The fate of Amazonian forest fragments: A 32-year investigation |
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| Authors: | William F Laurance José LC Camargo Regina CC Luizão Susan G Laurance Stuart L Pimm Emilio M Bruna Philip C Stouffer G Bruce Williamson Julieta Benítez-Malvido Heraldo L Vasconcelos Kyle S Van Houtan Charles E Zartman Sarah A Boyle Raphael K Didham Ana Andrade Thomas E Lovejoy |
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| Institution: | aBiological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project, National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA) and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, C.P. 478, Manaus, AM 69011-970, Brazil;bSchool of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University, Cairns, Queensland 4870, Australia;cDepartment of Ecology, National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), C.P. 478, Manaus, AM 69011-970, Brazil;dNicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA;eCenter for Latin American Studies and Department of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA;fSchool of Renewable Natural Resources and LSU AgCenter, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA;gDepartment of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA;hCenter for Ecosystem Research, National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico;i1nstitute of Biology, Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), C.P. 593, Uberlândia, MG 38400-902, Brazil;jMarine Turtle Assessment Program, NOAA Fisheries, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA;kDepartment of Botany, National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), C.P. 478, Manaus, AM 69011-970, Brazil;lDepartment of Biology, Rhodes College, Memphis, TN 38112, USA;mSchool of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia;nCSIRO Ecosystem Sciences, Centre for Environment and Life Sciences, Floreat, WA 6014, Australia;oThe Heinz Center, 900 17th Street, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20006, USA;pDepartment of Environmental Science and Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA |
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| Abstract: | We synthesize findings to date from the world’s largest and longest-running experimental study of habitat fragmentation, located in central Amazonia. Over the past 32 years, Amazonian forest fragments ranging from 1 to 100 ha have experienced a wide array of ecological changes. Edge effects have been a dominant driver of fragment dynamics, strongly affecting forest microclimate, tree mortality, carbon storage, fauna, and other aspects of fragment ecology. However, edge-effect intensity varies markedly in space and time, and is influenced by factors such as edge age, the number of nearby edges, and the adjoining matrix of modified vegetation surrounding fragments. In our study area, the matrix has changed markedly over the course of the study (evolving from large cattle pastures to mosaics of abandoned pasture and regrowth forest) and this in turn has strongly influenced fragment dynamics and faunal persistence. Rare weather events, especially windstorms and droughts, have further altered fragment ecology. In general, populations and communities of species in fragments are hyperdynamic relative to nearby intact forest. Some edge and fragment-isolation effects have declined with a partial recovery of secondary forests around fragments, but other changes, such as altered patterns of tree recruitment, are ongoing. Fragments are highly sensitive to external vicissitudes, and even small changes in local land-management practices may drive fragmented ecosystems in markedly different directions. The effects of fragmentation are likely to interact synergistically with other anthropogenic threats such as logging, hunting, and especially fire, creating an even greater peril for the Amazonian biota. |
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| Keywords: | Amazon Community dynamics Ecosystem processes Edge effects Habitat fragmentation Long-term research Matrix effects Species extinctions Tropical forests |
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