Defaunation in the Anthropocene
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Citations
Persistence of the effect of frugivore identity on post-dispersal seed fate: consequences for the assessment of functional redundancy
Quantifying biodiversity footprints of Dutch economic sectors: A global supply-chain analysis
Bioacoustics for species management: two case studies with a Hawaiian forest bird
Mammal body size evolution in North America and Europe over 20 Myr: similar trends generated by different processes
Biodiversity Conservation Requires Management of Feral Domestic Animals.
References
Global biodiversity scenarios for the year 2100.
Biodiversity loss and its impact on humanity
Global pollinator declines: trends, impacts and drivers.
Global Biodiversity: Indicators of Recent Declines
Crop losses to pests
Related Papers (5)
Trophic Downgrading of Planet Earth
Frequently Asked Questions (13)
Q2. What are the main drivers of defaunation in terrestrial ecosystems?
156 157Multiple, unaddressed drivers of defaunation 158extinction in terrestrial ecosystems, namely overexploitation, habitat destruction, and 160 impacts from invasive species remain pervasive (18).
Q3. What is the impact of defaunation on the ecosystem?
176 177Consequences of defaunation 178As animal loss represents a major change in biodiversity, it is likely to have important 179 effects on ecosystem functioning.
Q4. What is the impact of decomposition on the ecosystem?
The diversity of invertebrate communities, 209 particularly their functional diversity, can have dramatic impacts on decomposition rates 210 and nutrient cycling (59-61).
Q5. What is the impact of defaunation on other species?
Since defaunation of vertebrates often 248 selects on body size, and smaller individuals are often unable to replace fully the 249 ecological services their larger counterparts provide, there is strong potential for 250studied are the indirect evolutionary effects of defaunation on other species, not directly 252 impacted by human defaunation.
Q6. What are the effects of a devaunation on human health?
Defaunation will affect human health in many other ways, via 222 reductions in ecosystem goods and services (65) including pharmaceutical compounds, 223 livestock species, biocontrol agents, food resources and disease regulation.
Q7. Why have these ‘extinction models’ made little impact on conservation management?
these ‘extinction models’ have made 131 little impact on conservation management, in part because trait correlations are often 132 idiosyncratic and context dependent (31).
Q8. What is the important thing to know about the extinction of invertebrates?
87 Loss of invertebrate biodiversity has received much less attention and data are 88extinction, and range contraction among terrestrial invertebrates are at least as severe as 90 among vertebrates (23, 24).
Q9. How does the use of statistical models help to understand patterns of biodiversity loss?
124 The use of statistical models based on life history characteristics (traits) has 125 gained traction as a way to understand patterns of biodiversity loss (31).
Q10. How many species have experienced severe range declines in the last 98 several decades?
96 Long term distribution data on moths and four other insect Orders in the UK show that a 97 substantial proportion of species have experienced severe range declines in the last 98 several decades (19, 25) (Fig 1B).
Q11. What is the effect of large wildlife removal on the ecosystem?
Changes 351 in animal abundance from low (blue, L) to high (red, H) within a region have been shown 352 to affect a wide range of ecological processes and services (19) including: A) seed 353 dispersal (flying foxes), B) litter respiration and decomposition (seabirds), C) carrion 354 removal (vultures), D) herbivory (large mammals), E) water quality and stream 355 restoration (amphibians), F) trampling of seedlings (mammals), G) dung removal (dung 356 beetles), H) pollination and plant recruitment (birds), I) carbon cycling (nematodes), and 357 J) soil erosion and cattle fodder (prairie dogs).
Q12. What is the effect of defaunation on the environment?
the effects of defaunation will be much less about 271 the loss of absolute diversity than about local shifts in species compositions and 272 functional groups within a community (80).
Q13. What are the impacts of defaunation on the ecology of a species?
242243 Impacts on evolutionary patterns 244The effects of defaunation appear not just proximally important to the ecology of 245 impacted species and systems, but also have evolutionary consequences.