Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia

Abstract Recent studies have suggested that defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces above-ground carbon storage in tropical forests of South America and Africa, but not, or less so, in Southeast Asian tropical forests. Here we analyze the issue using the seed dispersal network (data of intera...

Descripción completa

Guardado en:

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales:	Wirong Chanthorn, Florian Hartig, Warren Y. Brockelman, Wacharapong Srisang, Anuttara Nathalang, Jantima Santon
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2019
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/3d7cb1ced19a41778424b41ec0132fac
Etiquetas:	Agregar Etiqueta Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!

id	oai:doaj.org-article:3d7cb1ced19a41778424b41ec0132fac
record_format	dspace
spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:3d7cb1ced19a41778424b41ec0132fac2021-12-02T15:07:54ZDefaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia10.1038/s41598-019-46399-y2045-2322https://doaj.org/article/3d7cb1ced19a41778424b41ec0132fac2019-07-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-46399-yhttps://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Recent studies have suggested that defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces above-ground carbon storage in tropical forests of South America and Africa, but not, or less so, in Southeast Asian tropical forests. Here we analyze the issue using the seed dispersal network (data of interaction between trees and animal seed dispersers) and forest composition of a 30-ha forest dynamics plot in central Thailand, where an intact fauna of primates, ungulates, bears and birds of all sizes still exists. We simulate the effect of two defaunation scenarios on forest biomass: 1) only primates extirpated (a realistic possibility in near future), and 2) extirpation of all large-bodied frugivores (LBF) including gibbons, macaques, hornbills and terrestrial mammals, the main targets of poachers in this region. For each scenario, we varied the population size reduction of the LBF dispersed tree species from 20% to 100%. We find that tree species dependent on seed dispersal by large-bodied frugivores (LBF) account for nearly one-third of the total carbon biomass on the plot, and that the community turnover following a complete defaunation would result in a carbon reduction of 2.4% to 3.0%, depending on the defaunation scenario and the model assumptions. The reduction was always greater than 1% when the defaunation intensity was at least 40%. These effect sizes are comparable to values reported for Neotropical forests, suggesting that the impact of defaunation on carbon deficit is not necessarily lower in Southeast Asian forests. The problem of defaunation in Asia, and the mutual benefits between biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation, should therefore not be neglected by global policies to reduce carbon emissions.Wirong ChanthornFlorian HartigWarren Y. BrockelmanWacharapong SrisangAnuttara NathalangJantima SantonNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 9, Iss 1, Pp 1-9 (2019)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Wirong Chanthorn Florian Hartig Warren Y. Brockelman Wacharapong Srisang Anuttara Nathalang Jantima Santon Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
description	Abstract Recent studies have suggested that defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces above-ground carbon storage in tropical forests of South America and Africa, but not, or less so, in Southeast Asian tropical forests. Here we analyze the issue using the seed dispersal network (data of interaction between trees and animal seed dispersers) and forest composition of a 30-ha forest dynamics plot in central Thailand, where an intact fauna of primates, ungulates, bears and birds of all sizes still exists. We simulate the effect of two defaunation scenarios on forest biomass: 1) only primates extirpated (a realistic possibility in near future), and 2) extirpation of all large-bodied frugivores (LBF) including gibbons, macaques, hornbills and terrestrial mammals, the main targets of poachers in this region. For each scenario, we varied the population size reduction of the LBF dispersed tree species from 20% to 100%. We find that tree species dependent on seed dispersal by large-bodied frugivores (LBF) account for nearly one-third of the total carbon biomass on the plot, and that the community turnover following a complete defaunation would result in a carbon reduction of 2.4% to 3.0%, depending on the defaunation scenario and the model assumptions. The reduction was always greater than 1% when the defaunation intensity was at least 40%. These effect sizes are comparable to values reported for Neotropical forests, suggesting that the impact of defaunation on carbon deficit is not necessarily lower in Southeast Asian forests. The problem of defaunation in Asia, and the mutual benefits between biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation, should therefore not be neglected by global policies to reduce carbon emissions.
format	article
author	Wirong Chanthorn Florian Hartig Warren Y. Brockelman Wacharapong Srisang Anuttara Nathalang Jantima Santon
author_facet	Wirong Chanthorn Florian Hartig Warren Y. Brockelman Wacharapong Srisang Anuttara Nathalang Jantima Santon
author_sort	Wirong Chanthorn
title	Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
title_short	Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
title_full	Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
title_fullStr	Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
title_full_unstemmed	Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia
title_sort	defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of southeast asia
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2019
url	https://doaj.org/article/3d7cb1ced19a41778424b41ec0132fac
work_keys_str_mv	AT wirongchanthorn defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia AT florianhartig defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia AT warrenybrockelman defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia AT wacharapongsrisang defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia AT anuttaranathalang defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia AT jantimasanton defaunationoflargebodiedfrugivoresreducescarbonstorageinatropicalforestofsoutheastasia
_version_	1718388309320794112

Defaunation of large-bodied frugivores reduces carbon storage in a tropical forest of Southeast Asia

Ejemplares similares