Defaunation Increases Clustering and Fine-Scale Spatial Genetic Structure in a Small-Seeded Palm Despite Remaining Small-Bodied Frugivores.

Abstract excerpt

Anthropogenic pressures such as hunting are increasingly driving the localised functional extinctions of large- and medium-sized wildlife in tropical forests, a phenomenon broadly termed 'defaunation'. Concurrently in these areas, smaller-bodied species benefit from factors such as competitive release and increase in numbers. This transformation of the wildlife community can impact species interactions and...

Topics

• Arecaceae
• Animals
• Seed Dispersal
• Seeds
• Ecosystem
• Genetics, Population
• Herbivory
• Genetic Variation
• Microsatellite Repeats
• Forests