A study from Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History MuseumMore than 90% of tropical trees rely on fruit-eating animals, especially birds, for the dispersal of their seeds. Adding to previous evidence, new research shows that large birds are more important than small and medium-sized birds for plant regeneration. "Especially large fruit-eating birds are declining due to habitat loss and hunting in the tropics. This is likely to cause a poor regeneration of some plant species. It may bring about profound change to the tropical forest as we know it." warns Marcia Muñoz, Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre.More than 90% of tropical trees rely on fruit-eating animals, especially birds, for the dispersal of their seeds. Adding to previous evidence, new research shows that large birds are more important than small and medium-sized birds for plant regeneration. "Especially large fruit-eating birds are declining due to habitat loss and hunting in the tropics. This is likely to cause a poor regeneration of some plant species. It may bring about profound change to the tropical forest as we know it." warns Marcia Muñoz, Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre. At the rate at whch tropical rainforests are being depleted the rate of the bird extinctions will increase.
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Invasive species on Hawaii Island may be especially successful invaders because they are formidable scavengers of carcasses of other animals and after death, a nutrient resource for other invasive scavengers, say investigators. Researchers from the University of Georgia have noticed a trend in the invasives species population in Hawaii has increased due to the species thriving on dead nutrient rich carcasses. The state of Hawaii has the highest number of endangered and threatened native species in the U.S., and this study, published recently in the journal Ecosphere, could inform efforts to manage invasive populations in Hawaii and similar island ecosystems threatened by invasive species. The lifestyles of the invasive species have also had an effect on the endangered species list. The invasive invertebrate scavenger community, which included yellow jackets and fly larvae, removed 45 percent of the carcasses. This left no carcass resources for the native species on the island. Few in number on the island, these animals were not seen by the team during the study.
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March 2017
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