Search

Electronic supplementary material includes Appendix S1-S3, Figure S1-S8, Table S1-S3.

A variety of factors can affect the biodiversity of tropical mammal communities, but their relative importance and directionality remain uncertain. Previous global investigations of mammal functional diversity have relied on range maps instead of observational data to determine community composition. We test the effects of species pools, habitat heterogeneity, primary productivity and human disturbance on the functional diversity (dispersion and richness) of mammal communities using the largest standardized tropical forest camera trap monitoring system, the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network. We use occupancy values derived from the camera trap data to calculate occupancy-weighted functional diversity and use Bayesian generalized linear regression to determine the effects of multiple predictors. Mammal community functional dispersion increased with primary productivity, while functional richness decreased with human-induced local extinctions and was significantly lower in Madagascar than other tropical regions. The significant positive relationship between functional dispersion and productivity was evident only when functional dispersion was weighted by species' occupancies. Thus, observational data from standardized monitoring can reveal the drivers of mammal communities in ways that are not readily apparent from range map-based studies. The positive association between occupancy-weighted functional dispersion of tropical forest mammal communities and primary productivity suggests that unique functional traits may be more beneficial in more productive ecosystems and may allow species to persist at higher abundances.

A variety of factors can affect the biodiversity of tropical mammal communities, but their relative importance and directionality remain uncertain. Previous global investigations of mammal functional diversity have relied on range maps instead of observational data to determine community composition. We test the effects of species pools, habitat heterogeneity, primary productivity and human disturbance on the functional diversity (dispersion and richness) of mammal communities using the largest standardized tropical forest camera trap monitoring system, the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network. We use occupancy values derived from the camera trap data to calculate occupancy-weighted functional diversity and use Bayesian generalized linear regression to determine the effects of multiple predictors. Mammal community functional dispersion increased with primary productivity, while functional richness decreased with human-induced local extinctions and was significantly lower in Madagascar than other tropical regions. The significant positive relationship between functional dispersion and productivity was evident only when functional dispersion was weighted by species' occupancies. Thus, observational data from standardized monitoring can reveal the drivers of mammal communities in ways that are not readily apparent from range map-based studies. The positive association between occupancy-weighted functional dispersion of tropical forest mammal communities and primary productivity suggests that unique functional traits may be more beneficial in more productive ecosystems and may allow species to persist at higher abundances.

A variety of factors can affect the biodiversity of tropical mammal communities, but their relative importance and directionality remain uncertain. Previous global investigations of mammal functional diversity have relied on range maps instead of observational data to determine community composition. We test the effects of species pools, habitat heterogeneity, primary productivity and human disturbance on the functional diversity (dispersion and richness) of mammal communities using the largest standardized tropical forest camera trap monitoring system, the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring (TEAM) Network. We use occupancy values derived from the camera trap data to calculate occupancy-weighted functional diversity and use Bayesian generalized linear regression to determine the effects of multiple predictors. Mammal community functional dispersion increased with primary productivity, while functional richness decreased with human-induced local extinctions and was significantly lower in Madagascar than other tropical regions. The significant positive relationship between functional dispersion and productivity was evident only when functional dispersion was weighted by species' occupancies. Thus, observational data from standardized monitoring can reveal the drivers of mammal communities in ways that are not readily apparent from range map-based studies. The positive association between occupancy-weighted functional dispersion of tropical forest mammal communities and primary productivity suggests that unique functional traits may be more beneficial in more productive ecosystems and may allow species to persist at higher abundances.

TEAM terrestrial vertebrate sampling protocol.

The management and conservation of threatened animal populations require accurate knowledge on their distribution and abundance. At the same time, knowledge on the factors driving changes and fluctuation in distribution and abundance is also critical. Nevertheless, gaining such insight is especially challenging for species living in patchy and fragmented landscapes, as is the case for most mammals in tropical forests. This thesis addressed these issues by developing and validating analytical frameworks that allow to make robust spatial inference on population abundance, and ultimately aimed at gaining knowledge on the conservation status of selected mammal species in the rainforest of the Udzungwa Mountains of Tanzania, with emphasis on arboreal primates. This area is an outstanding hotspot for biodiversity and endemism at continental level and it is especially important for primates. Results of the research project were used to provide management recommendations for the conservation of target species and of the environment these inhabit, which is undergoing rapid and critical modifications through habitat depletion and fragmentation.