurs in large reptiles distributed over tropical ecosystems. The observed tendency of reptiles to be tightly involved in these ecological interactions has important implications for the ecology of tropical ecosystems. Lost and current ecological processes performed by large reptiles may be orders of magnitude higher than what is currently perceived, and the misleading baseline of those processes must be addressed otherwise we risk losing species and services that are dependent of such interactions. To fix this bias I suggest: (a) Increase information spreading about Pleistocene-Holocene reptile extinctions using popular media; (b) Improved exchange between the research field of megafauna effects in ecosystems and herpetologists working with large reptiles; (c) Increase research effort on anthropogenic reptile extinctions and their potential to predict future losses; (d) Address the knowledge gaps, as human-reptile conflict, chelonian seed dispersal and nutrient movement; (e) Increase quantitative research on large reptile population ecology, density, and abundance. (f) address the potentially present or lost ecosystem effects of extant and extinct reptile species. Although the importance of reptiles in most tropical ecosystems has been perceived as negligible, this study shows that this may be a misleading paradigm.

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The importance of lizards as frugivores and seed dispersers.

Cited by 59 publications

References 91 publications

Long-term demographic consequences of a seed dispersal disruption

Long-term demographic consequences of a seed dispersal disruption

Vertebrate dispersal syndromes along the Atlantic forest: broad‐scale patterns and macroecological correlates

The Plight of Reptiles as Ecological Actors in the Tropics

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