scholarly journals Vertical and Horizontal Trophic Networks in the Aroid-Infesting Insect Community of Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

Insects ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 252
Author(s):  
Guadalupe Amancio ◽  
Armando Aguirre-Jaimes ◽  
Vicente Hernández-Ortiz ◽  
Roger Guevara ◽  
Mauricio Quesada
Keyword(s):  
Altitudinal Gradient ◽  
Tropical Rainforest ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Species Interaction ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Los Tuxtlas ◽  
Insect Community ◽  
High Turnover ◽  
Trophic Networks ◽  
Pollination Systems

Insect-aroid interaction studies have focused largely on pollination systems; however, few report trophic interactions with other herbivores. This study features the endophagous insect community in reproductive aroid structures of a tropical rainforest of Mexico, and the shifting that occurs along an altitudinal gradient and among different hosts. In three sites of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve in Mexico, we surveyed eight aroid species over a yearly cycle. The insects found were reared in the laboratory, quantified and identified. Data were analyzed through species interaction networks. We recorded 34 endophagous species from 21 families belonging to four insect orders. The community was highly specialized at both network and species levels. Along the altitudinal gradient, there was a reduction in richness and a high turnover of species, while the assemblage among hosts was also highly specific, with different dominant species. Our findings suggest that intrinsic plant factors could influence their occupation, and that the coexistence of distinct insect species in the assemblage could exert a direct or indirect influence on their ability to colonize such resources.

scholarly journals Analysis of complex trophic networks reveals the signature of land-use intensification on soil communities in agroecosystems

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliette M. G. Bloor ◽  
Sara Si-Moussi ◽  
Pierre Taberlet ◽  
Pascal Carrère ◽  
Mickaël Hedde
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Food Web ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Environmental Dna ◽  
Trophic Group ◽  
Interaction Networks ◽  
Land Use Intensity ◽  
Food Web Structure ◽  
Trophic Networks ◽  
Management Intensity

AbstractIncreasing evidence suggests that agricultural intensification is a threat to many groups of soil biota, but how the impacts of land-use intensity on soil organisms translate into changes in comprehensive soil interaction networks remains unclear. Here for the first time, we use environmental DNA to examine total soil multi-trophic diversity and food web structure for temperate agroecosystems along a gradient of land-use intensity. We tested for response patterns in key properties of the soil food webs in sixteen fields ranging from arable crops to grazed permanent grasslands as part of a long-term management experiment. We found that agricultural intensification drives reductions in trophic group diversity, although taxa richness remained unchanged. Intensification generally reduced the complexity and connectance of soil interaction networks and induced consistent changes in energy pathways, but the magnitude of management-induced changes depended on the variable considered. Average path length (an indicator of food web redundancy and resilience) did not respond to our management intensity gradient. Moreover, turnover of network structure showed little response to increasing management intensity. Our data demonstrates the importance of considering different facets of trophic networks for a clearer understanding of agriculture-biodiversity relationships, with implications for nature-based solutions and sustainable agriculture.

Disentangling the effects of legacies from those of current land use on soil properties in Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Mexico

2020 ◽  
Vol 153 ◽  
pp. 103578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simoneta Negrete-Yankelevich ◽  
Carlos Andrés Cultid-Medina ◽  
Tajín Fuentes-Pangtay ◽  
Javier Álvarez-Sánchez ◽  
Silke Cram ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Los Tuxtlas

scholarly journals Angiosperms, Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, Veracruz, Mexico

Check List ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Víctor Arroyo-Rodríguez ◽  
Jacob C. Dunn ◽  
Julieta Benítez-Malvido ◽  
Salvador Mandujano
Keyword(s):  
Introduced Species ◽  
Plant Diversity ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Los Tuxtlas ◽  
Check List ◽  
Forest Reserve ◽  
Field Station ◽  
Breast Height ◽  
Mexican Government ◽  
Different Levels

The Los Tuxtlas Reserve has been heavily deforested and fragmented since the 1970’s. Although the flora of Los Tuxtlas has been described previously, most floristic lists come from the large forest reserve of the Los Tuxtlas field station. Here we present a check list of Angiosperms recorded in 45 rainforest fragments (< 1 to 266 ha) located in three landscapes with different levels of deforestation. We sampled all trees, shrubs, lianas, palms and herbs with diameter at breast height (dbh) Ā 2.5 cm within ten 50 m x 2 m plots per fragment. We recorded 9,435 plants belonging to 73 families and 372 species. Fabaceae, Rubiaceae, and Moraceae were best represented. Eight species are classified as Endangered by the Mexican government, and five are human-introduced species. We conclude that the conservation and restoration of all the remaining rainforest fragments are necessary to effectively preserve the plant diversity of this region.

scholarly journals Modification of Fire Regimes Inferred from the Age Structure of Two Conifer Species in a Tropical Montane Forest, Mexico

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jesús Eduardo Sáenz-Ceja ◽  
Diego Rafel Pérez-Salicrup
Keyword(s):  
Age Structure ◽  
Altitudinal Gradient ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Fire Regimes ◽  
Monarch Butterfly ◽  
Pine Forests ◽  
Conifer Forests ◽  
Tree Establishment ◽  
Low Intensity ◽  
Mixed Conifer Forests

Research Highlights: Age structure was used to infer fire regimes in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve. Uneven-aged structures in stands dominated and co-dominated by pine and fir species, which are distributed according to an altitudinal gradient, indicated a regime of frequent, low-severity, and low-intensity fires. Background and Objectives: Age structure analyses have been used to infer natural and disrupted fire regimes when field-based descriptions of fires are scarce or unavailable. In montane conifer forests, fire regimes typically vary according to an altitudinal gradient, shaping contrasting tree establishment patterns. In the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Mexico, the altitudinal distribution and fire regimes of sacred fir forests (Abies religiosa), smooth-bark Mexican pine forests (Pinus pseudostrobus), and mixed-conifer forests are poorly documented. The objectives of this study were to determine the altitudinal ranges occupied by mono-dominant and co-dominant stands and to reconstruct tree establishment history to infer historical fire regimes. Materials and Methods: Six altitudinal transects were established along the reserve, each one at elevations from 2400 to 3300 m, with sampling sites at every 150 m of elevation. In each site, increment cores were collected from the base of 25 mature trees. A total of 800 increment cores were collected and cross-dated. Results: P. pseudostrobus is dominant in stands between 2400 and 2850 m, A. religiosa between 3150 and 3300 m, and both species co-dominate between 2850 and 3150 m. The establishment pattern for both species has been continuous, represented by uneven-aged structures, suggesting that tree establishment in smooth-bark Mexican pine forests, mixed-conifer forests, and sacred fir forests, is likely to be associated with frequent, low-severity, and low-intensity fires. Conclusions: These fire regimes suggest, by the one hand, the disruption of natural fire regimes by human activities, limiting the occurrence of high-severity fires; on the other hand, a distinctive feature of these tropical montane forests.

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