Danilo Bandini Ribeiro

Creation of forest edges has a global impact on forest vertebrates

Forest edges influence more than half of the world’s forests and contribute to worldwide declines in biodiversity and ecosystem functions. However, predicting these declines is challenging in heterogeneous fragmented landscapes. Here we assembled a global dataset on species responses to fragmentation and developed a statistical approach for quantifying edge impacts in heterogeneous landscapes to quantify edge-determined changes in abundance of 1,673 vertebrate species. We show that the abundances of 85% of species are affected, either positively or negatively, by forest edges. Species that live in the centre of the forest (forest core), that were more likely to be listed as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), reached peak abundances only at sites farther than 200–400 m from sharp high-contrast forest edges. Smaller-bodied amphibians, larger reptiles and medium-sized non-volant mammals experienced a larger reduction in suitable habitat than other forest-core species. Our results highlight the pervasive ability of forest edges to restructure ecological communities on a global scale.

Brazil's worst mining disaster: corporations must be compelled to pay the actual environmental costs

In November 2015, a large mine-tailing dam owned by Samarco Corporation collapsed in Brazil, generating a massive wave of toxic mud that spread down the Doce River, killing 20 people and affecting biodiversity across hundreds of kilometers of river, riparian lands, and Atlantic coast. Besides the disasters serious human and socioeconomic tolls, we estimate the regional loss of environmental services to be ~US

BIOFRAG - a new database for analyzing BIOdiversity responses to forest FRAGmentation

521 million per year. Although our estimate is conservative, it is still six times higher than the fine imposed on Samarco by Brazilian environmental authorities. To reduce such disparities between estimated damages and levied fines, we advocate for an environmental bond policy that considers potential risks and environmental services that could possibly be impacted by irresponsible mining activity. Environmental bonds and insurance are commonly used policy instruments in many countries, but there are no clear environmental bond policies in Brazil. Environmental bonds are likely to be more effective at securing environmental restitution than post-disaster fines, which generally are inadequate and often unpaid. We estimate that at least 126 mining dams in Brazil are vulnerable to failure in the forthcoming years. Any such event could have severe social-environmental consequences, underscoring the need for effective disaster-management strategies for large-scale mining operations.

Vertical and temporal variability in the probability of detection of fruit‐feeding butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) in tropical forest

Habitat fragmentation studies have produced complex results that are challenging to synthesize. Inconsistencies among studies may result from variation in the choice of landscape metrics and response variables, which is often compounded by a lack of key statistical or methodological information. Collating primary datasets on biodiversity responses to fragmentation in a consistent and flexible database permits simple data retrieval for subsequent analyses. We present a relational database that links such field data to taxonomic nomenclature, spatial and temporal plot attributes, and environmental characteristics. Field assessments include measurements of the response(s) (e.g., presence, abundance, ground cover) of one or more species linked to plots in fragments within a partially forested landscape. The database currently holds 9830 unique species recorded in plots of 58 unique landscapes in six of eight realms: mammals 315, birds 1286, herptiles 460, insects 4521, spiders 204, other arthropods 85, gastropods 70, annelids 8, platyhelminthes 4, Onychophora 2, vascular plants 2112, nonvascular plants and lichens 320, and fungi 449. Three landscapes were sampled as long-term time series (>10 years). Seven hundred and eleven species are found in two or more landscapes. Consolidating the substantial amount of primary data available on biodiversity responses to fragmentation in the context of land-use change and natural disturbances is an essential part of understanding the effects of increasing anthropogenic pressures on land. The consistent format of this database facilitates testing of generalizations concerning biologic responses to fragmentation across diverse systems and taxa. It also allows the re-examination of existing datasets with alternative landscape metrics and robust statistical methods, for example, helping to address pseudo-replication problems. The database can thus help researchers in producing broad syntheses of the effects of land use. The database is dynamic and inclusive, and contributions from individual and large-scale data-collection efforts are welcome.

Functional composition and phenology of fruit-feeding butterflies in a fragmented landscape: variation of seasonality between habitat specialists

One important source of variation present in all biodiversity sampling protocols is species detection probability (i.e. the probability of observing a species, given that it is present at a site). In tropical forests, many species have very low probability of detection, and thus they can be easily overlooked. Measuring the detection probability (detectability) of these species is important to determine the sampling effort required to accurately record them. In the present study, the variation of detectability of fruit‐feeding butterflies and moths between strata (understory vs. canopy), temporally across sampling months, and in relation to observed abundance were examined in the Amazon and Atlantic forests using models of logistic regression. These results enabled the estimation of the sampling effort required to detect a given fraction of the total assemblage. Species detectability was positively correlated with observed abundance for both butterflies and moths. In the Amazon, most species were more detectable in a specific stratum (canopy or understory). Biblidinae, Charaxinae and Satyrini showed temporal variation in detection probability in Atlantic Forest, with distinct peaks during July–August, November, and March. In contrast, Brassolini and Coeini showed peak detectability in January and March, respectively. The vertical and temporal variation in detection probability means that sampling effort must be applied strategically to the correct seasons and strata to improve the accuracy of results. The estimated minimum sampling effort to detect 70% of the species present in these tropical forests is 428 trap‐days in Atlantic Forest and 1435 trap‐days in the Central Amazon forest.

Upland habitat loss as a threat to Pantanal wetlands

Abstract For butterflies, tolerance to the matrix may be an important criterion of habitat occurrence in fragmented landscapes. Here we examine the relative effects of habitat fragmentation and the surrounding agricultural matrix on the functional composition of fruit-feeding butterflies of the Atlantic rain forest in southeastern Brazil. Generalized linear models were used to detect the effects of landscape metrics on butterfly richness and abundance of the total assemblage and functional groups. Circular statistics were used to analyze the patterns of monthly abundance of the total assemblage and functional groups in the forest remnants and the surrounding matrices. In total, 650 butterflies representing 57 species were captured; species composition differed significantly between the forest fragments and the surrounding matrices. We recorded 22 forest specialists, 18 matrix specialists, 11 common species with matrix preference and six common species with forest preference. Forest connectivity favored the richness of forest specialists, while habitat fragmentation enhances the richness and abundance of matrix-tolerant species. Circular analysis revealed that forest specialists were more abundant in the rainy season while matrix-tolerant species proliferated in the dry season. Although maintaining connectivity of forest fragments may increase the mobility and dispersion of forest species, our results showed that landscape fragmentation modify butterfly assemblage by promoting an increase of matrix tolerant species with detriment of forest specialists.

Brazil's new laws bug collectors

The fate of Pantanal, one of the worlds largest, most pristine and diverse wetlands, stands in the balance. The most recent (2014) and comprehensive land-cover change assessment of the upper Paraguay River Basin (UPRB), comprising both lowlands (Pantanal floodplain) and their surrounding upland savannas (Cerrado plateaus), shows the extent of decline of native vegetation (Fig. 1). Around 80% of the Pantanal floodplain native vegetation remains (Fig. 1), and over 60% of its Cerrado plateaus have been converted into pasture and croplands (SOS-Pantanal et al. 2015). The most worrying aspect is the fast rate of land clearing during the last 30 years (Supporting Information). In fact, the Cerrado is experiencing higher native vegetation conversion rates than Amazon and Atlantic Forest ecosystems in recent years but is still largely unprotected (Overbeck et al. 2015).

Composition and structure of bird communities in vegetational gradients of Bodoquena Mountains, western Brazil

Tropical forests harbor diverse and largely unknown insect communities, many of which are threatened species ([ 1 ][1]). Habitat loss has been shown to be the primary threat to insect populations, including all threatened insect species included in the Brazilian Red List ([ 2 ][2], [ 3 ][3]). Most

Bird species richness, composition and abundance in pastures are affected by vegetation structure and distance from natural habitats: a single tree in pastures matters

The informations of bird species distribution in different habitats and the structure of their communities are crucial for bird conservation. We tested the differences in composition, richness and abundance of birds in different phytophysiognomies at Bodoquena Mountains, western Brazil, and we demonstrated the variations in richness and abundance of birds between different trophic groups. Sampling was conducted between July 2011 and June 2012 in 200 point counts arranged in the study area. A total of 3350 contacts were obtained belonging to 156 bird species. Woodland savannas, seasonal forests and arboreal savannas had higher bird abundance and richness, while riparian forests, clean pastures and dirty pastures had smaller values of these parameters. The bird community was organized according to local vegetational gradient, with communities of forests, open areas and savannas, although many species occurred in more than one vegetation type. The insectivorous, omnivorous, frugivorous and gramnivorous birds composed most of the community. These data showed how important environmental heterogeneity is to bird communities. Furthermore, the presence of extensive patches of natural habitats, the small distance between these patches and the permeability of pastures, with high arboreal and shrubby cover, are indicated as important factors to maintain the bird diversity.

Records of threatened bird and mammal species in Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil

ABSTRACT Throughout the world, natural habitats have been replaced by pastures. Thus, bird conservation requires making pastures more accessible for birds. The use of pastures by birds inhabiting the surrounding natural habitats may be affected by the structure of pastures and their distance from natural habitats. In this study we tested whether bird species richness, composition and abundance in pastures of the Brazilian Cerrado are linked to habitat and dietary requirements and affected by vegetation structure and the distance to natural habitats. We found that pastures with more trees and shrubs had greater richness of forest birds, forest insectivorous birds and semi-forest insectivorous-frugivorous birds. Pastures with taller trees had greater richness of semi-forest insectivorous birds, and pastures closer to natural habitats had greater richness of forest frugivorous birds. Bird composition in pastures changed according to vegetation structure and distance from natural habitats, and the abundance of some bird species was positively correlated to vegetation structure and negatively correlated to distance from natural habitats. These findings highlight the importance of trees and shrubs in pastures and maintaining patches of natural habitats near pastures. Management measures can make pastures more accessible for birds from surrounding natural environments and could help in bird conservation.