Edge-related loss of tree phylogenetic diversity in the severely fragmented Brazilian Atlantic forest.

ABSTRACT: Deforestation and forest fragmentation are known major causes of nonrandom extinction, but there is no information about their impact on the phylogenetic diversity of the remaining species assemblages. Using a large vegetation dataset from an old hyper-fragmented landscape in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest we assess whether the local extirpation of tree species and functional impoverishment of tree assemblages reduce the phylogenetic diversity of the remaining tree assemblages. We detected a significant loss of tree phylogenetic diversity in forest edges, but not in core areas of small (<80 ha) forest fragments. This was attributed to a reduction of 11% in the average phylogenetic distance between any two randomly chosen individuals from forest edges; an increase of 17% in the average p

SUBMITTER: Santos BA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2935881 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature