Seasonal dietary changes increase the abundances of savanna herbivore species.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Staver AC
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7852399 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Seasonal dietary changes increase the abundances of savanna herbivore species.
Staver A Carla AC Hempson Gareth P GP
Science advances 20201002 40
African savannas are home to the world's last great megafaunal communities, but despite ongoing population declines, we only poorly understand the constraints on savanna herbivore abundances. Seasonal diet shifts (except migration) have received little attention, despite a diversity of possible dietary strategies. Here, we first formulate two theoretical models that predict that both mixed feeding and migratory grazing increase population sizes. These predictions are borne out in comprehensive d ...[more]
Similar Datasets
Project description:Both termites and large mammalian herbivores (LMH) are savanna ecosystem engineers that have profound impacts on ecosystem structure and function. Both of these savanna engineers modulate many common and shared dietary resources such as woody and herbaceous plant biomass, yet few studies have addressed how they impact one another. In particular, it is unclear how herbivores may influence the abundance of long-lived termite mounds via changes in termite dietary resources such as woody and herbaceous biomass. While it has long been assumed that abundance and areal cover of termite mounds in the landscape remain relatively stable, most data are observational, and few experiments have tested how termite mound patterns may respond to biotic factors such as changes in large herbivore communities. Here, we use a broad tree density gradient and two landscape-scale experimental manipulations-the first a multi-guild large herbivore exclosure experiment (20 years after establishment) and the second a tree removal experiment (8 years after establishment)-to demonstrate that patterns in Odontotermes termite mound abundance and cover are unexpectedly dynamic. Termite mound abundance, but areal cover not significantly, is positively associated with experimentally controlled presence of cattle, but not wild mesoherbivores (15-1,000 kg) or megaherbivores (elephants and giraffes). Herbaceous productivity and tree density, termite dietary resources that are significantly affected by different LMH treatments, are both positive predictors of termite mound abundance. Experimental reductions of tree densities are associated with lower abundances of termite mounds. These results reveal a richly interacting web of relationships among multiple savanna ecosystem engineers and suggest that termite mound abundance and areal cover are intimately tied to herbivore-driven resource availability.
| S-EPMC8216887 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Recently, cover of large trees in African savannas has rapidly declined due to elephant pressure, frequent fires and charcoal production. The reduction in large trees could have consequences for large herbivores through a change in forage quality. In Tarangire National Park, in Northern Tanzania, we studied the impact of large savanna trees on forage quality for wildebeest by collecting samples of dominant grass species in open grassland and under and around large Acacia tortilis trees. Grasses growing under trees had a much higher forage quality than grasses from the open field indicated by a more favourable leaf/stem ratio and higher protein and lower fibre concentrations. Analysing the grass leaf data with a linear programming model indicated that large savanna trees could be essential for the survival of wildebeest, the dominant herbivore in Tarangire. Due to the high fibre content and low nutrient and protein concentrations of grasses from the open field, maximum fibre intake is reached before nutrient requirements are satisfied. All requirements can only be satisfied by combining forage from open grassland with either forage from under or around tree canopies. Forage quality was also higher around dead trees than in the open field. So forage quality does not reduce immediately after trees die which explains why negative effects of reduced tree numbers probably go initially unnoticed. In conclusion our results suggest that continued destruction of large trees could affect future numbers of large herbivores in African savannas and better protection of large trees is probably necessary to sustain high animal densities in these ecosystems.
| S-EPMC2270359 | biostudies-other
Project description:Anthropogenic noise is a widespread and growing form of sensory pollution associated with the expansion of human infrastructure. One specific source of constant and intense noise is that produced by compressors used for the extraction and transportation of natural gas. Terrestrial arthropods play a central role in many ecosystems, and given that numerous species rely upon airborne sounds and substrate-borne vibrations in their life histories, we predicted that increased background sound levels or the presence of compressor noise would influence their distributions. In the second largest natural gas field in the United States (San Juan Basin, New Mexico, USA), we assessed differences in the abundances of terrestrial arthropod families and community structure as a function of compressor noise and background sound level. Using pitfall traps, we simultaneously sampled five sites adjacent to well pads that possessed operating compressors, and five alternate, quieter well pad sites that lacked compressors, but were otherwise similar. We found a negative association between sites with compressor noise or higher levels of background sound and the abundance of five arthropod families and one genus, a positive relationship between loud sites and the abundance of one family, and no relationship between noise level or compressor presence and abundance for six families and two genera. Despite these changes, we found no evidence of community turnover as a function of background sound level or site type (compressor and noncompressor). Our results indicate that anthropogenic noise differentially affects the abundances of some arthropod families. These preliminary findings point to a need to determine the direct and indirect mechanisms driving these observed responses. Given the diverse and important ecological functions provided by arthropods, changes in abundances could have ecological implications. Therefore, we recommend the consideration of arthropods in the environmental assessment of noise-producing infrastructure.
| S-EPMC5415529 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Historically, the Mongol Empire ranks among the world's largest contiguous empires, and the Mongolians developed their unique lifestyle and diet over thousands of years. In this study, the intestinal microbiota of Mongolians residing in Ulan Bator, TUW province and the Khentii pasturing area were studied using 454 pyrosequencing and q-PCR technology. We explored the impacts of lifestyle and seasonal dietary changes on the Mongolians' gut microbes. At the phylum level, the Mongolians's gut populations were marked by a dominance of Bacteroidetes (55.56%) and a low Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio (0.71). Analysis based on the operational taxonomic unit (OTU) level revealed that the Mongolian core intestinal microbiota comprised the genera Prevotella, Bacteroides, Faecalibacterium, Ruminococcus, Subdoligranulum and Coprococcus. Urbanisation and life-style may have modified the compositions of the gut microbiota of Mongolians from Ulan Bator, TUW and Khentii. Based on a food frequency questionnaire, we found that the dietary structure was diverse and stable throughout the year in Ulan Bator and TUW, but was simple and varied during the year in Khentii. Accordingly, seasonal effects on intestinal microbiota were more distinct in Khentii residents than in TUW or Ulan Bator residents.
| S-EPMC4023135 | biostudies-literature
Project description:High-protein diets may be linked to gut inflammation due to increased production of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a potential toxin, as an end product of microbial fermentation in the colon by sulfidogenic sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). We hypothesized that dietary content of sulfur-containing amino acids (SAA) leads to variation in the relative abundances of intestinal SRB, which include Desulfovibrio and Bilophila taxa. To test this hypothesis we performed a pilot crossover study in four healthy volunteers, who consumed two interventional diets for 10-14 days, containing high or low SAA content. The total energy intake was similar between the two dietary extremes. Microbial communities were characterized by 16S rRNA gene amplicon and shotgun next-generation DNA sequencing. While the relative abundance of Desulfovibrio differed among participants (ANOVA P= 0.001), we could not detect a change with dietary treatments. Similarly, no differences in Bilophila abundance were observed among individuals or dietary arms. Inter-personal differences in microbial community composition and functional gene categories differed between subjects and these differences were maintained over the course of the study. These observations are consistent with re-analysis of two previously published dietary intervention studies. Finally, we found that inter-personal differences in the taxonomic composition of fecal microbiota, including the relative abundances of SRB, were maintained over time in 19 healthy individuals in our stool donor program. These results suggest that the use of dietary interventions alone may be insufficient for rapid therapeutic targeting of SRB. Nevertheless, these pilot data provide a foundation to inform future, statistically powered, studies.
| S-EPMC6748593 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Diving with sharks, often in combination with food baiting/provisioning, has become an important product of today's recreational dive industry. Whereas the effects baiting/provisioning has on the behaviour and abundance of individual shark species are starting to become known, there is an almost complete lack of equivalent data from multi-species shark diving sites. In this study, changes in species composition and relative abundances were determined at the Shark Reef Marine Reserve, a multi-species shark feeding site in Fiji. Using direct observation sampling methods, eight species of sharks (bull shark Carcharhinus leucas, grey reef shark Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos, whitetip reef shark Triaenodon obesus, blacktip reef shark Carcharhinus melanopterus, tawny nurse shark Nebrius ferrugineus, silvertip shark Carcharhinus albimarginatus, sicklefin lemon shark Negaprion acutidens, and tiger shark Galeocerdo cuvier) displayed inter-annual site fidelity between 2003 and 2012. Encounter rates and/or relative abundances of some species changed over time, overall resulting in more individuals (mostly C. leucas) of fewer species being encountered on average on shark feeding dives at the end of the study period. Differences in shark community composition between the years 2004-2006 and 2007-2012 were evident, mostly because N. ferrugineus, C. albimarginatus and N. acutidens were much more abundant in 2004-2006 and very rare in the period of 2007-2012. Two explanations are offered for the observed changes in relative abundances over time, namely inter-specific interactions and operator-specific feeding protocols. Both, possibly in combination, are suggested to be important determinants of species composition and encounter rates, and relative abundances at this shark provisioning site in Fiji. This study, which includes the most species from a spatially confined shark provisioning site to date, suggests that long-term provisioning may result in competitive exclusion among shark species.
| S-EPMC3900589 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Animals acquire information produced by other species to reduce uncertainty and avoid predators. Mixed-species flocks (MSFs) of birds are ubiquitous in forest ecosystems and structured, in part, around interspecific information transfer, with "nuclear" species providing information that other species eavesdrop on. We hypothesized that in a seasonal tropical forest, the amount of information produced by birds about predation would be dynamic and particularly would decrease inside MSFs when the nuclear species leave MSFs to breed. We obtained baseline information on MSF encounter rate and species composition along established sampling routes over 9 months near the Sino-Vietnamese border. We also conducted three experiments to quantify information produced by different species in response to typical predator encounters, including a moving predator stimulus presented inside of MSFs, and a stationary predator model presented both inside and outside of MSFs. MSFs were much less frequent in the breeding season with fewer individuals of the nuclear species, David's Fulvetta (Alcippe davidi), participating, though the diversity of other species remained stable. Fulvettas were the dominant producer of alarm-related information both to the moving and stationary stimuli in MSFs and were also among the most active mobbers to stimuli presented outside of MSFs. In the breeding season, they tended to call less to the moving stimulus, and substantially fewer individuals responded to the in-flock stationary stimulus. Other species increased their own information production at stationary predator stimuli (inside and outside of MSFs) during the breeding season, perhaps due to their increased investment in offspring during this time. Yet even during the breeding season, David's Fulvetta remained the highest producer of information about predators in MSFs. Hence, while we show that information production in MSFs can be somewhat dynamic, we describe a continually asymmetric communication system, in which a nuclear species is important to the whole community.
| S-EPMC7319245 | biostudies-literature
Project description:1. Herbivores influence the structure and composition of terrestrial plant communities. However, responses of plant communities to herbivory are variable and depend on environmental conditions, herbivore identity and herbivore abundance. As anthropogenic impacts continue to drive large declines in wild herbivores, understanding the context dependence of herbivore impacts on plant communities becomes increasingly important. 2. Exclosure experiments are frequently used to assess how ecosystems reorganize in the face of large wild herbivore defaunation. Yet in many landscapes, declines in large wildlife are often accompanied by other anthropogenic activities, especially land conversion to livestock production. In such cases, exclosure experiments may not reflect typical outcomes of human-driven extirpations of wild herbivores. 3. Here, we examine how plant community responses to changes in the identity and abundance of large herbivores interact with abiotic factors (rainfall and soil properties). We also explore how effects of wild herbivores on plant communities differ between large-scale herbivore exclosures and landscape sites where anthropogenic activity has caused wildlife declines, often accompanied by livestock increases. 4. Abiotic context modulated the responses of plant communities to herbivore declines with stronger effect sizes in lower-productivity environments. Also, shifts in plant community structure, composition and species richness following wildlife declines differed considerably between exclosure experiments and landscape sites in which wild herbivores had declined and were often replaced by livestock. Plant communities in low wildlife landscape sites were distinct in both composition and physical structure from both exclosure and control sites in experiments. The power of environmental (soil and rainfall) gradients in influencing plant response to herbivores was also greatly dampened or absent in the landscape sites. One likely explanation for these observed differences is the compensatory effect of livestock associated with the depression or extirpation of wildlife. 5.Synthesis. Our results emphasize the importance of abiotic environmental heterogeneity in modulating the effects of mammalian herbivory on plant communities and the importance of such covariation in understanding effects of wild herbivore declines. They also suggest caution when extrapolating results from exclosure experiments to predict the consequences of defaunation as it proceeds in the Anthropocene.
| S-EPMC3758959 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Grassy biomes such as savannas are maintained by an interacting suite of ecosystem processes from herbivory to rainfall to fire. Many studies have examined the impacts of large mammalian herbivores on herbaceous plant communities, but few of these studies have been conducted in humid, fertile savannas. We present the findings of a short-term experiment that investigated the effects of herbivory in a fertile, humid, and semi-managed savanna. We erected large-herbivore exclosures in Alas Purwo National Park, Java, Indonesia where rainfall is high and fire is suppressed to test how herbivores impact plant community development across the growing season. Where large mammalian herbivores were excluded, herbaceous plant communities contained more non-grasses and were less similar; diverging in their composition as the growing season progressed. Effects of herbivore exclusion on plant species richness, evenness, and biomass per quadrat were generally weak. Notably, however, two weedy plant species (one native, Imperata cylindrica and one introduced, Senna cf. tora) appeared to benefit most from herbivore release. Our results suggest that heavy grazing pressure by native large mammalian herbivores controlled the composition of the herbaceous plant community. Moreover, exclusion of large mammalian herbivores led to divergence in the plant species composition of exclosures; compositional dissimilarity between herbivore-exclusion plots was higher than between plots exposed to large mammalian herbivores. Our findings suggest that, at this high-rainfall site, large mammalian herbivores constrained the developmental trajectory of plant communities across the growing season.
| S-EPMC8297766 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Loss of biodiversity caused by impact of elephants (Loxodonta africana) on African woodlands may require a management response, but any action should be based on an understanding of why elephants choose to utilise trees destructively. Comprehension of elephant feeding behaviour requires consideration of the relative value of the plant groups they may potentially consume. Profitability of available food is partly determined by the time to locate a food patch and, therefore, as a foundation for understanding the influence of food availability on diet selection, key controls on the density of grass, forb, and browse patches were investigated across space and time in a semi-arid African savanna. Density of food patches changed seasonally because plant life-forms required different volumes of soil water to produce green forage; and woody plants and forbs responded to long-term changes in soil moisture, while grasses responded to short-term moisture pulses. Soil texture, structure of woody vegetation and fire added further complexity by altering the soil water thresholds required for production of green forage. Interpolating between regularly-timed, ground-based measurements of food density by using modelled soil water as the predictor in regression equations may be a feasible method of quantifying food available to elephants in complex savanna environments.
| S-EPMC5480392 | biostudies-literature