Effects of land-use change on functional and taxonomic diversity of Neotropical bats |
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Authors: | Fábio Z. Farneda Christoph F. J. Meyer Carlos E. V. Grelle |
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Affiliation: | 1. Department of Ecology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;2. School of Science, Engineering and Environment, University of Salford, Salford, UK |
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Abstract: | Human land-use changes are particularly extensive in tropical regions, representing one of the greatest threats to terrestrial biodiversity and a key research topic in conservation. However, studies considering the effects of different types of anthropogenic disturbance on the functional dimension of biodiversity in human-modified landscapes are rare. Here, we obtained data through an extensive review of peer-reviewed articles and compared 30 Neotropical bat assemblages in well-preserved primary forest and four different human-disturbed habitats in terms of their functional and taxonomic diversity. We found that disturbed habitats that are structurally less similar to primary forest (pasture, cropland, and early-stage secondary forest) were characterized by a lower functional and taxonomic diversity, as well as community-level functional uniqueness. These habitats generally retained fewer species that perform different ecological functions compared to higher-quality landscape matrices, such as agroforestry. According to functional trait composition, different bat ensembles respond differently to landscape change, negatively affecting mainly gleaning insectivorous bats in pasture, narrow-range species in cropland, and heavier animalivorous bats in secondary forest. Although our results highlight the importance of higher-quality matrix habitats to support elevated functional and taxonomic bat diversity, the conservation of bat species that perform different ecological functions in the mosaic of human-modified habitats also depends on the irreplaceable conservation value of well-preserved primary forests. Our study based on a pooled analysis of individual studies provides novel insights into the effects of different human-modified habitats on Neotropical bat assemblages. |
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Keywords: | Chiroptera conservation biology countryside ecosystems functional traits habitat loss land-use change matrix quality wildlife-friendly farming agricultura biologicamente sustentável biologia da conservação características funcionais Chiroptera ecossistemas campestris mudanças no uso da terra perda de habitat qualidade da matriz |
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