Functional redundancy and complementarities of seed dispersal by the last neotropical megafrugivores.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Functional redundancy has been debated largely in ecology and conservation, yet we lack detailed empirical studies on the roles of functionally similar species in ecosystem function. Large bodied frugivores may disperse similar plant species and have strong impact on plant recruitment in tropical forests. The two largest frugivores in the neotropics, tapirs (Tapirus terrestris) and muriquis (Brachyteles arachnoides) are potential candidates for functional redundancy on seed dispersal effectiveness. Here we provide a comparison of the quantitative, qualitative and spatial effects on seed dispersal by these megafrugivores in a continuous Brazilian Atlantic forest.

Methodology/principal findings

We found a low overlap of plant species dispersed by both muriquis and t

SUBMITTER: Bueno RS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3567037 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature