Abstract
Vegetation stability, resilience and regeneration can be achieved by various ecological processes, the most important of which is seed dispersion. Among animal groups, birds have the largest number of frugivorous species in the Neotropics. The aim of this study was to conduct a bibliometric analysis to detect general patterns and discover knowledge gaps in order to identify future directions for research into bird frugivory in Brazil. A gap analysis was carried out by obtaining 77 articles published online and evaluating their data in different ways. The results revealed that research on bird frugivory in Brazil was published in 33 scientific journals and financed by 18 national and international funding agencies. The number of publications increased over time, with the majority of them reporting research carried out in biomes of Central-West and South regions of Brazil. The most important bird species in frugivorous interactions in the most studied biomes were identified, including some non-native species. Our results corroborate several other studies, which together demonstrate a lack research on frugivorous interactions in the North and Northeast of Brazil, where there are very important biomes for conservation, such as the Amazon and Caatinga, for which knowledge of seed dispersal processes is needed.
Highlights
Vegetation stability, resilience and regeneration, can be achieved by various ecological processes, the most important of which is seed dispersion (Levine & Murrell, 2003; Angulo, 2011)
Seed dispersion can occur by different ways such as wind, water or animals, and within the latter, the frugivory is the act of eating fruits, with their seeds being defecated or regurgitated far from the mother plant (Howe & Smallwood, 1982)
There are many different studies about bird frugivory in Brazil in the literature; here, we provide only one example for each Brazilian biome
Summary
Vegetation stability, resilience and regeneration, can be achieved by various ecological processes, the most important of which is seed dispersion (Levine & Murrell, 2003; Angulo, 2011). Seed dispersion is the procedure of transporting the spreads away from the mother plant for the development of new plant individuals, that is very important to the function, structure and dynamics of forest ecosystems since it helps maintain plant populations and several other benefits (such as soil fertility, fruit production, presence of fauna, pollination, etc.). Such events provide many benefits to the entire community, including humans, such as food, clean water and carbon sequestration, among others (Jordano et al, 2006).
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