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Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem

Conservation has long focused on preserving or restoring pristine ecosystems. However, understanding and managing novel ecosystems has grown in importance as they outnumber pristine ecosystems worldwide. While non-native species may be neutral or detrimental in pristine ecosystems, it is possible th...

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Autores principales: Gawel, Ann Marie, Rogers, Haldre S., Miller, Ross H., Kerr, Alexander M.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: The Royal Society Publishing 2018
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5936884/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29765619
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170151
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author Gawel, Ann Marie
Rogers, Haldre S.
Miller, Ross H.
Kerr, Alexander M.
author_facet Gawel, Ann Marie
Rogers, Haldre S.
Miller, Ross H.
Kerr, Alexander M.
author_sort Gawel, Ann Marie
collection PubMed
description Conservation has long focused on preserving or restoring pristine ecosystems. However, understanding and managing novel ecosystems has grown in importance as they outnumber pristine ecosystems worldwide. While non-native species may be neutral or detrimental in pristine ecosystems, it is possible that even notorious invaders could play beneficial or mixed roles in novel ecosystems. We examined the effects of two long-established non-native species—Philippine deer (Rusa marianna) and feral pigs (Sus scrofa)—in Guam, Micronesia, where native vertebrate frugivores are functionally absent leaving forests devoid of seed dispersers. We compared the roles of deer and pigs on seedling survival, seed dispersal and plant community structure in limestone karst forests. Deer, even at low abundances, had pronounced negative impacts on forest communities by decreasing seedling and vine abundance. By contrast, pigs showed no such relationship. Also, many viable seeds were found in pig scats, whereas few were found in deer scats, suggesting that pigs, but not deer, provide an ecosystem function—seed dispersal—that has been lost from Guam. Our study presents a discrepancy between the roles of two non-native species that are traditionally managed as a single entity, suggesting that ecological function, rather than identity as a non-native, may be more important to consider in managing novel systems.
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spelling pubmed-59368842018-05-15 Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem Gawel, Ann Marie Rogers, Haldre S. Miller, Ross H. Kerr, Alexander M. R Soc Open Sci Biology (Whole Organism) Conservation has long focused on preserving or restoring pristine ecosystems. However, understanding and managing novel ecosystems has grown in importance as they outnumber pristine ecosystems worldwide. While non-native species may be neutral or detrimental in pristine ecosystems, it is possible that even notorious invaders could play beneficial or mixed roles in novel ecosystems. We examined the effects of two long-established non-native species—Philippine deer (Rusa marianna) and feral pigs (Sus scrofa)—in Guam, Micronesia, where native vertebrate frugivores are functionally absent leaving forests devoid of seed dispersers. We compared the roles of deer and pigs on seedling survival, seed dispersal and plant community structure in limestone karst forests. Deer, even at low abundances, had pronounced negative impacts on forest communities by decreasing seedling and vine abundance. By contrast, pigs showed no such relationship. Also, many viable seeds were found in pig scats, whereas few were found in deer scats, suggesting that pigs, but not deer, provide an ecosystem function—seed dispersal—that has been lost from Guam. Our study presents a discrepancy between the roles of two non-native species that are traditionally managed as a single entity, suggesting that ecological function, rather than identity as a non-native, may be more important to consider in managing novel systems. The Royal Society Publishing 2018-04-25 /pmc/articles/PMC5936884/ /pubmed/29765619 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170151 Text en © 2018 The Authors. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Published by the Royal Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Biology (Whole Organism)
Gawel, Ann Marie
Rogers, Haldre S.
Miller, Ross H.
Kerr, Alexander M.
Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title_full Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title_fullStr Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title_full_unstemmed Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title_short Contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
title_sort contrasting ecological roles of non-native ungulates in a novel ecosystem
topic Biology (Whole Organism)
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5936884/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29765619
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170151
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