Morales-Trejo Juan J, Dáttilo Wesley, Zurita Gustavo, Arellano Lucrecia
Instituto de Ecología, A.C. (INECOL), Red de Ecoetología, Carretera Antigua a Coatepec 351, El Haya, Xalapa 91073, Ver., Mexico.
División de Posgrado en Ciencias, Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Km 2.5 Camino Antiguo a Coatepec 351, Xalapa 91073, Ver., Mexico.
Insects. 2024 Sep 27;15(10):749. doi: 10.3390/insects15100749.
Cattle ranching is an economic activity responsible for the loss of large extensions of tropical dry forest around the world. Several studies have demonstrated that the use of inadequate practices of this activity in tropical forests (e.g., fire, agrochemicals, and lack of rotational grazing systems of cattle in pastures) have negative consequences on dung beetle diversity and their ecological functions. In the present study, the influence of the cattle ranching duration gradient on the diversity of dung beetles and seed removal was evaluated. This study was carried out in pastures with different times of establishment of cattle ranching (between 4 and 40 years) in a tropical dry forest of Mexico. Overall, the species richness of dung beetles was similar along the gradient of grazing ages. However, the diversity of common (q1) and dominant (q2) species decreased and was associated with an increasing abundance of exotic species and a decreasing abundance of native species. Seed removal was mainly carried out by four beetle species, among which the exotic species was the most important. The results establish that the duration of cattle ranching primarily influences the composition of dung beetle communities, as reflected in changes in the structure and function of their assemblages in the pastures. Although native dung beetles persist at low abundances along this gradient, the consequences of land use changes are undeniable in other similar ecosystems where these species could definitively disappear.
养牛业是一种经济活动，它导致了全球大片热带干旱森林的消失。多项研究表明，在热带森林中，这种活动采用的不当做法（如火灾、农用化学品以及牧场缺乏牛群轮牧系统）会对蜣螂的多样性及其生态功能产生负面影响。在本研究中，评估了养牛业持续时间梯度对蜣螂多样性和种子移除的影响。这项研究是在墨西哥热带干旱森林中不同养牛业建立时间（4至40年）的牧场中进行的。总体而言，沿着放牧年限梯度，蜣螂的物种丰富度相似。然而，常见物种（q1）和优势物种（q2）的多样性下降，且与外来物种丰度增加和本地物种丰度降低有关。种子移除主要由四种甲虫物种进行，其中外来物种最为重要。结果表明，养牛业的持续时间主要影响蜣螂群落的组成，这体现在牧场中其群落结构和功能的变化上。尽管本地蜣螂在这个梯度上以低丰度持续存在，但在其他类似生态系统中，土地利用变化的后果不可否认，在这些生态系统中这些物种可能最终消失。
