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Environmental filtering and niche differentiation are often invoked to explain species coexistence at local scales. The ironstone campo rupestre of Brazil provides a biodiverse natural experiment in which edaphic gradients represent filters to test the hypothesis that plant community functional composition, despite converging on extreme stress tolerance, exhibits a co-structure with environmental parameters. At the Serra do Rola-Moça State Park, soil physico-chemical parameters were characterized alongside community-weighted mean plant functional traits and Grime’s competitor, stress-tolerator and ruderal strategies for species at each sampling site. In general, species exhibited a high degree of stress tolerance (between 72.6% and 100%), while ruderalism was 0% for all species. Soil nutrients related to plant metabolism (e.g. P, Ca, Mg) were associated with the stress-tolerant strategy and with traits involved in the leaf economics and size spectra. Despite a major edaphic filter selecting stress tolerance, fine-scale microhabitat variability represented by soil parameters related to fertility (i.e. P, Ca, Mg) and water retention capacity (i.e. clay content) was associated with subtle variation in ecological strategies and functional traits of species in the ironstone campo rupestre.

We examined whether glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP), produced by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), and with role in soil quality, structuring, and carbon storage, varies in relation to substrate and plant community in the campo rupestre ecosystem. Soil samples were collected for physical-chemical and GRSP content analysis, in 40 plots, where the vegetation was also surveyed. GRSP content was compared between substrate types, and its relationship was assessed against soil attributes, vegetation dissimilarity, and abundance of non-mycorrhizal species and species with low AMF dependency. GRSP content varied greatly among the sites (total fraction ranging from 4.66 to 135.46 mg g−1), differed significantly between ferruginous and quartzitic substrates, and was correlated with soil organic carbon (SOC), soil nutrients, soil texture, and vegetation dissimilarity. Total glomalin contributed about 20% to the SOC. GRSP content declined with increasing cover of species that are both sand-binding and have AMF associations, and non-mycorrhizal species. The study shows how AMF, through GRSP, is associated to the ecosystem heterogeneity, suggesting the GRSP as an important soil factor to be considered in management and conservation issues in campo rupestre and similar ecosystems. GRSP content was shown to contribute to carbon storage and was linked to soil chemical and physical properties, and affected by variation in cover of non- or less-AMF-dependent plant species, perhaps providing a useful indicator in the heterogeneous campo rupestre system.

Old, climatically buffered and infertile landscapes (OCBILs) are remarkably species-diverse, but the assembly of their ecological communities is largely unknown. Our goal was to understand how edaphic filters drive the functional structure of plant communities in an ancient and nutrient-impoverished ecosystem. We carried out a functional screening across four types of campo rupestre habitats with different edaphic conditions. We investigated trait–soil relationships for ironstone and quartzitic substrate to obtain the optimal trait values of each condition. In addition, we built unipartite networks to explore trait–trait relationships to assess functional coordination among organs. Lower soil pH and less soil water retention potential increased the proportion of smaller leaves, tissue dry mass and tissue density, resulting in more resource-conservative plant species and communities. Trait functions were tightly correlated among organs at both the plot and the individual level, indicating a trend of phenotypic integration. Architectural traits were central to coordination, suggesting their key role in integrating sap transport, mechanical support and leaf display. We conclude that the trait adjustments in response to soil parameters are important for the coexistence of a large number of species in the campo rupestre ecosystem.

Stress tolerance is the predominant strategy among the plant species that colonize the Brazilian rupestrian grassland (Campo rupestre) and is a response to edaphic conditions involving specific morphological and physiological adaptations. Motivated by the need to increase the efficiency in the production of seedlings, we experimentally evaluated whether these plant species are naturally limited in terms of optimum development and if they could have their survival and growth increased when cultivated under enhanced nutrient and water conditions and reduced iron concentration. To experimentally test this hypothesis, we cultivated seedlings of nine plant species in six distinct substrates for 150 days. The percentage of seedling survival had great variation among species (ranging from 40 to 100% survival). Eight out of the nine studied species showed higher growth and higher biomass accumulation as well as greater investment in aerial parts when grown in nursery or organic substrate (up to 10 times greater than the control treatment). This study provides evidence that these species also present reversible adjustment to cope with the poor soil conditions and are able to improve their performance in more fertile soils. Thus, seedling production for the restoration of ironstone rupestrian grasslands can be more efficient.

Climate change affects biodiversity in various ways but not linearly. Mountaintop species and ecosystems are expected to experience the strongest impacts of climate change. Lower tolerances to changes in habitat and decreased available surface area with increasing elevation should lead to smaller ranges and even extinctions of endemic species living on mountaintops. Thus, the potential impacts of climate change must be understood in order to achieve sound and long-lasting conservation and management of mountaintops. We evaluated the potential impacts of climate change on the distribution and conservation status of ten endemic bird species of eastern Brazil mountaintops based on ecological niche models. The models predicted a gradual reduction of suitable area for all species with a projected contraction of up to 94%, upwards shifts from 1039 to 1470 m in elevation, and range shifts from 7 to 373 km for 2070. Five groups of mountainous regions are highlighted as crucial for the current conservation of endemic birds. If these projections materialize, nine species of birds should be recognized as being under some level of threat. To diminish these effects, public policies and land conversion at local and regional scales and global reduction of greenhouse gas emissions are urgently needed.

Abiotic factors can affect plant performance and cause stress, which in turn affects plant–herbivore interactions. The Environmental Stress Hypothesis (ESH) predicts that gall-inducing insect diversity will be greater on host plants that grow in stressful habitats. We tested this hypothesis, considering both historical and ecological scales, using the plant Copaifera langsdorffii Desf. (Fabaceae) as a model because it has a wide geographic distribution and is a super-host of gall-inducing insects. According to the ESH, we predicted that 1) on a historical scale, the diversity of gall-inducing insects will be higher in habitats with greater environmental stress and 2) on an ecological scale, gall-inducing insect diversity will be greater on plants that possess greater levels of foliar sclerophylly. We sampled gall-inducing insects on plants of C. langsdorffii in five sites with different levels of water and soil nutrient availability and separated from each other by a distance of up to 470 km. The composition, richness, and abundance of gall-inducing insects varied among study sites. Plants located in more stressful habitats had higher levels of foliar sclerophylly; but richness and abundance of gall-inducing insects were not affected by host plant sclerophylly. Habitat stress was a good predictor of gall-inducing insect diversity on a regional scale, thus corroborating the first prediction of the ESH. No relationship was found between plant sclerophylly and gall-inducing insect diversity within habitats. Therefore, on a local scale, we did not find support for our second prediction related to the ESH.

Nestedness is widely observed in natural metacommunities, but its underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. The distribution of habitats in the landscape and differences in dispersal rates of distinct insect taxa can determine the nestedness of the metacommunity. Here, we evaluated how species habitat specialization contributes to metacommunity nestedness in insect groups with different dispersal capacities in a mountaintop landscape in south-eastern Brazil. We sampled ants, butterflies and dung beetles in two main habitats, naturally fragmented forest islands and a grassland matrix (campo rupestre), during both dry and rainy seasons. We classified species according to their degree of habitat specialization (generalists or specialists) based on the relative frequencies and abundances between these two contrasting habitats. Forty of 211 species were classified as habitat specialists, seven as habitat generalists. It was not possible to classify the remaining species. The metacommunity was nested in structure, with habitat generalist species contributing more to nestedness than habitat specialists. Nonetheless, habitat distribution in the landscape did not affect the nestedness of the metacommunity. Our findings reveal that species sorting (for habitat specialists) and mass effects (for habitat generalists) are concurrent processes in the mountaintop forest–grassland mosaic. Our study helps to advance our understanding of the differences in the distribution of generalist and specialist species in a tropical mountaintop landscape and improves our ability to predict and manage the increasingly adverse effects of changes in land use and climate on metacommunities and ecosystem functions.

Seed predators sometimes inflict non‐lethal seed damage. We asked whether seed size modulates the location of insect seed damage and examined whether location‐specific damage on the embryo influences early plant development (embryo survival, germination, seedling emergence and performance). We used intact and weevil‐infested seeds of a prevalent California oak tree Quercus agrifolia as study model. We conducted observational and manipulative studies (simulate partial embryo damage). Seed size significantly affected the location of insect damage within the seed and, in turn, the probability of embryo damage, with larger seeds showing lower probability of embryo damage. The location of the larva exit hole was strongly associated with the probability of embryo damage, with 0.9 probability when the exit hole is located

Global sustainability rests on a myriad of benefits provided by natural ecosystems that support human livelihoods and well-being, from biodiversity persistence to climate regulation. The undeniable importance of conserving tropical forests has drawn most of the conservation spotlight towards it. However, open ecosystems such as the Brazilian Campo Rupestre (rupestrian grassland), have been historically overlooked despite their high diversity and key associated ecosystem services. We highlight major current threats to the persistence of the Campo Rupestre emphasizing its ecological, social, cultural, geo-environmental, and economic importance. We call attention to the importance of the Campo Rupestre as a reservoir of biodiversity and ecosystem services and offer priority actions that resulted from discussions involving scientists, industry representatives, environmental managers, and other members of civil society. Proposed actions include efforts related to ecological restoration, sustainable ecotourism, protection of traditional ecological knowledge, identification of emerging research questions, and development of tailored public policies. Such issues are integrated into a framework that collectively represents a road map to safeguard the Campo Rupestre from further degradation and steer its historical overexploitation towards sustainable management. Safeguarding the future of non-forest biomes like this poses a challenge to current paradigms of nature conservation. By establishing priorities and guidelines, we propose an actionable plan, which we hope can support informed decision-making policy towards a sustainable use of the Campo Rupestre. Long Term Ecological Research PELD-CRSC-17 Conselho Nacional de Pesquisas CNPq/MCTI Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo 2013/50155-0, 2010/51307-0, 2019/07773-1

Roads are known to be a major factor in the ongoing spread and establishment of invasive plants by modifying habitats and providing movement corridors. Controlling plant invasion or restoring highly-invaded areas along roads is a challenging task in current conservation practice. We aim to investigate the possible facilitative effects of nurse shrubs on native vs. exotic species in order to provide applications for conservation and restoration of highly invaded roadsides areas in megadiverse montane areas of Brazil. We estimated the abundance of each plant species (native and exotic) in paired roadsides with and without pioneer nurse shrubs (Baccharis spp.), and measured whether they were facilitated (i.e., growing underneath native nurse shrubs), using a Facilitation Value metric. We found that the proportion of exotic species was 27% greater in areas without the nurse shrubs. In addition, predicted probability of nurse shrubs as facilitators of native species was 61% greater than that of exotic species. Pioneer nurse shrubs that alleviate the environmental shift generated by the construction and use of roads (e.g., disturbed soils with low nutrient content) may represent an interesting alternative to mitigate exotic plant invasion along roadsides, a current global priority for biodiversity conservation. Decision-makers considering whether to build, improve, and maintain roads should take into account the potential spread of exotic plants and the use of nurse shrubs to prevent or mitigate plant invasiveness.

The organization of gall-inducing insect communities can be affected by environmental factors and host plant traits that may operate at different spatial scales. Using Copaifera oblongifolia (Fabaceae), we evaluated the organization of their associated gall-inducing insect species in different spatial scales considering the following hypotheses: (i) the community of gall-inducing insects will be different between different populations of C. oblongifolia; (ii) plant individuals with a greater number of neighbours (host plant density) will have a greater diversity of gall-inducing insects; (iii) and more structurally complex plants will support a greater diversity of gall-inducing insects. Data were collected from the three different populations of C. oblongifolia located in abandoned pastures of three different municipalities in northern Minas Gerais, Brazil. We recorded a total of 17,843 galls belonging to 15 different gall-inducing insect species associated to 60 C. oblongifolia plants sampled in the three populations (20 individuals per population). Abundance, richness and composition of gall-inducing insect species were different between the populations, suggesting that local environmental conditions influenced the gall-inducing insect community at a regional scale. Host plant density negatively affected the richness and abundance of gall-inducing insects per plant. Our data did not corroborate the hypothesis of resource concentration, perhaps due to the effect of resource dilution. The biomass of the host plant positively influenced the abundance of gall-inducing insects per plant. However, the interaction between plant density and biomass of the plant suggests that plants with greater structural complexity are more attacked by gall-inducing insects in plots with lower number of neighbours.

Among four species of Clusiaceae (sensu lato) occurring in a mosaic of different types of tropical vegetation, Kielmeyera coriacea Mart. & Zucc. and Calophyllum brasiliense Camb. were C3-species with similar performance at micro-sites of contrasting water supply, Clusia criuva Cambess—although potentially a C3/CAM intermediate species—performed C3-photosynthesis, while Clusia arrudea Planchon & Triana ex Engl. performed C3-photosynthesis or CAM-cycling depending on site characteristics and dry or wet season. Depending on individual species, C3-photosynthesis proves to be a suitable option at a variety of environmental conditions, while CAM-cycling appears to be an escape under more severe stress. In this ecophysiological field work, we investigated possible microhabitat-dependent expression of modes of photosynthesis among species of Clusiaceae (sensu lato) in a mosaic of tropical vegetation. The study site was in the Serra de Sao Jose (21°08’S, 44°17′W; in the municipality of Tiradentes, state of Minas Gerais, SE-Brazil). The mosaic of tropical vegetation types was made up of rupestrian grasslands, cerrado, small rock outcrops, and riverine and gallery forest alongside a small river. Four species were measured, namely C. criuva Camb., C. arrudea Planchon & Triana ex Engl., K. coriacea Mart. & Zucc., and C. brasiliense Camb. K. coriacea and C. brasiliense performed C3-photosynthesis with midday depressions and reversible acute photoinhibition in response to varying environmental conditions related to habitat types and wet and dry seasons, respectively. The C3/CAM intermediate C. criuva also performed C3-photosynthesis with midday depression and acute photoinhibition. It appeared not to be stressed enough to switch to its intrinsic CAM option. In contrast, while C. arrudea under favourable conditions in the gallery forest and the wet season also performed C3-photosynthesis, under drier conditions, it used CAM-cycling. For particular species, realization of CAM-options is a possibility of acclimation. Other species contemporarily may rely on different alternatives such as plastic performance of C3-photoynthesis. At the microsite level, overlapping functional diversity of species and diversity of habitats contributes to the complexity of this vegetation type.

1. Disturbance is a strong driver of community assembly and fire has long been recognised as one of the main disturbances of terrestrial ecosystems. This study tested the resilience of dung beetles to fire events in campos rupestres, which is a tropical savanna ecosystem that evolved under a frequent fire regime, by assessing the resistance and recovery of their communities. 2. Dung beetles were sampled before and after a fire event and the effect of fire on dung beetle richness, abundance, mean community biomass and composition was tested. The effects of time since last fire and fire frequency on the community were also tested. 3. No effect of fire occurrence, time since last fire and fire frequency on any community variable was found. 4. Some non‐mutually exclusive mechanisms promoting the resistance and recovery of dung beetles in campos rupestres could be acting in synergy. One potential mechanism is the mismatched seasonality between fire events and dung beetle occurrence, as fires occur during the dry season and dung beetles are present above ground during the rainy season. Furthermore, dung beetles are insects that remain buried during most of their lifetime, which could protect individuals from being burned. Another potential mechanism is the replacement of species in burned areas by the movement of individuals from unburned areas, attracted by resources and/or by metacommunity dynamics. 5. It is concluded that in this ‘fire‐dependent’ ecosystem, dung beetle communities are resilient to fire and seem not to be structured by this disturbance.

Ecological communities vary considerably in space and time and understanding such changes has fundamental relevance for ecology and conservation sciences. Mountains provide an excellent scenario for studies addressing spatial and temporal variation, as they vary in conditions and resources in a small geographic region. Here, we aimed to understand the patterns of variation in ant metacommunity composition across time and along an elevational gradient in a tropical mountain, focusing both on the taxonomic and functional facets of diversity. We used a β-diversity metric and broke it into nestedness and turnover to estimate short-term temporal changes in ant metacommunity composition. We tested the following hypotheses: (i) taxonomic and functional temporal β-diversity increase along the elevational gradient and (ii) turnover is the main component driving taxonomic temporal β-diversity and nestedness for functional temporal β-diversity. Rejecting our first hypothesis, we found that both taxonomic and functional temporal β-diversity did not increase with elevation. Yet, the values were always high, indicating that both species and functional traits are highly variable over time. In accordance with our second hypothesis, we found that turnover was the main component of taxonomic β-diversity. Yet adding complexity to our hypothesis, the contribution of nestedness to functional β-diversity decreased with increasing elevation. These results suggest that at low elevations, the turnover in species composition may then cause changes in trait composition because of the loss of some traits, yet preserving the most common functions (nested functional communities), while at high elevations functional capabilities may change over time (turnover of traits). In the context of global warming, where tropical mountain insects are expected to change their distributional range upwards, it is extremely important to consider the importance of the turnover on the temporal variation in functional traits and functions of ant metacommunity at higher elevations.

Despite growing recognition of the conservation values of grassy biomes, our understanding of how to maintain and restore biodiverse tropical grasslands (including savannas and open-canopy grassy woodlands) remains limited. To incorporate grasslands into large-scale restoration efforts, we synthesised existing ecological knowledge of tropical grassland resilience and approaches to plant community restoration. Tropical grassland plant communities are resilient to, and often dependent on, the endogenous disturbances with which they evolved - frequent fires and native megafaunal herbivory. In stark contrast, tropical grasslands are extremely vulnerable to human-caused exogenous disturbances, particularly those that alter soils and destroy belowground biomass (e.g. tillage agriculture, surface mining); tropical grassland restoration after severe soil disturbances is expensive and rarely achieves management targets. Where grasslands have been degraded by altered disturbance regimes (e.g. fire exclusion), exotic plant invasions, or afforestation, restoration efforts can recreate vegetation structure (i.e. historical tree density and herbaceous ground cover), but species-diverse plant communities, including endemic species, are slow to recover. Complicating plant-community restoration efforts, many tropical grassland species, particularly those that invest in underground storage organs, are difficult to propagate and re-establish. To guide restoration decisions, we draw on the old-growth grassland concept, the novel ecosystem concept, and theory regarding tree cover along resource gradients in savannas to propose a conceptual framework that classifies tropical grasslands into three broad ecosystem states. These states are: (1) old-growth grasslands (i.e. ancient, biodiverse grassy ecosystems), where management should focus on the maintenance of disturbance regimes; (2) hybrid grasslands, where restoration should emphasise a return towards the old-growth state; and (3) novel ecosystems, where the magnitude of environmental change (i.e. a shift to an alternative ecosystem state) or the socioecological context preclude a return to historical conditions.

Tackling complex environmental issues requires transdisciplinary solutions that cannot be achieved, unless we integrate scientific disciplines and communicate science directly with civil society actors, decision-makers, and stakeholders. Alexander von Humboldt offered an approach to integrate knowledge across disciplines aiming to broadly understand human-environmental issues, yet current scientific practices largely ignore that holistic transdisciplinary approach. Here, we develop a conceptual framework for sustaining mountain environmental integrity and securing their ecosystem services based on transdisciplinarity. We use headwater systems located in old tropical mountains as examples of meta-ecosystems because they supply water for multiple human uses and are home to disproportionately high levels of species richness and endemism. We describe the vulnerability of mountains to global changes in the Anthropocene and discuss difficulties in implementing sustainable development goals for them. Specifically, we indicate the importance of mountains to human water supplies and the conflicts between anthropogenic disturbances and riparian stream meta-ecosystems for providing ecosystem services particularly failures. We also argue that the interplay between academia and other sectors of society must improve and increase the permeability of scientific knowledge into policy- and decision-making, which is crucial for improving natural resource management and sustaining ecosystem services. We argue that the prioritization of tropical montane headwater systems is a feasible, desirable and strategic issue to be included in the global sustainability agenda. Failure to implement sustainable development goals in global mountains is likely to continue resulting in catastrophic events with harsh consequences for both humans and global biodiversity.

Interspecific hybridization is a prevalent process in plant species that may have different ecological and evolutionary consequences. Interactions with herbivorous insects may be altered because of hybridization among host plants. These changes result from the morphological, physiological and chemical traits expressed in hybrid individuals. Therefore, it is of interest to document the changes in traits such as leaf morphology and their consequences on patterns of herbivory by insects in hybrid complexes of plants. Another useful indicator that may serve to evaluate developmental instability resulting from genetic or environmental stress in hybrid plants is fluctuating asymmetry. In this study, we used two previously genetically characterized complexes of hybridizing Mexican oaks as models to compare and understand the relationships between leaf morphology, fluctuating asymmetry and herbivory levels in parental and hybrid individuals. Results indicated that in the Quercus affinis × Q. laurina complex, hybrid individuals show a distinct morphology in relation to the parental species, while in the Q. magnoliifolia × Q. resinosa complex, hybrids were similar to Q. resinosa. In both hybrid complexes, our results show that hybrid individuals have higher levels of fluctuating asymmetry and herbivory levels, which may reflect higher levels of genetic or environmental stress in comparison to the parental species. These results might help explain why oak species usually remain distinct despite the high frequency of hybridization characteristic of the genus.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T16:53:12Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2018-08-01 Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) Rupestrian grasslands are biodiverse, evolutionary old vegetation complexes that harbor more than 5000 species of vascular plants and one of the highest levels of plant endemism in the world. Growing on nutrient–impoverished soils and under harsh environmental conditions, these mountaintop ecosystems were once spared from major human interventions of agriculture and intensive cattle ranching. However, in Brazil, rupestrian grasslands have experienced one of the most extreme land use changes among all Brazilian ecosystems, suffering from ill policies leading to intense mining activities, uncontrolled tourism, and unplanned road construction. Indeed, the discovery of large mineral reserves, the adoption of ineffective conservation policies, and, going forward, climate change, are threatening this hyper-diverse ecosystem. Here, we shed light on the severe threats imposed by land-use changes in this ecosystem, modeling its future distribution under different scenarios. We uncover a catastrophic forecast that, if not halted, will lead to the loss of 82% of this unique ecosystem in the future, impacting ecosystem services at regional scales, including water and food security potentially affecting more than 50 million persons. Departamento de Biologia Geral Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Department of Biology Stanford University Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista UNESP Departamento de Demografia Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Departamento de Zoologia Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, CP 486 Instituto de Geociências Pós-Graduação em Análise e Modelagem de Sistemas Ambientais Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Departamento de Botânica Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista UNESP CNPq: 154664/2016-2 CNPq: 441515/2016-9

The objective of this study was to determine the species richness and abundance of the seed bank and the influence of soil attributes along an elevation gradient (800–1400 m a.s.l.). We examined the floristic similarity among areas and determined the regional diversity along this gradient in Serra do Cipó (Minas Gerais, Brazil). A total of 1975 individuals from 149 species were germinated. Richness and abundance were not linearly related to elevation, and exhibited a threshold at 1200 m. The low degree of similarity among the areas reflects environmental heterogeneity, resulting from a rich mosaic of habitats, distinguished by the substrate configuration, continuity of vegetation, floristic composition, and proportion of exposed rock. The diversity between plots of different areas (β2) contributed to regional diversity, and species turnover was the most important factor. The physical variables and base saturation, which had high spatial heterogeneity, may be the most important factors with which to determine species turnover and β diversity. The studied seed bank is strongly influenced by edaphic variables, with a gradient of increasing acidity and proportion of fine sand, and decreasing proportion of clay and organic matter, with elevation. In addition, species richness was influenced by cation exchange capacity, organic matter, and clay; and abundance was influenced by cation exchange capacity, H + Al, organic matter, and base saturation.

Biodiversity loss and anthropogenic environmental changes are known to impact ecosystem functions and services. However, there are still some uncertainties such as confounding environmental factors other than community attributes that affect ecosystem functioning. Our goal was to understand what factors influence the performance of Scarabaeinae dung beetle functions, testing the hypothesis that both community attributes and environmental variables influence the performance. Toward this aim, we collected dung beetles along an elevational gradient (800–1400 m a.s.l.) in the Espinhaco mountain range (Brazil) and quantified dung beetle functions, that is, dung removal, soil excavation and secondary seed dispersal. We recorded data on environmental factors related to climate, soil and vegetation and evaluated their effects on dung beetle functions. Dung beetle ecological functions declined with elevation and the decrease was more pronounced than richness, indicating that there are other factors involved in functions performance besides diversity of beetles. Indeed, we found that the ecological functions measured were dependent on both dung beetle community attributes and environmental factors. Climate, soil and vegetation influenced dung beetle function performance as much as richness, abundance and body size. Dung beetle functional diversity did not explain any of the functions measured. Our study demonstrates that ecological functions are directly influenced by both community attributes and environmental variables and confirms the link between biodiversity, environment and ecosystem functioning.

Brazil is the most biodiverse country in the world. It performed an expansion of its Protected Areas system in order to better preserve nature and to accomplish international agreements, such as the Target 11 of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which establishes a minimum percentage of territorial coverage and adequate management of Protected Areas (PAs). We evaluated the achievement of those objectives by analyzing the distribution of Conservation Units (CUs), Indigenous Territories and other classes of PAs on Brazilian biomes, as well as their current management situation. The country is unlikely to meet the target due to the lack of PAs outside the Amazon biome and to poor CUs management conditions, whose main causes are the fragile financial situation of environmental agencies and the high costs of land tenure regularization. In addition to other environmental policies setbacks, the Brazilian environmental leadership is seriously threatened.

Plant interactions with flower visitors are essential to understand the reproductive biology, evolution and distribution of flowering plants. Morphological convergences of flower traits have allowed flowers to maximize their attraction to pollinator agents leading to the concept of pollination syndromes. Due to habitat heterogeneity, low water retention and resource availability in the soil, as well as broad altitudinal range of the system, plants often show restricted distributions in rupestrian grasslands. The present study aimed to describe the floral biology and reproductive aspects of Collaea cipoensis , a shrub restricted to small patches alongside watercourses in rupestrian grasslands of Serra do Cipo, Brazil. Specifically, we examined the dependence on pollinators to set fruits and the functional role of floral visitors (i.e. pollinators, nectar-robbers, nectar-thieves, and florivores). Collaea cipoensis is a strictly xenogamous species and two hummingbirds ( Colibri serrirostris and Eupetomena macroura ) are its potential pollinators. Although C. serrirostris also behaves as illegitimate visitor, it represents 90% of legitimate visits, thus being the most important pollinator. However, the most common flower visitors are two important nectar-robbers, the bee Trigona spinipes and the syrphid Toxomerus musicus. The species is self-incompatible and pollen-limited, as hand-pollination increased fruit production more than 50%. Still, hand-pollination set only 20% of fruits and 48% of seeds. Overall, the dependence on cross-pollination, the stressful environmental conditions and the high floral visitation rates by illegitimate visitors may limit reproduction of this species, leading to a fitness reduction. Our results reinforce the idea that rupestrian grasslands conform a complex scenario that restricts the species distribution.

High concentration of heavy metals in the soils represents an important factor of physiological stress that influences the normal functioning of plants through oxidation processes, and negatively affects insect performance and leaf consumption by herbivorous insects. One useful indicator to evaluate environmental stress in plants by heavy metals and herbivory is the fluctuating asymmetry, which describes the random differences in size or shape between the two sides of a bilateral character in organisms and it is a widely used measure of developmental instability in plants. We evaluated under natural conditions, the effects of variation of heavy metals in the soils on herbivore patterns, fluctuating asymmetry and arthropod abundance in Tibouchina heteromalla in rupestrian grasslands along the Espinhaco chain in Brazil. We selected two study areas, the first characterized by the presence of soils with low concentration of heavy metals (quartzite soils). In the second area, the soils are characterized by the presence of high concentration of heavy metals such as iron (ferric soils). We found that leaf thickness was higher in ferric soils than in quartzite soils. Conversely, total leaf area was greater in quartzite soils in comparison to ferric soils. Plants in soils with heavy metals had both lower herbivory levels and arthropod abundance than plants in soils with low concentrations of heavy metals. Fluctuating asymmetry levels were significantly greater in individuals from quartzite soils compared to individuals from ferric soils. Herbivory was positively related with individual fluctuating asymmetry in quartzite soils. Our results suggest that T. heteromalla presents tolerance to soils with heavy metals suggesting an acclimatization to these environmental conditions, and therefore, ferric soils may not represent a factor of environmental stress.

Tropical dry forests are among the most diverse and threatened habitats in the world, yet they are rarely protected and remain poorly studied. In Brazil, dry forests are naturally fragmented and embedded within various biomes, thus making it important to assess biotic homogeneity among geographically separated forest fragments. We sampled 7732 individuals belonging to 48 species to quantify the diversity of fruit-feeding butterfly communities at four Brazilian dry forest sites, and found differences in community structure between northern and central sites. Species richness per plot was the same in both areas, but abundance per plot was higher in northern sites. Species composition differed between sites mostly due to species of Satyrinae. Additive partitioning showed that beta diversity corresponded to 70.1% of all diversity. Rather than species loss, beta diversity primarily represented species turnover that was potentially driven by differences in the surrounding habitats. Butterfly community composition and abundance were influenced by vegetation where abundance increased with tree density and basal area, and decreased with the average tree height. Butterfly species richness and abundance were higher in the wet season than in the dry season, and all species sampled in the dry season were present in the wet season. Differences in community structure across relatively short geographic distances in the same type of habitat highlight the importance of conserving tropical dry forest fragments to ensure the maintenance of butterfly diversity and, presumably, other insects.

The introduction of plant species is a central topic in restoration ecology research. It is an effective technique to restore degraded ecosystems that present low resilience, such as the rupestrian grasslands. Once implemented, the transplantation of native species is monitored only in the short term, whereas long‐term monitoring should be preferred to identify potential changes in the restoration results. Our study is the first assessment of the transplantation success of 10 native shrub species in a degraded area of rupestrian grasslands, 8.5 years after transplantation. Survival, growth, and recruitment were assessed in 2004, 2008, and 2012. For all species, survival, growth, and recruitment varied over time. Although some species exhibited great mortality during the last 4 years, they also showed a great resprouting ability. Our results highlighted a trade‐off between survival and recruitment capacity. Most of the studied species showed remarkable ability to adapt to the extreme environment of the degraded area, persisting either through surviving or recruiting new individuals. We list nine native species, which are well appropriated for rupestrian grasslands restoration. In constrained environments, survival and resistance should represent criteria to select species for restoration project rather than fast growth and ground cover.

Canopy species can act changing abundance, survival and spatial distribution of other species below. The present study investigated the potential of four native species from the Atlantic Forest (Bixa arborea Huber, Inga laurina (Sw.) Willd., Joannesia princeps Vell. and Senna multijuga var. verrucosa (Vogel) H.S. Irwin & R.C. Barneby) at two spacings (2 × 2 and 3 × 3 m) in facilitating natural regeneration in areas undergoing forest restoration in southeastern Brazil. Circular plots were established under the canopies of each individual of these species and in open areas. All regenerating tree species were counted and identified. Joannesia princeps and S. multijuga var. verrucosa supported a greater richness of species under their canopy compared to the control area, but did not differ from the other species. The richness of regenerating trees under Bixa arborea and Inga laurina canopy did not differ from the control area. A greater abundance of regenerating trees was found below Inga laurina, Joannesia princeps and S. multijuga var. verrucosa. Trees planted at 2 × 2 m spacing sheltered a greater richness of regenerating tree species than at 3 × 3 m spacing. The species Joannesia princeps and S. multijuga var. verrucosa and the use of 2 × 2 m spacing are therefore recommended for accelerating the natural succession of degraded areas. Knowledge of the best combinations of species and spacing schemes to use to restore Atlantic rain forest is valuable because this design can guide the structuring and composition of regenerated forests.

In the middle of a political and fiscal crisis, the Brazilian government is applying successive budget cuts, including in science funding. Recent cuts radically affect research programs on biodiversity that are crucial components for the design and monitoring of public policies for nature conservation and sustainable development. We analyze the consequences of such cuts on the Research Program on Biodiversity (PPBio), the largest biodiversity research network in Brazil (626 researchers, nine networks in all Brazilian biomes). Brazil holds a substantial part of the world's biodiversity and of tropical forests that play a significant role for regional and global climate stability. If underfunding is maintained, the dismantling of the Brazilian PPBio will have consequences that go beyond biodiversity knowledge itself but affect society as a whole. Brazil will likely fail to reach the National Targets for Biodiversity 2011–2020, and it will be difficult to fulfill the restoration target of the Brazilian NDC and to advance with the sustainable development goals. © 2017 Associação Brasileira de Ciência Ecológica e Conservação

Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-26T17:34:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2017-04-01. Added 1 bitstream(s) on 2019-10-09T18:26:44Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 S0102-33062017000200229.pdf: 3080702 bytes, checksum: 80ae0482fe4a60bfe2f33ab65dfb0135 (MD5) Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) International Foundation for Science Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Previous ecological studies of dioecious plant species have found that female plants preferentially occur at lower altitudes where there are typically better nutritional conditions, while male plants often occur in less favorable sites. We compared the ecophysiological performance of male and female plants in three populations of the dioecious Baccharis concinna, an endemic species of rupestrian grasslands of Serra do Cipo, in southeastern Brazil. We hypothesized that physiological differences between the sexes would explain the distribution patterns of the populations. Analyses of the tissue content of phosphorus (P), calcium (Ca), potassium (K) and sodium (Na), and carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes, were used to assess nutritional status and water use efficiency (WUE) in plant leaves, stems and roots of male and female plants in three populations located along an elevational gradient. Differences among populations were related to decreased nutrient levels and WUE at higher elevations, but an effect of sex was found only for %C, with male plants having slightly higher values. In conclusion, the sex ratios in the studied populations of B. concinna could not be attributed to differences in nutrient acquisition and WUE. Univ Fed Minas Gerais, Ecol Evolut Herbivoros Tropicais, POB 486, BR-30161970 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil Stanford Univ, Dept Biol, Stanford, CA 94035 USA Univ Fed Rio de Janeiro, Nucleo Ecol & Desenvolvimento Socioambiental Maca, BR-27965045 Rio De Janeiro, Brazil Univ Fed Minas Gerais, Dept Bot, BR-30161970 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil Univ Estadual Paulista Botucatu, Dept Quim Bioquim, BR-18618000 Botucatu, SP, Brazil Tech Univ Darmstadt, Dept Biol, Schnittspahnstr 3-5, D-64287 Darmstadt, Germany Inst Forstbot & Baumphysiol, Flughafen 17, D-79085 Freiburg, Germany Univ Estadual Paulista Botucatu, Dept Quim Bioquim, BR-18618000 Botucatu, SP, Brazil International Foundation for Science: C-2487/1

Bastin et al.’s estimate (Reports, 5 July 2019, p. 76) that tree planting for climate change mitigation could sequester 205 gigatonnes of carbon is approximately five times too large. Their analysis inflated soil organic carbon gains, failed to safeguard against warming from trees at high latitudes and elevations, and considered afforestation of savannas, grasslands, and shrublands to be restoration., Funding: Supported by the Texas A&M Sid Kyle Global Savanna Research Initiative (T.W.B.); Swiss National Science Foundation (20FI20_173691) (N.B.); Centre National pour la Recherche Scientifique CNRS PICS 2018-2020 (RESIGRASS) (E.B.); CNPq (Brazil, 303179/2016-3) (G.D.); CNPq (Brazil) (G.W.F.); CNPq (Brazil, 303988/2018-5) (A.F.); NASA award NNX17AK14G (F.F.); NSF award 1354943 (W.A.H.); Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (Brazil, 2016/13232-5) (S.L.S.); the Office of the Royal Society (IC170015) (C.E.R.L.); CNPq (Brazil, 310345/2018-9) (G.E.O.); the Spanish Government (FIROTIC, PGC2018-096569-B-I00) (J.G.P.); the National Research Foundation (ACCESS, 114695) (N.S.); CNPq (Brazil, 303568/2017-8) (F.A.O.S.); NSF awards 1342703 and 1926431 (C.J.S. and D.M.G.); NSF award EAR-1253713 (C.A.E.S.); Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft grant 5579 POEM (V.M.T.); and USDA-NIFA Sustainable Agricultural Systems Grant 12726253 (J.W.V.)

Galls are atypical plant growths that provide nourishment, shelter, and protection to the inducer or its progeny. Fruit and flowers are poorly represented as host organs for galling insects. Our main question was: Do morphological traits, anatomical features and physiological characteristics differ between galled and healthy fruits of Parkinsonia praecox ? Galled and healthy fruits of P. praecox were characterized in terms of morphological traits (length, diameter, thickness, water and biomass content); anatomical features (trichomes, stomatal and pavement cells), and physiological characteristics (stomatal conductance, gs). We found that galled fruits were induced by Asphondylia sp. (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae). Thickness, diameter, and water content values of galled fruits were greater compared to healthy fruits. Length, biomass, and pavement cells density of healthy fruits were higher. The density of trichomes on galled fruits was higher, while the stomatal density and pavement cell size were not statistically different between galled and healthy fruits. Furthermore, the gs rates of galled fruits were almost 3 times higher than in healthy fruits. Incidence of galls on fruits on P. praecox modified the original morphology and anatomy of healthy fruits that stimulate physiological mechanisms to increase the water continuum from the host plant to the gall.

Tropical secondary forests recover quickly (decades) in tree species richness but slowly (centuries) in species composition., Old-growth tropical forests harbor an immense diversity of tree species but are rapidly being cleared, while secondary forests that regrow on abandoned agricultural lands increase in extent. We assess how tree species richness and composition recover during secondary succession across gradients in environmental conditions and anthropogenic disturbance in an unprecedented multisite analysis for the Neotropics. Secondary forests recover remarkably fast in species richness but slowly in species composition. Secondary forests take a median time of five decades to recover the species richness of old-growth forest (80% recovery after 20 years) based on rarefaction analysis. Full recovery of species composition takes centuries (only 34% recovery after 20 years). A dual strategy that maintains both old-growth forests and species-rich secondary forests is therefore crucial for biodiversity conservation in human-modified tropical landscapes.

Galling species (GS) and leaf-chewing insects differ in resource use and sensitivity to microclimatic factors. We tested the effects of the harsh environmental, plant richness, and density on GS attack and the leaf damage inflicted by leaf-chewing insects along an abrupt transition between the savanna and tropical dry forest in Brazil. We found 134 GS on 406 trees belonging to 75 species in 30 sampled plots during the rainy season. Higher GS number was found in xeric habitats, according to the gradient: cerrado > transition > dry forest, whereas opposite pattern was found for the percentage of leaf area removed by insects. In general, plant richness and density significantly affected GS richness. On the other hand, herbivore responses to tree density (at intraspecific level) depended largely on host tree species evaluated. Our results provide evidence for the harsh environmental hypothesis on galling richness in xeric habitats, and plant species richness and density positively explained the increase in local GS richness. The high GS richness sampled demonstrates that more attention should be directed to the biodiversity and conservation of abrupt transition areas in cerrado, given their success and possible extensive radiation in there. In this perspective, the conservation of areas with higher plant species number and density may have primordial implications to preserve the diverse and specific GS richness associated to these close habitats.

This study aimed to document variation in the composition and structure of regenerating woody vegetation along an altitudinal gradient of a rupestrian grassland and to describe the relationship between species and characteristics of the soil. All woody plants with a diameter at ground height of ≤1 cm were collected in seven sampling sites at altitudes between 800 and 1400 m in Serra do Cipo (Minas Gerais State, Brazil). Phytosociological parameters and the Shannon diversity index were calculated and compared using Hutcheson’s t test. Floristic composition was evaluated by nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination with analysis of variance as a confirmatory analysis, in which the response variables were the axis of the NMDS. Correlation between soil characteristics and vegetation patterns was evaluated with multiple regression models and canonical redundancy analysis. For all analyses, we performed analysis of variation partitioning to decompose the explanation of spatial, soil, and altitudinal variation. A total of 809 individuals of 127 species belonging to 26 families were sampled. Species richness and structure varied among altitudes. Species diversity followed an altitudinal pattern and was higher at lower altitudes. Some soil variables, such as remaining phosphorus, base saturation, and structural components, were more strongly correlated with species distribution than the others. Although variation in altitude leads to changes in the composition of the regenerating woody species, variation in plant communities was determined by a combination of environmental factors, of which soil properties played an important role.

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) represents small, random variations in traits, presumably with bilateral symmetry, and is widely used as a tool to measure developmental instability in plants and animals. Because FA is a quick, simple and reliable measure, it has been frequently used for monitoring levels of environmental stress. This study investigated whether FA can be used as a predictor of individual developmental instability for four sympatric Melastomataceae species. To achieve that aim, 20 individuals of Trembleya laniflora, T. parviflora, Lavoisiera campos-portoana and Tibouchina heteromalla were marked in southeastern Brazil and monitored before and during the flowering season. The FA index was calculated as the mean of the difference in the width or length between the left and right sides measured for each leaf or flower. All studied species exhibited asymmetry in the leaves and flowers, but the leaves of L. campos-portoana and the petal width of T. heteromalla exhibited directional asymmetry, also an indicator of developmental instability. The highest level of leaf asymmetry was found in T. heteromalla and on flowers of L. campos-portoana. None of the studied species exhibited a significant relationship between the FA level of the leaves and flowers on an individual basis, indicating that environmental and/or genetic sources of stress might act differently on different plant traits. For the studied species, measurements of FA can be suggested as useful tools to biomonitor levels of stress experienced by both leaves and flowers within the Melastomataceae family.

In rupestrian savannas in southeastern Brazil Clusia arrudae Planchon & Triana in the dry season performed CAM-cycling with very little gas exchange in the early morning followed by a long depression during the rest of the day. CAM-cycling is considered as a survival strategy under drought and the productivity of the plant which is quite abundant must rely on performance of C 3 -photosynthesis in more favorable seasons. In rupestrian savannas in the Serra do Cipo (19°14′48.9″S, 43°30′36.0″W) at 1300 m a.s.l. and in the Serra de Sao Jose (21°08′S, 44°17′W) at 1010–1030 m a.s.l. in southeastern Brazil Clusia arrudae Planchon & Triana is abundant. As CAM is frequent in the genus Clusia we supposed that it would perform CAM as a drought adaptation at the very dry rupestrian savanna sites in the dry season. At the Serra do Cipo site as control we studied the obligate C3-species Eremanthus glomerulatus Less. Both species are sympatric at this site. Eremanthus glomerulatus performed C3-photosynthesis with a midday depression. The patterns of C. arrudae were completely different so that genuine C3-photosynthesis was excluded, but they were also not typical of CAM. The stomata were almost closed during the night. Some stomatal opening and net CO2 uptake occurred in the early morning hours followed by a long depression with stomatal closure throughout the rest of the day. Nevertheless, photo inhibition was limited and photosynthetic electron transport rate remained high during this time indicating that photosynthetic excitation energy was required and suggesting that CO2 assimilation was continuing behind closed stomata based on internal sources of CO2. There was some nocturnal accumulation of organic acids (malic and citric acids) which could represent a source of CO2 during the light period. Overall, the observations can be best explained by the performance of CAM-cycling by C. arrudae. However, leaf carbon gain of C. arrudae was much inferior to that of E. glomerulatus. CAM-cycling appears to be a strategy for protection from photoinhibitory damage and survival under strong conditions of drought. Steeper more vertical leaf positions observed would assist reducing overheating during stomatal closure at high irradiance. The abundance of C. arrudae suggests that the plant must have other means to sustain productivity such as full C3-photosynthesis in the more favorable seasons.

The interaction between hemiparasites and their host plants is an important structuring mechanism for plant communities. The mistletoe Struthanthus flexicaulis (Loranthaceae) is widely distributed in the campo rupestre ecosystem and likely has an important role in structuring the communities of which its hosts are part. The main goals of this study were to investigate the effects of parasitism by S. flexicaulis on host plants in a degraded area of campo rupestre and to determine how parasitism affects characteristics of the structure of this plant community over time. We found that parasitized plants had smaller crowns and branch growth, and suffered higher mortality compared to non-parasitized plants. Parasitism by S. flexicaulis decreased dominance and increased the diversity and evenness of plants in the community over time. Parasitism leads to competition with the host for water and nutrients, which may decrease the performance of the host and, consequently, leading to host death. The high mortality of the most abundant plant species led to a restructured woody plant community. These results reinforce the importance of parasitic plants that frequently play a key role in maintaining species diversity in plant communities.

The unique vegetation of rupestrian grassland (Campo Rupestre) is finely tuned to the strong environmental and edaphoclimatic filters that resulted in important adaptations and high levels of endemism. In this study, we intend to give another focus to the understanding of the identity of the rupestrian grasslands by observing their floristic relationships with other surrounding vegetation types and to present for the first time a functional approach and zeta similarity to try to understand the differences and similarities of this ecosystem with other adjacent ones. We have compiled 1790 plant species in 7 vegetation types. Based on the species composition, we can infer that the most similar vegetation types were Tepuis and Altitudinal Grasslands, and this group is closer to Inselbergs. Subsequently, the most similar were Ironstone Grasslands and the Atlantic Forest grouped with Quartzite Grasslands. Finally, Cerrado was the lesser similar. But, these groupings are modified when analyzed at genus or family level. Considering the zeta diversity decline at the species level, the vegetation types showed an almost complete turnover in species assemblage, sharing only a small suite of species between them. This pattern is similar at the genus level, but the number of genera shared across vegetation types is comparatively higher. On the other hand, at the family level, there is a common core of families shared between vegetation types. When we evaluated the similarity considering functional attributes we found differences in composition regarding growth and life forms. However, in this case, Quartzitic and Ironstone Rupestrian Grasslands showed very similar functional attributes. They are inhabited by plant species with shrub, epiphytic, parasitic and succulent forms with rupicolous growth form. In general, the quartzitic grasslands have singular vegetation, but its affinity with other vegetation types does not translate in any way the most relevant aspects associated with endemism and biodiversity. The true landscape identity to a certain ecosystem is given by functional characteristics.

Theory suggests that non‐trophic interactions can be a major mechanism behind community stability and persistence, but community‐level empirical data are scarce, particularly for effects on species interactions mediated through changes in the physical environment. Here, we explored how ecosystem engineering effects can feed back to the engineer, not only modulating the engineer’s population density (node modulation) but also affecting its interactions with other species (link modulation). Gall induction can be viewed as ecosystem engineering since galls serve as habitat for other species. In a community‐level field experiment, we generated treatments with reduced or elevated ecosystem engineering by removing or adding post‐emergence galls to different plots of their host plant in the Brazilian Cerrado. We tested the effect of post‐emergence galls on the galler, as well as on the galler–parasitoid and galler—aphid interactions. The manipulation of post‐emergence galls had little effect on the galler—abundance and survivorship were not affected, and gall volume changed only slightly—but modified interactions involving the galler, parasitoid wasps and inquiline aphids. Aphid inquilines negatively affected density‐dependent parasitism rates (interaction modification) likely by killing parasitised galling larvae. Post‐emergence galls interfered with aphid inquilinism—likely by the provision of alternative habitat for aphids—and thus interfered with the negative effect of aphids on parasitism (modification of an interaction modification). This work is one of the few studies to demonstrate experimentally the role played by environment‐mediated interaction modification at a community level in the field. Moreover, by manipulating a species’ ecosystem engineering effect (post‐emergence galls) instead of the species itself, we demonstrate the novel result that populations can be regulated by non‐trophic effects initiated by their own activities that alter their interaction with other species. This reveals that indirect interactions mediated via the environment offer new pathways of feedback loops for population regulation. Our results indicate that interaction modification has the potential to be a key regulatory mechanism underlying interaction variation in nature, and play a major role in community structure, dynamics and stability.

© 2018 The Author(s). The nutrient demands of regrowing tropical forests are partly satisfied by nitrogen-fixing legume trees, but our understanding of the abundance of those species is biased towards wet tropical regions. Here we show how the abundance of Leguminosae is affected by both recovery from disturbance and large-scale rainfall gradients through a synthesis of forest inventory plots from a network of 42 Neotropical forest chronosequences. During the first three decades of natural forest regeneration, legume basal area is twice as high in dry compared with wet secondary forests. The tremendous ecological success of legumes in recently disturbed, water-limited forests is likely to be related to both their reduced leaflet size and ability to fix N2, which together enhance legume drought tolerance and water-use efficiency. Earth system models should incorporate these large-scale successional and climatic patterns of legume dominance to provide more accurate estimates of the maximum potential for natural nitrogen fixation across tropical forests.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T16:45:29Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2018-01-01 Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) The Cerrado (Brazilian savanna) is the second largest biome in Brazil, covering 22% of the country, and campo rupestre is one of the most biodiverse ecosystem. Campo rupestre are extremely old mountaintop tropical ecosystems, composed of a mosaic of herbaceous, shrubland and savanna vegetation, generally located above 900 m above sea level characterized by shallow, acidic and nutrient-poor soils. In the context of increased land-use changes, effective conservation and management projects appear necessary to guarantee the conservation of these ecosystems. Although fire is a natural disturbance in campo rupestre, the effects of fire on vegetation dynamics remain poorly understood. Our objective was to assess the effects of fire on vegetation recovery and plant composition on both the short- and long-term in the main herbaceous vegetation types: the sandy and stony grasslands. We monitored plant community composition before and after a wildfire in order to assess the short-term vegetation recovery. Diachronic analyses of grasslands burnt at various dates were used to understand the effects of fire on the long-term vegetation dynamics. Our results highlighted a rapid recovery of campo rupestre vegetation after wildfires, suggesting a high adaptation to fire of plant communities. We did not find a significant variation in species richness of sandy grasslands according to time after fire, whereas higher species richness was observed in the recently burnt stony grasslands. No change in plant composition of campo rupestre in response to fire was highlighted, probably due to the high heterogeneity of this ecosystem. After fire, biomass gradually increased over time in both vegetation types. High biomass accumulation could lead to stronger fires. Further studies are necessary to understand the relationship between biomass accumulation and fire intensity in campo rupestre in order to set up adapted fire management strategies to conserve campo rupestre biodiversity. IMBE – Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie marine et continentale Université d'Avignon et des Pays de Vaucluse, CNRS, IRD, Aix Marseille University, Agroparc BP 61207 Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica/Instituto de Biociências UNESP – Universidade Estadual Paulista Ecologia Evolutiva e Biodiversidade Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Department of Biology Stanford University Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica/Instituto de Biociências UNESP – Universidade Estadual Paulista

The tropics are known for their high diversity of plants, animals, and biotic interactions, but the role of the speciose endophytic fungi in these interactions has been mostly neglected. We report a unique interaction among plant sex, bees, and endophytes on the dioecious shrub, Baccharis dracunculifolia (Asteraceae). We assessed whether there was an association between resin collection by bees and fungal endophytes considering the host plant sex. We hypothesized that resin collection by the Africanized honey bee, Apis mellifera L. (Apidae) could favor the entry of endophytes in B. dracunculifolia. Specifically, we tested the hypotheses that (1) bees damage the leaf buds of female and male plant at different proportions; (2) damage on leaf buds increases the richness of endophytic fungi; (3) endophyte richness differs between female and male plants; and (4) in vitro growth of endophytes depends on the sex of the plant individual from which the resin was extracted. Endophyte richness and proportion of leaf bud damage did not vary between the plant sexes. However, species similarity of endophytes between female and male plants was 0.33. Undamaged leaf buds did not show culturable endophytes, with all fungi exclusively found in damaged leaf buds. Endophyte composition changed with the plant sex. The endophytes exclusively found in female plants did not develop in the presence of male resin extract. These findings highlight that resin collection by A. mellifera for propolis production favors the entry of endophytic fungi in B. dracunculifolia. Additionally, endophyte composition and growth are influenced by plant sex.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T17:32:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2018-01-01 Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology and Biodiversity CP 486 ICB/Federal University of Minas Gerais UNESP – Universidade Estadual Paulista Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Botânica Laboratório de Fenologia Laboratory of Insect Ecology CP 486 ICB/Federal University of Minas Gerais UNESP – Universidade Estadual Paulista Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Botânica Laboratório de Fenologia

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T16:51:14Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2017-12-01 In this work, we investigated the factors that determine the distribution of galling insects in high-altitude grasslands, locally called campos de altitude' of Mantiqueira Range and tested whether 1) richness of galling insects decreases with altitude, 2) galling insect richness increases with plant richness, 3) variation in galling insect diversity is predominantly a consequence of its β component, and 4) turnover is the main mechanism driving the beta diversity of both galling insects and plants. Galling insect richness did not exhibit a negative relationship with altitude, but it did increase with plant richness. The additive partition of regional richness (Î) into its local and beta components showed that local diversity (α) of galling insects and plants was relatively low in relation to regional diversity; the β component incorporated most of the regional diversity. This pattern was also found in the multiscale analysis of the additive partition for galling insects and plants. The beta diversity of galling insects and plants was driven predominantly by the process of turnover and minimally by nesting. The results reported here point out that the spatial distribution of galling insects is best explained by historical factors, such as the distribution of genera and species of key host plants, as well as their relation to habitat, than ecological effects such as hygrothermal stress-here represented by altitude. Ecologia Evolutiva and Biodiversidade ICB Universidade Federal de Minas Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica UNESP Universidade Estadual Paulista Laboratório de Entomologia Ecológica/DEBIO ICEB Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto Laboratorio de Botânica Universidade Federal Laboratório de Fenologia Departamento de Botânica UNESP Universidade Estadual Paulista

Topographic gradients in terra firme forests are associated with pronounced changes in soil texture, soil nutrients and distance to the water-table, thereby creating different hydric and nutritional conditions for plants and their associated herbivore community. The aim of this study was to investigate galling species and host plant richness and gall species composition across topographic habitats differing in nutrient and water stress in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest. Nineteen 250 x 3 m plots were randomly sampled in the valley, slope, plateau-slope transition, and plateau habitats in terra firme forests. All individual dicotyledonous plants 1 to 3 meters high were examined for the presence of insect galls. Galling species and host plant richness differed significantly among the studied habitats and were higher in slope habitats (drier habitats), as expected. More humid areas (valleys) showed the lowest richness of galling species, and a lower number of understory host plants. PERMANOVA and PERMDISP results demonstrated that the gall species composition differed significantly in the valley, slope, plateau-slope transition, and plateau areas. However, these structural differences in species composition could be due to unequal dispersion of variability among forest habitats. Our data suggested that spatial heterogeneity, such as a mosaic of local water status and nutrient availability resulting from the topographic conditions, can affect host plants and their associated galling insects. RESUMO As variações topográficas encontradas nas florestas de terra firme são acompanhadas por fortes mudanças no conteúdo de argila e concentração de nutrientes do solo, criando, portanto, diferentes condições hídricas e nutricionais para plantas e as comunidades de herbívoros associadas. O objetivo do presente estudo foi avaliar a riqueza e composição de espécies de insetos galhadores e suas plantas hospedeiras ao longo de um gradiente topográfico com habitats que diferem quanto ao estresse hídrico e nutricional. Dezenove parcelas de 250 x 3 m foram estabelecidos aleatoriamente em habitats de vertente, platô, transição platô-vertente e baixio, claramente distintos em áreas de terra firme. Todas as dicotiledôneas com 1 a 3 metros de altura foram examinadas quanto à presença de galhas de insetos. As galhas encontradas foram coletadas e insetos galhadores foram classificados em morfoespécies. A riqueza de galhadores e de plantas hospedeiras diferiram significativamente entre os habitats estudados, e como esperado, foi maior no habitat de vertente. As áreas mais úmidas (baixios) apresentaram menor riqueza de plantas hospedeiras no sub-bosque e, conseqüentemente, um número menor de espécies de galhadores. Os resultados das análises de PERMANOVA e PERMDISP demonstraram que a composição da espécie de insetos galhadores variou significativamente entre as áreas de floresta de terra firme. No entanto, essas diferenças estruturais na composição das espécies podem ser devidas à dispersão desigual da variabilidade entre os habitats. Nossos dados sugerem que a heterogeneidade espacial, tal como o mosaico de status hídrico e nutricional do solo associado às condições topográficas, pode afetar plantas hospedeiras e insetos galhadores associados.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T16:49:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2017-07-01 Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) Mining causes profound impacts on biodiversity. In Brazil, mining pressure is intense, especially in highly biodiverse regions such as the Espinhaço range. We analyzed the direct and indirect effects of mining on the potential geographic range of 32 anuran and eight bird species endemic to the eastern Brazil mountaintops. We also assessed the mining impacts on the local biodiversity rate of both species groups. Currently, 36.44% and 28.80% of the median potential distribution of the anuran and bird species, respectively, are affected directly or indirectly by mining. More than half of the range for eight anuran species and more than 40% of two birds species's ranges are influenced by this anthropogenic activity. Regions with suitable environmental characteristics for more than one species are highly affected by mining: 67% of the pixels that are suitable for 16 species (2109 km2) are currently impacted by mining. These results indicate that mining activities present a considerable threat to both anurans and birds endemic of the eastern Brazil mountaintops. We discuss many aspects related to the loss of potential habitat for these species, and call for management strategies to avert the ongoing wave of mining impacts. Laboratório de Ornitologia Departamento de Zoologia Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia Conservação e Manejo de Vida Silvestre Instituto de Ciência Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Geraisl Centro de Sensoriamento Remoto Mestrado em Análise e Modelagem dos Sistemas Ambientais Instituto de Geociências Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Ecologia Evolutiva & Biodiversidade/DBG ICB/Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais Department of Biology Stanford University Departamento de Ciências Agrárias e Biológicas CEUNES Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo Universidade Federal de Viçosa Campus Florestal São Paulo State University (UNESP) Institute of Biosciences Spatial Ecology and Conservation Lab (LEEC) Departamento de Educação Curso de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Metropolitana de Santos UNIMES São Paulo State University (UNESP) Institute of Biosciences Spatial Ecology and Conservation Lab (LEEC)

Although there is evidence that the vegetation from rupestrian grasslands is resilient to fire, investigations about the effects of increasing frequency of anthropogenic fires in the rare and endemic plants from this ecosystem are still incipient. In this study, we monitored the post-fire resprouting of the endemic and endangered shrub species Coccoloba cereifera Schwacke (Polygonaceae) from rupestrian grasslands, southeastern Brazil. Five months after the fire 100% of the monitored individuals resprouted. However, one year after the fire, the burned plants had the ramet length 24% lower and number of leaves 53.5% smaller in relation to unburned plants. Burned plants showed a much higher relative growth rate in number of leaves and much lower reproductive investment compared to unburned plants. Although the studied species showed a high ability to resprout after fire, the pattern of vegetative growth and reproductive investment showed by the burned plants suggested that the increasing frequency of anthropogenic fires represents a serious threat to C. cereifera.Keywords: Coccoloba cereifera, conservation, Espinhaco Range, plant growth, reproductive phenology.

1.Studies on the robustness of ecological communities suggest that the loss or reduction in abundance of individual species can lead to secondary and cascading extinctions. However, most such studies have been simulation-based analyses of the effect of primary extinction on food web structure. 2.In a field experiment we tested the direct and indirect effects of reducing the abundance of a common species, focusing on the diverse and self-contained assemblage of arthropods associated with an abundant Brazilian shrub, Baccharis dracunculifolia D.C. (Asteraceae). 3.Over a 5-month period we experimentally reduced the abundance of Baccharopelma dracunculifoliae (Sternorrhyncha: Psyllidae), the commonest galling species associated with B. dracunculifolia, in 15 replicate plots paired with 15 control plots. We investigated direct effects of the manipulation on parasitoids attacking B. dracunculifoliae, as well as indirect effects (mediated via a third species or through the environment) on ten other galler species and 50 associated parasitoid species. 4.The experimental manipulation significantly increased parasitism on B. dracunculifoliae in the treatment plots, but did not significantly alter either the species richness or abundance of other galler species. Compared to control plots, food webs in manipulated plots had significantly lower values of weighted connectance, interaction evenness and robustness (measured as simulated tolerance to secondary extinction), even when B. dracunculifoliae was excluded from calculations. 5.Parasitoid species were almost entirely specialised to individual galler species, so the observed effects of the manipulation on food web structure could not have propagated via the documented trophic links. Instead, they must have spread either through trophic links not included in the webs (e.g., shared predators) or non-trophically (e.g., through changes in habitat availability). Our results highlight that the inclusion of both trophic and non-trophic direct and indirect interactions is essential to understand the structure and dynamics of even apparently discrete ecological communities. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Botanists, ecologists and evolutionary biologists are familiar with the astonishing species richness and endemism of the fynbos of the Cape Floristic Region and the ancient and unique flora of the kwongkan of south-western Australia. These regions represent old climatically-buffered infertile landscapes (OCBILs) that are the basis of a general hypothesis to explain their richness and endemism. However, few ecologists are familiar with the campo rupestre of central and eastern Brazil, an extremely old mountaintop ecosystem that is both a museum of ancient lineages and a cradle of continuing diversification of endemic lineages. Diversification of some lineages of campo rupestre pre-dates diversification of lowland cerrado, suggesting it may be the most ancient open vegetation in eastern South America. This vegetation comprises more than 5000 plant species, nearly 15 % of Brazil’s plant diversity, in an area corresponding to 0.78 % of its surface. Reviewing empirical data, we scrutinise five predictions of the OCBIL theory, and show that campo rupestre is fully comparable to and remarkably convergent with both fynbos and kwongkan, and fulfills the criteria for a classic OCBIL. The increasing threats to campo rupestre are compromising ecosystem services and we argue for the implementation of more effective conservation and restoration strategies.

Ground-dwelling ants have shown consistent resilience to fire in savanna environments. We carried out a study to investigate how ant community structure responds to fire in a harsh and fragile Cerrado ecosystem, the campos rupestres. We studied the change in the ant communities on a local scale subjected to fire in two rocky outcrop habitats at two different elevations (800m above sea level and 1300m a.s.l.). Pitfall trap samples were set at three different periods after a fire event: one, four, and ten months later. Overall, one hundred and fifteen ant species were collected. On a local scale, at the altitude of 800 m asl, no difference in richness and composition of the ant community was found between burned and control plots, whereas at 1300 m asl the burned areas showed higher richness and different ant composition in comparison to control areas. Differences were clear in the rainy period, four months after the fire. Ten months later, no difference between the richness of ant species in burned and unburned plots was found at higher altitudes, even though the plots showed distinct species composition. These data support the hypothesis that fire must be a structuring disturbance factor for some groups in the ant assemblages and indicate that ant community structure at higher elevations is somehow influenced by the recover of the campos rupestre vegetation.

Ecophysiological responses of plants are useful for monitoring the success of ecological restoration projects that target species conservation. In this study we evaluated the ecophysiological traits of individuals of Chamaecrista semaphora from a natural population and from a site under restoration. Water potential and chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters were measured both in adult and young plants of the two populations. No difference in water potential was found between sites, but individuals in the restored site had higher water potential at predawn. Adults in the natural site presented lower daily values of potential quantum yield, indicating the occurrence of photoinhibition. Individuals in the restored site also presented higher maximum relative electron transport rate (ETRMAX). No difference was found in leaf carbon isotope discrimination values (σ13C) between plants growing in restored and natural sites, suggesting similar water use efficiency. These results indicate that C. semaphora individuals in the restored site had similar or better photosynthetic and water economy performances than individuals at the natural site. Methodologies traditionally employed to assess stress response of plants, such as chlorophyll a fluorescence and procedures used to evaluate the efficiency of water use, allowed us to verify the success of restoration procedures using an endangered species.