Artificial nests predation in an Amazon-Cerrado transition

Vivian Ribeiro,Gabriel Penido

doi:10.4013/nbc.2015.102.06

Abstract

Edge effects in artificial nest predation are the focus of many researches in different scales and landscapes. We conducted an experiment to evaluate whether there is an edge effect on predation rates in forest fragments in the Amazon-Cerrado transition. In addition, we verified whether there is an influence of protected and disturbed areas on nest predation. Within a region where natural landscapes are continuously replaced by agriculture, especially for production of soybean, we found that predation was significantly higher in edge areas than in the fragment core. However, there was no difference in these rates between protected and disturbed sites. With the increasing fragmentation process, and consequently the creation of more edge habitats, several terrestrial bird species might be extinct. We need to understand the factors that are the cause for this edge effect on nest predation in order to develop conservation strategies for threatened species. Keywords: Amazon Forest, disturbed areas, landscape, conservation areas, soybean matrix.

Highlights

O efeito de borda na predação de ninhos artificiais é o foco de várias pesquisas em diferentes escalas e paisagens
If an edge effect is present, the comprehension of how a species responds on a local scale is important for the development of conservational efforts that take in consideration the population dynamics in the fragment (França and Marini, 2009)
The application of artificial nest experiments is common in order to measure reproduction success in different contexts, including edge effects in which one would expect a higher predation rate on eggs nearer the fragment’s edge

Summary

Introduction

O efeito de borda na predação de ninhos artificiais é o foco de várias pesquisas em diferentes escalas e paisagens. If an edge effect is present, the comprehension of how a species responds on a local scale is important for the development of conservational efforts that take in consideration the population dynamics in the fragment (França and Marini, 2009). The application of artificial nest experiments is common in order to measure reproduction success in different contexts, including edge effects in which one would expect a higher predation rate on eggs nearer the fragment’s edge.

Results

Conclusion