Patterns of fruit-frugivore interactions in two atlantic forest bird communities of south-eastern Brazil: implications for conservation

摘要

Plant-frugivore interactions are key components of complex forest communities. For several reasons, the modification or loss of such interactions may have profound implications for conservation, especially in the tropics. First, some species of fruiting plant may be critical for maintaining frugivore populations during periods when other species are not producing fruit (Howe, 1977,1981;Terborgh, 1986a,b; Peres, 2000). Secondly, some plant species are likely to experience changes in dispersal and recruitment if populations of frugivores are reduced (Pizo, 1997; Asquith el al., 1999; Wright el al., 2000). In fact, because frugivores appear to be especially sensitive to habitat fragmentation (Loiselle and Blake, 1992; Rattan et al., 1994), long-termmaintenance of fruiting plants in habitat fragments may be especially difficult. Thirdly, seed dispersal by frugivores can contribute to the restoration and management of degraded habitats. For example, fruit-eating birds are readily attracted to remnanttrees and even artificial perches in degraded areas, thereby facilitating regeneration by increasing seed rain (McDonnell and Stiles, 1983; Guevara and Laborde, 1993; McCIanahan and Wolfe, 1993; Silva et al., 1996; Holl, 1998; Duncan and Chapman, 1999).