Atlantic flower-invertebrate interactions: A data set of occurrence and frequency of floral visits.

Encounters between flowers and invertebrates are key events for the functioning of tropical forests. Assessing the structure of networks composed of the interactions between those partners leads to a better understanding of ecosystem functioning and the effects of environmental factors on ecological processes. Gathering such data is, however, costly and time-consuming, especially in the highly diverse tropics. We aimed to provide a comprehensive repository of available flower-invertebrate interaction information for the Atlantic Forest, a South American tropical forest domain. Data were obtained from published works and "gray literature," such as theses and dissertations, as well as self-reports by co-authors. The data set has ~18,000 interaction records forming 482 networks, each containing between one and 1061 interaction links. Each network was sampled for about 200 h or less, with few exceptions. A total of 641 plant genera within 136 different families and 39 orders were reported, with the most abundant and rich families being Asteraceae, Fabaceae, and Rubiaceae. Invertebrates interacting with these plants were all arthropods from 10 orders, 129 families, and 581 genera, comprising 2419 morphotypes (including 988 named species). Hymenoptera was the most abundant and diverse order, with at least six times more records than the second-ranked order (Lepidoptera). The complete data set shows Hymenoptera interacting with all plant orders and also shows Diptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Hemiptera to be important nodes. Among plants, Asterales and Fabales had the highest number of interactions. The best sampled environment was forest (~8000 records), followed by pastures and crops. Savanna, grasslands, and urban environments (among others) were also reported, indicating a wide range of approaches dedicated to collecting flower-invertebrate interaction data in the Atlantic Forest domain. Nevertheless, most reported data were from forest understory or lower strata, indicating a knowledge gap about flower-invertebrate interactions at the canopy. Also, access to remote regions remains a limitation, generating sampling bias across the geographical range of the Atlantic Forest. Future studies in these continuous and hard-to-access forested areas will yield important new information regarding the interactions between flowers and invertebrates in the Atlantic Forest. There are no copyright restrictions on the data set. Please cite this data paper if the data are used in publications and teaching events.

Presencia de un primate endémico y amenazado en un paisaje cambiante en los Llanos Orientales de Colombia / Presence of an endangered endemic primate in an ever-changing landscape in the eastern plains of colombia

ABSTRACT Plecturocebus ornatus is an endemic vulnerable species due to its population decline and its restricted range within the Eastern Plains of Colombia. This region is affected by deforestation as a result of legal and illegal economic activities. The aim of this work was to analyze the presence and abundance of P. ornatus during a period of urban and livestock production expansion (1986-2019) in Villavicencio, Colombia. This municipality is the most affected by land-use changes associated with regional economic development and represents 3.4 % of P. ornatus distribution's area. The analysis was performed using satellite images Landsat 4 and 8, with V-Late in ArcGIS 10.5 to describe landscape structure, and P. ornatus occurrence records, obtained through field observations and the Global Biological Information Facility. Densities were calculated for each fragment based on total individuals observed by transect. A generalized lineal model was used to evaluate the effects of patch-scale, landscape-scale and other variables on P. ornatus abundance. By 1986 the rural and peri-urban areas of Villavicencio were already a transformed landscape. During the analyzed period, landscape was predominantly made up of disconnected linear fragments with a secondary humid forest cover. Around 82.1 % of the fragments with P. ornatus records are threatened by urbanization and only 50 % are in protected areas. Densities varied from 0.00 to 7.26 ind/ha (0.00-726.82 ind/km2). Abundance of P. ornatus was highly influenced by landscape-scale variables related with landscape connectivity, as well as fragment area and number of other primate species. Therefore, the implementation of restoration measures that increase landscape connectivity and habitat availability is proposed, as well as more control over environmental land-use planning, to contribute to the conservation of P. ornatus in urban areas.

RESUMEN Plecturocebus ornatus es una especie endémica vulnerable debido a la disminución de su población y distribución restringida al piedemonte de los Llanos Orientales Colombianos. Esta región es afectada por la deforestación resultante de actividades económicas legales e ilegales. El objetivo de este trabajo fue analizar la presencia y abundancia de P. ornatus durante un período de expansión urbana y ganadera (1986-2019) en Villavicencio, Colombia. Este municipio es el más afectado por cambios de uso del suelo asociados al desarrollo económico regional y representa el 3,4 % del área de distribución de P. ornatus. El análisis se realizó a partir de imágenes satelitales Landsat 4 y 8, con V-Late de ArcGIS 10.5, para describir la estructura del paisaje, y registros de P. ornatus obtenidos en observaciones de campo y del Global Biological Information Facility. Se calcularon densidades de cada fragmento basadas en el número total de individuos observados. Un modelo lineal generalizado fue usado para evaluar el efecto de variables a la escala del parche, paisaje y otros sobre la abundancia de P. ornatus. Para 1986 los sectores rurales y periurbanos de Villavicencio ya eran un paisaje transformado. Durante el período analizado, el paisaje estuvo predominantemente conformado por fragmentos lineales desconectados con cobertura de bosque húmedo secundario. Alrededor del 82,1 % de los fragmentos con registros de P. ornatus están amenazados por la urbanización y solo el 50 % se encuentran en áreas protegidas. Las densidades variaron de 0,00 to 7,26 ind/ha (0,00-726,82 ind/km2). La abundancia de P. ornatus fue altamente influenciada por variables a la escala de paisaje relacionadas con la conectividad del paisaje, así como el área del fragmento y la presencia de otras especies de primates. Por lo tanto, la implementación de medidas de restauración que incrementen la conectividad del paisaje y disponibilidad de hábitat, así como un mayor control sobre el ordenamiento territorial ambiental, pueden contribuir a la conservación de P. ornatus en áreas urbanas.

ATLANTIC POLLINATION: a data set of flowers and interaction with nectar-feeding vertebrates from the Atlantic Forest.

Flowering plant species and their nectar-feeding vertebrates exemplify some of the most remarkable biotic interactions in the Neotropics. In the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, several species of birds (especially hummingbirds), bats, and non-flying mammals, as well as one lizard feed on nectar, often act as pollinators and contribute to seed output of flowering plants. We present a dataset containing information on flowering plants visited by nectar-feeding vertebrates and sampled at 166 localities in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. This dataset provides information on 1902 unique interactions among 515 species of flowering plants and 129 species of potential vertebrate pollinators and the patterns of species diversity across latitudes. All plant-vertebrate interactions compiled were recorded through direct observations of visits, and no inferences of pollinators based on floral syndromes were included. We also provide information on the most common plant traits used to understand the interactions between flowers and nectar-feeding vertebrates: plant growth form, corolla length, rate of nectar production per hour in bagged flowers, nectar concentration, flower color and shape, time of anthesis, presence or absence of perceptible fragrance by human, and flowering phenology as well as the plant's threat status by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classification. For the vertebrates, status of threat by IUCN classification, body mass, bill or rostrum size are provided. Information on the frequency of visits and pollen deposition on the vertebrate's body is provided from the original source when available. The highest number of unique interactions is recorded for birds (1771) followed by bats (110). For plants, Bromeliaceae contains the highest number of unique interactions (606), followed by Fabaceae (242) and Gesneriaceae (104). It is evident that there was geographical bias of the studies throughout the southeast of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and that most effort was directed to flower-hummingbird interactions. However, it reflects a worldwide tendency of more plants interacting with birds compared with other vertebrate species. The lack of similar protocols among studies to collect basic data limits the comparisons among areas and generalizations. Nevertheless, this dataset represents a notable effort to organize and highlight the importance of vertebrate pollinators in this hotspot of biodiversity on Earth and represents the data currently available. No copyright or proprietary restrictions are associated with the use of this data set. Please cite this data paper when the data are used in publications or scientific events.

Forest and connectivity loss simplify tropical pollination networks.

Mutualistic interactions between plants and pollinators play an essential role in the organization and persistence of biodiversity. The structure of interaction networks mediates the resilience of local communities and ecosystem functioning to environmental changes. Hence, network structure conservation may be more critical for maintaining biodiversity and ecological services than the preservation of isolated species in changing landscapes. Here, we intensively surveyed seven 36 km2 landscapes to empirically investigate the effects of forest loss and landscape configuration on the structure of plant-pollinator networks in understory vegetation of Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Our results indicate that forest loss and isolation affect the structure of the plant-pollinator networks, which were smaller in deforested landscapes, and less specialized as patch isolation increased. Lower nestedness and degree of specialization (H'2) indicated that the remaining plant and bee species tend to be generalists, and many of the expected specialized interactions in the network were already lost. Because generalist species generate a cohesive interaction core in these networks, these simplified networks might be resistant to loss of peripheral species, but may be susceptible to the extinction of the most generalist species. We suggest that such a network pattern is an outcome of landscapes with a few remaining isolated patches of natural habitat. Our results add a new perspective to studies of plant-pollinator networks in fragmented landscapes, showing that those interaction networks might also be used to indicate how changes in natural habitat affect biodiversity and biotic interactions.