Banca de DEFESA: CICERO SIMÃO LIMA SANTOS

Uma banca de DEFESA de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : CICERO SIMÃO LIMA SANTOS
DATE: 26/02/2024
TIME: 09:00
LOCAL: Google Meet
TITLE:

Influence of habitat structure on the occupancy patterns of threatened insectivorous birds  of the Atlantic Forest

KEY WORDS:

Passive acoustic monitoring; Pernambuco Endemism Center; Fragmentation; Arbimon; Conservation;

PAGES: 69
BIG AREA: Ciências Biológicas
AREA: Ecologia
SUMMARY:

The Atlantic Forest is the second largest forest in South America, considered a biodiversity  hotspot for being one of the most diverse biomes in the world and facing serious threats  due to increasing ecosystem degradation. Birds constitute a particularly affected group  by Atlantic Forest degradation, with many facing imminent extinction threats resulting from  habitat loss caused by deforestation. To prevent biodiversity losses, it is essential to  understand the effects of habitat fragmentation and assess how species respond to  landscape changes. Occupancy modeling has been a widely used approach to investigate  species persistence in fragmented landscapes. Through this approach, it is possible to  identify priority areas, enabling the creation of conservation units, and to support the  formulation of more effective public policies. The aim of this study was to test how habitat  characteristics, at different spatial scales, affect the occupancy of threatened insectivorous  birds in Atlantic Forest fragments. We conducted the study in 11 forest fragments in the  states of Rio Grande do Norte and Paraíba. Species detection was performed using  autonomous recorders distributed at eight randomized points in each fragment. We  collected habitat information at three spatial scales: landscape scale, fragment scale, and  micro-habitat scale. The target species were threatened insectivorous birds of the Atlantic  Forest. The occupancy probability of each species (ψ) was estimated using static occupancy  modeling, which considers imperfect detection. The analyses were performed using the  MARK program. Among the threatened species occurring in the northeastern Atlantic  Forest, six were recorded: Xenops minutus, Herpsilochmus pectoralis, Conopophaga  cearae, Picumnus pernambucensis, Xiphorynchus atlanticus, and Automolus lammi. Overall,  the occupancy of all species was influenced by micro-habitat and fragment variables, and  only X. atlanticus was influenced by landscape variables. The species responded  differently to variables at the various proposed scales. Notably, fragment and micro habitat-associated variables stood out, demonstrating to be the scales with the highest  number of variables influencing species occupancy. The lowest occupancies were for X.  atlanticus (ψ = 0.001), A. lammi (ψ = 0.003), P. pernambucensis (ψ = 0.02), and C.  cearae (ψ = 0.08), while the highest were for H. pectoralis (ψ = 0.16) and X. minutus (ψ = 0.89). We emphasize the crucial importance of conducting studies that assess the effects  of fragmentation at multiple scales to obtain valuable information and promote the  conservation of threatened forest birds in the Neotropical region.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Interno - 1678202 - CARLOS ROBERTO SORENSEN DUTRA DA FONSECA
Externo à Instituição - GUILHERME SANTOS TOLEDO DE LIMA - UFAPE
Presidente - 1439088 - MAURO PICHORIM