Phenology, abundance and consumers of figs (Ficus spp.) in a tropical cloud forest: evaluation of a potential keystone resource

2013 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 401-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustavo H. Kattan ◽  
Leonor A. Valenzuela
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Fruit Availability ◽  
Broad Array ◽  
Tropical Cloud Forest ◽  
Fig Tree ◽  
Fig Trees ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
Keystone Resource

Abstract:Fig trees (Ficus spp) produce fruit year-round and figs are consumed by a large proportion of frugivores throughout the tropics. Figs are potential keystone resources that sustain frugivore communities during periods of scarcity, but studies have produced contradictory results. Over 1 y we monitored the phenology of 206 trees of five Ficus species in a Colombian cloud forest, to test whether figs produced fruit during periods of low overall fruit availability. We also measured fig tree densities in 18 0.5-ha plots and made 190 h of observations at 24 trees of three species to determine whether figs were abundant and consumed by a large proportion of the local frugivores. The five species produced fruit year-round but fig availability varied monthly by orders of magnitude. Fig trees reached comparatively high densities of 1–5 trees ha−1 and were consumed by 36 bird species (60% of the local frugivore assemblage) and three mammal species. However, there was no season of fruit scarcity and figs represented on average 1.5% of the monthly fruit biomass. Figs in this Andean forest are part of a broad array of fruiting species and at least during our study did not seem to constitute a keystone resource.

scholarly journals Behavior of tamarins, tanagers and manakins foraging in a strangler fig (Ficus sp.) in Suriname, South America: implications for seed dispersal

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 419-423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Natasha Vanderhoff ◽  
Brian Grafton
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Forest Birds ◽  
The Other ◽  
Seed Fate ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Fig Tree ◽  
Fig Trees ◽  
The Tropics

The behavior of foragers can directly affect the dispersal of seeds. Strangler figs are keystone resources throughout the tropics and are important resources for both primates and birds. We examined the foraging behavior of golden-handed tamarins and four bird species in a strangler fig to see how these behaviors might affect the dispersal of fig seeds. Tamarins removed fruit at a faster rate than did any of the bird species examined. Additionally, tamarins tended to swallow figs whole whereas birds tended to drop figs once they were processed. Tamarins visiting fig trees ingest large quantities of fig seeds that may be deposited throughout the forest. Birds on the other hand tended to slowly process fruits near the fig tree and drop processed fruit containing large quantities of seeds. Future studies need to be conducted to ascertain differences in post dispersal seed fate.

Consumption of macro-fungi by invertebrates in a Mexican tropical cloud forest: do fruit body characteristics matter?

1999 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 603-617 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger Guevara ◽  
Rodolfo Dirzo
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Fruit Body ◽  
Interspecific Variation ◽  
Species Identity ◽  
Tropical Cloud Forest ◽  
Aggregation Size ◽  
Coloration Patterns ◽  
Plant Herbivore ◽  
Consumer Interactions ◽  
The Tropics

The emphasis of antagonistic fungus–consumer interactions to date has been on temperate taxa and predominantly zoocentric, neglecting the effects on the fungal component. These interactions are expected to be especially complex and diverse in the tropics, where both components display their greatest diversity. Variability in fungivory (apparent biomass consumed) of understorey basidiomycetes in a tropical cloud forest was investigated to test whether this could be explained (at the proximate level) by apparency-related characteristics of the aboveground structures (colour of pileus, stipe and hymenium; size and aggregation), as has been suggested for plant–herbivore relationships. Considerable interspecific variation in fungivory was detected (range 0–50%). Cluster analysis showed that neighbouring clusters had dissimilar levels of fungivory. Such clusters were similar in colour attributes of aboveground structures, but differed in aggregation size and apparent biomass. A quantitative analysis also showed that colour attributes were not strongly associated with the observed variation of consumption levels, whereas apparent biomass and aggregation size did correlate with the observed variation in fungivory. Furthermore, specific identity correlated with fungivory. It was concluded that coloration patterns may not be important for fungivory, whereas genet size and species identity (probably via characteristics unrelated to apparency, such as mycotoxins and nutritional value) seemed to be critical factors.

scholarly journals Restricted movements and high site fidelity in three East African cloud-forest birds

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Christian Habel ◽  
Jessica Hillen ◽  
Thomas Schmitt ◽  
Christina Fischer
Keyword(s):  
Sedentary Behaviour ◽  
Site Fidelity ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Passerine Bird ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
East African ◽  
Forest Patch ◽  
High Site ◽  
The Tropics

Abstract:Species with specific habitat requirements often remain within their habitat and are characterized by a very sedentary behaviour. We used radio-tracking during a 3-wk campaign to investigate the home ranges and movements of three East African passerine bird species, all adapted to cloud-forest habitats: montane white-eye Zosterops poliogaster mbuluensis, stripe-cheeked greenbul Andropadus milanjensis and white-starred robin Pogonocichla stellata macarthuri. Individuals were observed in a forest-grassland mosaic on top of Chyulu Hills, south Kenya. Based on 15 individuals with a total of 1041 fixes, we found (1) that all three species show a sedentary behaviour restricted to their home forest patch; (2) least activity during the afternoon; and (3) re-colonization into its home patch after translocation into a nearby forest patch. Our findings underline that forest-specialist bird species of the tropics show high site fidelity despite their potential movement ability.

scholarly journals Bird visit to Ficus benjamina in two urbanization gradients in the tropics

2021 ◽  
Vol 948 (1) ◽  
pp. 012061
Author(s):  
A Mardiastuti ◽  
Y A Mulyani ◽  
M D Kusrini
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Tree Sparrow ◽  
Ficus Benjamina ◽  
Direct Observations ◽  
Bird Habitat ◽  
Eurasian Tree Sparrow ◽  
Fig Trees ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
Urbanization Gradients

Abstract Fig trees area believed to be important bird habitat in the tropics, including in urban areas. The research objective was to reveal the bird species that visited Ficus benjamina in the low and high urbanization gradients in the tropics. Data were obtained in IPB University Darmaga Campus (low urbanization) and Sentul City (high urbanization) in Bogor (West Java, Indonesia), through direct observations of four trees per site in the morning, midday, late afternoon, and night, totalling 276 observation hours. Total of 29 bird species visited F. benjamina trees (26 species in low urbanization, 12 species in high), mainly insectivores, nectarivores, and frugivores birds. Nine species were common in both sites, i.e., Spotted Dove, Plaintive Cuckoo, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Small Minivet, Common Iora, Sooty-headed Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Common Tailorbird, Scarlet-headed Flowerpecker, and Olive-backed Sunbirds. Nocturnal birds (Collared Scops Owl, Large-tailed Nightjar) were present in low urbanization, but absent in high urbanization site, so did kingfishers (White-throated Kingfisher, Collared Kingfisher) and some other urbanization-prone species. The high urbanization site was characterized by the presence of Eurasian Tree Sparrow at the fig tree. This study showed that F. benjamina has an important role for diurnal and nocturnal birds, even in the high urbanization site.

Impact of artificial lights on foraging of insectivorous bats in a Costa Rican cloud forest

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanner M. Frank ◽  
Whitney C. Gabbert ◽  
Johel Chaves-Campos ◽  
Richard K. LaVal
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Costa Rican ◽  
Light Pollution ◽  
Foraging Mode ◽  
Insectivorous Bats ◽  
Cluttered Environments ◽  
Aerial Insectivore ◽  
Tropical Cloud Forest ◽  
The Tropics

AbstractDetermining the effects of light pollution on tropical bat communities is important for understanding community assembly rules in urban areas. Studies from temperate regions suggest that, among aerial insectivorous bats, fast-flying species that forage in the open are attracted to artificial lights, whereas slow-flying species that forage in cluttered environments avoid those lights. We measured aerial insectivore responses to light pollution in a tropical cloud forest to test this hypothesis. Bat echolocation was recorded at 20 pairs of light and dark sites in Monteverde, Costa Rica. Foraging activity was higher at artificially lighted sites than dark sites near the new moon, especially around blue-white fluorescent lighting. Most recorded bat species showed increased or unchanged activity in response to light, including some slow-flying and edge-foraging bats. This finding suggests that, contrary to the evaluated hypothesis, flight speed and foraging mode are not sufficient to determine bat responses to artificial lights in the tropics. Two bat species showed decreased activity at light sites, and a low species evenness was recorded around lights, particularly fluorescent lights, compared with dark sites. As in the temperate zone, light pollution in the tropics seems to concentrate certain bat species around human-inhabited areas, potentially shifting community structure.

scholarly journals Evaluating the role of contracting and expanding rainforest in initiating cycles of speciation across the Isthmus of Panama

2012 ◽  
Vol 279 (1742) ◽  
pp. 3520-3526 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Tilston Smith ◽  
Amei Amei ◽  
John Klicka
Keyword(s):  
Bird Species ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Isthmus Of Panama ◽  
Species Pairs ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
High Species Richness ◽  
The Rich ◽  
The Tropics ◽  
The Impact

Climatic and geological changes across time are presumed to have shaped the rich biodiversity of tropical regions. However, the impact climatic drying and subsequent tropical rainforest contraction had on speciation has been controversial because of inconsistent palaeoecological and genetic data. Despite the strong interest in examining the role of climatic change on speciation in the Neotropics there has been few comparative studies, particularly, those that include non-rainforest taxa. We used bird species that inhabit humid or dry habitats that dispersed across the Panamanian Isthmus to characterize temporal and spatial patterns of speciation across this barrier. Here, we show that these two assemblages of birds exhibit temporally different speciation time patterns that supports multiple cycles of speciation. Evidence for these cycles is further corroborated by the finding that both assemblages consist of ‘young’ and ‘old’ species, despite dry habitat species pairs being geographically more distant than pairs of humid habitat species. The matrix of humid and dry habitats in the tropics not only allows for the maintenance of high species richness, but additionally this study suggests that these environments may have promoted speciation. We conclude that differentially expanding and contracting distributions of dry and humid habitats was probably an important contributor to speciation in the tropics.

scholarly journals Effects of moisture dynamics on bryophyte carbon fluxes in a tropical cloud forest

2019 ◽  
Vol 222 (4) ◽  
pp. 1766-1777
Author(s):  
Daniel B. Metcalfe ◽  
Jenny C. M. Ahlstrand
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Forest ◽  
Carbon Fluxes ◽  
Tropical Cloud Forest ◽  
Moisture Dynamics

Habitat and fig characteristics influence the bird assemblage and network properties of fig trees from Xishuangbanna, South-West China

2009 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sawat Sanitjan ◽  
Jin Chen
Keyword(s):  
Forest Type ◽  
Fruit Size ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Frugivorous Birds ◽  
Open Forest ◽  
Canopy Volume ◽  
Frugivorous Bird ◽  
Network Properties ◽  
Fig Trees ◽  
Individual Trees

Abstract:To understand how fruit tree characteristics and microhabitats shape the assemblage of birds on fig trees and the pattern of fig–bird interactions, we observed and recorded, over 96 d and 816 h, the frugivorous birds visiting 32 individual trees belonging to 14 species of Ficus that were distributed across four different sites. A total of 30 bird species were recorded as eating figs, comprising 66.7% of the total number of frugivorous bird species recorded at the four sites. Small passerine birds such as bulbuls were the dominant frugivores for fig species. The number of bird species visiting different fig trees was significantly influenced by the crop size and canopy volume. Fruit colour and fruit size did not significantly influence the number of bird species, whereas habitats appeared to influence the composition of visiting birds. The fig–frugivorous bird interaction was asymmetrically structured, and the degree of nestedness appeared to be influenced by the forest type and degree of disturbance: the degree of nestedness in non-limestone forest tended to be higher than limestone forest; forest with less disturbance tend to be more nested compared with the open forest with high disturbance.

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