The role of parabiotic ants and environment on epiphyte composition and protection in ant gardens

Ant gardens (AGs) are a multi-partner specialized ant-plant interaction involving several ant and epiphyte species. Although studies on AGs have reported possible roles for some species in this system, there are unanswered questions regarding the process of epiphyte incorporation in the AGs and the role of less aggressive ant species in AG protection. In this study, we used AGs in the Brazilian Amazon forest formed by two parabiotic ant species to test a set of hypothesis regarding two main questions: 1) How is AG plant community composition affected by the surrounding environment? 2) Does Crematogaster levior play a role in the chemical detection of herbivory in the AGs? After identifying epiphytes occurring at AGs at the forest edge and in the interior, we found that ant gardens in each environment exhibited different compositions, and that plant species bearing oil or extrafloral nectar glands were more frequent in AGs located in the forest interior than in those at the forest edge. By performing experiments with volatile compounds emitted from injured epiphytes, we detected that only Camponotus femoratus was responsive, responding almost eight times faster in response to plant extracts than water treatments. Our results support the idea that environmental conditions affect ant preference for feeding resources provided by epiphytes and consequently shape the structure of the epiphyte community in AGs. On the other hand, the role of C. levior in AGs remains unknown, since it seems to play no direct or indirect role in AG protection

Carbon sequestration potential of second-growth forest regeneration in the Latin American tropics

Regrowth of tropical secondary forests following complete or nearly complete removal of forest vegetation actively stores carbon in aboveground biomass, partially counterbalancing carbon emissions from deforestation, forest degradation, burning of fossil fuels, and other anthropogenic sources. We estimate the age and spatial extent of lowland second-growth forests in the Latin American tropics and model their potential aboveground carbon accumulation over four decades. Our model shows that, in 2008, second-growth forests (1 to 60 years old) covered 2.4 million km2 of land (28.1%of the total study area).Over 40 years, these lands can potentially accumulate a total aboveground carbon stock of 8.48 Pg C (petagrams of carbon) in aboveground biomass via low-cost natural regeneration or assisted regeneration, corresponding to a total CO2 sequestration of 31.09 Pg CO2. This total is equivalent to carbon emissions from fossil fuel use and industrial processes in all of Latin America and the Caribbean from1993 to 2014. Ten countries account for 95% of this carbon storage potential, led by Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Venezuela. We model future land-use scenarios to guide national carbon mitigation policies. Permitting natural regeneration on 40% of lowland pastures potentially stores an additional 2.0 Pg C over 40 years. Our study provides information and maps to guide national-level forest-based carbon mitigation plans on the basis of estimated rates of natural regeneration and pasture abandonment. Coupled with avoided deforestation and sustainable forestmanagement, natural regeneration of second-growth forests provides a low-costmechanism that yields a high carbon sequestration potential with multiple benefits for biodiversity and ecosystem services. © 2016 The Authors

Biodiversity recovery of Neotropical secondary forests

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. Copyright © 2019 The Authors, some rights reserved

The forest topsoil seed bank as a degraded area rehabilitation strategy

Orientador: Ricardo Ribeiro RodriguesDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de BiologiaResumo: A partir dos anos 90, a conscientização da sociedade e o aumento do atendimento à legislação ambiental fizeram proliferar muitas iniciativas de recuperação de áreas degradadas. A transposição do topsoil, rica fonte de sementes nativas e de matéria orgânica, deve ser uma técnica alternativa promissora. O topsoil já vem sendo utilizado com sucesso, mas sua aplicação ainda está restrita a áreas planas. A disponibilidade de topsoil associada à necessidade de recuperação de taludes com espécies nativas, inspirou a presente pesquisa. O objetivo foi avaliar a possibilidade de uso da técnica de transposição de topsoil para a recuperação de taludes de corte e aterro, identificando os fatores atuantes na sucessão secundária inicial da comunidade de plantas e suas implicações para a recuperação. Em um talude com inclinação de 30º foi depositada a camada de topsoil proveniente de uma área de floresta recém desmatada. Foram utilizadas quatro técnicas de contenção do topsoil depositado: madeiramento formando terraços (M), sulcos horizontais (S) e cada uma, M e S, associadas a linhas de adubação verde semeada (MAV e SAV). O delineamento experimental foi o de blocos ao acaso, em que cada tratamento possui três réplicas de 12x15 m2, distribuídas em três blocos. A densidade de indivíduos regenerantes e a riqueza de formas de vida foram monitoradas por 14 meses, e a porcentagem de solo exposto foi avaliada no último mês. Após os 14 meses foram registradas 150 espécies de todas as formas de vida. Os tratamentos apresentaram densidades cinco vezes maiores que o testemunho, variando de 5,2 a 22,6 indiv/m2, mas não foram diferentes entre si. O tratamento de sulcos (S) apresentou a maior porcentagem de solo exposto (Capítulo 1). Mais do que os tratamentos as características do topsoil e a densidade do banco de sementes do topsoil, diferentes entre os blocos experimentais, determinaram padrões distintos de colonização, de estrutura e de velocidade de recuperação das comunidades (Capítulo 2). Se observada a área experimental como um todo, formou-se uma comunidade heterogênea florística e estruturalmente, o que deve ser interessante para áreas em regeneração. Os resultados indicaram que a recuperação de taludes pode ser eficiente utilizando a técnica de transposição de topsoil desde que sejam utilizadas técnicas de contenção conjuntamente. Com a metodologia proposta, ampliam-se as possibilidades de uso do topsoil e possibilita-se a recuperação de taludes de corte e aterro com espécies nativasAbstract: After the nineties, the awareness of the society and enhancement of legal environmental requirements resulted in a greater number of initiatives on degraded lands rehabilitation. The use of topsoil, which contains the forest seed bank and high concentrations of organic matter, has been successfully used, but its application still restrict to flat or low-declivity areas. The local availability of topsoil together with the necessity to rehabilitate slopes with native species community inspired this experimental research. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the topsoil transposition technique to rehabilitate slopes, aiming to identify the main factors acting over the initial succession of these communities and its implications for the rehabilitation process. At an embankment slope with 30° declivity we spread the topsoil collected in a surrounding area just after forest clear cut. Four contention techniques were tested: wood fences forming terraces, horizontal rips, wood fences with green manure and horizontal rips with green manure. The experiment was designed in casualized blocks were each treatment has three 12 x 15m2 replicas, distributed in three blocks. We monitored the regenerating community for 14 months, measuring the individual¿s density and the life forms richness. The percentage of exposed soil was measured on the last sampling. Afther 14 months, we registered 150 species including all life forms. In all treatments, the density of individuals was at least five times higher than in the control, ranging from 5,2 to 22,6 ind/m2. The density of individuals was not different among the four treatments, but the rips treatment showed the highest percentage of exposed soil (Chapter 1). The allochtonous soil characteristics, diferent among the experimental blocks, were the main determinants of the structure and floristic composition of regenerating communities. Differences of topsoil soil fertility and seed bank density determined different initial colonization patterns, as well as the community final structure and recovery speed (Chapter 2). Analyzing the whole experimental area, the growth of distinct communities at the same rehabilitated area resulted in a community with heterogeneous structure and floristic composition, which may be interesting for regenerating areas. The results showed that, together with contention techniques, the topsoil use as a source of propagules and organic matter can be efficient on slopes¿ rehabilitation. The proposed method expands the possibilities of topsoil use, allowing the rehabilitation of slopes and embankments with native speciesMestradoBiologia VegetalMestre em Biologia Vegeta

Loss of secondary-forest resilience by land-use intensification in the Amazon

Summary: Understanding how land-use intensification affects forest resilience is a key for elucidating the mechanisms underlying regeneration processes and for planning more sustainable land-use systems. Here, we evaluate how the intensification of a swidden cultivation system affects secondary-forest resilience in the Amazon. Along a gradient of land-use intensity, we analysed the relative role of management intensity, soil properties and landscape configuration in determining the resilience of early secondary forests (SFs). We assessed resilience as the recovery level of forest structure and species diversity achieved by SFs 5 years after abandonment. We used as a reference the recovery level achieved by SFs subjected to the lowest intensity of use, given that these SFs are part of a dynamic system and may not develop to old-growth forests. Therefore, we interpreted a deviation from this reference level as a change in forest resilience. The recovery of forest structure was determined by management intensity, while the recovery of species diversity was driven by landscape configuration. With increasing number of cycles and weeding frequency along with decreasing fallow period and patch area, SF basal area and canopy height decreased, regeneration shifted from a seed- to sprout-dependent strategy, and liana infestation on trees increased. With decreasing area covered by old-growth forest, species richness and Shannon diversity decreased. Secondary-forest resilience decreased with land-use intensification, mainly mediated by the effect of management intensity upon regeneration strategies. Our findings demonstrate the - many times overlooked - importance of previous management intensity in determining the structure of SFs and highlight the importance of regeneration strategy for forest resilience. Synthesis. Swidden cultivation supports people's livelihoods and transforms landscapes in the tropics. The sustainability of this system depends on ecosystem services provided by SFs that develop during the fallow period. Land-use intensification reduces the resilience of SFs and ultimately may drive the system towards an arrested succession state that holds a lower potential to deliver ecosystem services to the Amazonian people. Under an intensification scenario, the adaptation of management practices is needed to guarantee the resilience of swidden cultivation systems. Swidden cultivation supports people's livelihoods and transforms landscapes in the tropics. We evaluated how the intensification of this system affects secondary-forest resilience in the Amazon. Secondary-forest resilience decreased with land-use intensification, mainly mediated by the effect of management intensity upon regeneration strategies. Under an intensification scenario, the adaptation of management practices is needed to guarantee the resilience of swidden cultivation. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Ecology © 2015 British Ecological Society

Spatial and temporal dynamics of shifting cultivation in the middle-Amazonas river : Expansion and intensification

Shifting cultivation is the main land-use system transforming landscapes in riverine Amazonia. Increased concentration of the human population around villages and increasing market integration during the last decades may be causing agricultural intensification. Studies have shown that agricultural intensification, i.e. higher number of swidden-fallow cycles and shorter fallow periods, reduces crop productivity of swiddens and the regrowth capacity of fallows, undermining the resilience of the shifting cultivation system as a whole. We investigated the temporal and spatial dynamics of shifting cultivation in Brazilian Amazonia to test the hypotheses that (i) agriculture has become more intensive over time, and (ii) patterns of land-use intensity are related to land accessibility and human population density. We applied a breakpoint-detection algorithm to Landsat time-series spanning three decades (1984–2015) and retrieved the temporal dynamics of shifting cultivation fields, which go through alternating phases of crop production (swidden) and secondary forest regrowth (fallow). We found that fallow-period length has decreased from 6.4 to 5.1 years on average, and that expansion over old-growth forest has slowed down over time. Shorter fallow periods and higher frequency of slash and burn cycles are practiced closer to residences and around larger villages. Our results indicate that shifting cultivation in riverine Amazonia has gone through a process of agricultural intensification in the past three decades. The resulting landscape is predominantly covered by young secondary forests (≤ 12 yrs old), and 20% of it have gone through intensive use. Reversing this trend and avoiding the negative consequences of agricultural intensification requires land use planning that accounts for the constraints of land use in riverine areas

Land use as a filter for species composition in Amazonian secondary forests

Questions: Secondary succession in the tropics can follow alternative pathways. Land-use history is known to engender alternative successional communities, but the underlying mechanisms driving and sustaining divergence remain unclear. In this study we aim to answer the following questions: (1) does previous land use act as a filter for species composition in secondary forests; and (2) what are the relative roles of management practices, soil properties and landscape composition in determining species composition?. Location: Central Amazon, Brazil. Methods: We sampled trees, shrubs and palms (≥1cm diameter) in 38 early secondary forests (5 yr after abandonment) located along gradients of land-use intensity in five shifting cultivation landscapes. We measured the diameter and height of each sampled plant, identified it to species or morpho-species level and checked if it was resprouting or not. At each secondary forest we also collected soil samples for chemical and physical analyses and estimated the amount of old-growth forest surrounding it (landscape composition). Results: We found that previous land-use intensity determined species composition. With increasing land-use intensity, management practices of cut-and-burn and associated reduction in soil quality filtered out seed-dependent species and favoured strong sprouters and species that can cope with low nutrient availability. Landscape composition had a weak effect on species assemblages. We found specific species assemblages and indicator species associated with different levels of previous land-use intensity. As a consequence of these local filters, species α- and β-diversity decreased and therefore early successional communities became more similar to each other. Conclusion: Species composition of successional forests is strongly determined by different land-use intensities. Dispersal limitation has a limited effect on determining the composition of the dominant species. Filtering effects of management practices and soil quality determine the species dominating the canopy at early stages of succession and narrow down the range of species able to colonize and establish. This study highlights how land use shapes successional communities and suggests that alternative successional pathways are determined at early stages of succession. Therefore, accounting for land-use history is crucial to improve the understanding of tropical secondary succession. We present a list of indicator species for different levels of previous land-use intensity that can be used to support conservation and restoration decisions in the Amazon.</p

Amazon Rain Forest Succession: Stochasticity or Land-Use Legacy?

Land-use practices can dramatically shift the trajectories of rain forest recovery. In a 25-year study, Amazon rain forest regenerated following deforestation as long as seed availability and seedling recruitment were not interrupted. In contrast, rain forest converted to cattle pastures via cutting and burning prior to abandonment diverted succession, leading to highly simplified stands dominated by a single genus. Annual fires eliminated seedlings, saplings, coppice, and seeds in the soil, except for several Vismia species. Once established, Vismia regenerated by continual resprouting and resisted the establishment of other rain forest species, especially the normal suite of pioneers. Through time, succession both in abandoned clearcuts and pastures increased in stem density and biomass; however, species accumulation and ecosystem services were limited in pastures when compared with those in abandoned clearcuts. Therefore, prescribed burning to maintain pastureland leaves a legacy that is not readily extinguished, whereas abandoning clearcuts engenders an accelerated rain forest regeneration.</p

Secondary forest age and land-use intensity of the shifting cultivation landscape in 2014.

<p>(a) Cumulative area with secondary-forest fallows with different ages in 2014. (b) Cumulative area of fields that experienced different number of clear-cut events (swidden-fallow cycles). Dashed lines indicate the age of secondary forests (a) and the number of clearcut events in 50% and 80% of the fields.</p

Floodplains as an Achilles' heel of Amazonian forest resilience

The massive forests of central Amazonia are often considered relatively resilient against climatic variation, but this view is challenged by the wildfires invoked by recent droughts. The impact of such fires that spread from pervasive sources of ignition may reveal where forests are less likely to persist in a drier future. Here we combine field observations with remotely sensed information for the whole Amazon to show that the annually inundated lowland forests that run through the heart of the system may be trapped relatively easily into a fire-dominated savanna state. This lower forest resilience on floodplains is suggested by patterns of tree cover distribution across the basin, and supported by our field and remote sensing studies showing that floodplain fires have a stronger and longer-lasting impact on forest structure as well as soil fertility. Although floodplains cover only 14% of the Amazon basin, their fires can have substantial cascading effects because forests and peatlands may release large amounts of carbon, and wildfires can spread to adjacent uplands. Floodplains are thus an Achilles' heel of the Amazon system when it comes to the risk of large-scale climatedriven transitions.</p