Mountain caves of the central region of Veracruz: A vertebrate biodiversity reservoir in a Neotropical hotspot.

ABSTRACT: The mountain region of central Veracruz, Mexico hosts a large system of karst and volcanic caves that are unexplored. In particular, the vertebrates that inhabit these subterranean ecosystems are unknown. This study evaluated the diversity of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish in three environments (euphotic, disphotic, and aphotic) of 16 caves of different geological origin (12 karst caves and 4 volcanic caves) distributed along an altitudinal gradient (300-2400 m a.s.l.). We found a richness of 242 vertebrate species (184 birds, 30 mammals, 15 reptiles, 12 amphibians, and 1 fish) and an abundance of a total of 11,323 individuals (4,969 mammals, 6,483 birds, 36 reptiles, 27 amphibians, and 5 fish). The richness of all vertebrate classes was higher in karst than in volcanic cav

SUBMITTER: Hernandez-Lozano A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11315317 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature