Tropical Biology:

Linking Tropical Biology with Human Dimensions

Program and Abstracts

The Annual Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
July 15-19 2007 Morelia, Mexico

Hosted by

Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico

Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Mexico

Sponsored by
 The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
Anual Metting: Linking Tropical Biology with Human Dimensions
.July 15-19, 2007 Morelia , Mexico

SYMPOSIA MONDAY MORNING

positively influence forest regeneration in tropical rain forest fragments in the

Lancandona region.

Keywords: Howler monkey, seed dispersal, germination, regeneration forest

11:20 The influence of large tree density on Howler Monkey (Alouatta palliata mexicana)
presence in very small rainforest fragments

Arroyo-Rodriguez Victor(1), Mandujano Salvador(1), Benitez-Malvido Julieta(2),

1
Instituto de Ecologia A.C.
2
Centro de Investigacion en Ecosistemas, UNAM
email: victorarroyo_rodriguez@hotmail.com

The populations of the Mexican mantled howler monkey (Alouatta palliata mexicana) in
the Los Tuxtlas region, Mexico, have declined drastically due to habitat loss and
fragmentation. Nevertheless, several troops still inhabit very small and isolated rainforest
fragments. We identified the main vegetation attributes that can favour the presence of
howlers within 18 small (< 10-ha) fragments that did not differ significantly in size, shape
and isolation (nine occupied and nine unoccupied by howlers). We found that habitat
quality (i.e., food resources and vegetation structure) affected howler incidence in small
fragments. Particularly, the occupied fragments showed greater density of big trees (DBH
> 60 cm), greater total basal area, greater basal area of persistent tree species and
greater basal area of top food species than the unoccupied fragments; suggesting that
even for small fragments the loss of big trees and particularly the decrease in size class
of the top food species can negatively affect howler distribution in highly fragmented
landscapes. These findings could be used to establish foreground conservation areas for
this critically endangered subspecies in fragmented landscapes of Los Tuxtlas.

keywords: fragmentation, habitat quality, Los Tuxtlas, Mexican mantled howler

monkeys, Mexico

11:40 Spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) in small reserves: can mutualistic interactions
between large monkeys and large seeded plants be maintained in the Osa
Peninsula, southwestern Costa Rica?

Pablo Riba Hernández1 and Kathryn E. Stoner2

1
Universidad de Costa Rica, Escuela de Biología, San José, Costa Rica
2
Centro de investigaciones de Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
Email: proyectocarey@yahoo.com.mx, kstoner@oikos.unam.mx

Spider Monkeys (Ateles) are the largest Neotropical specialized frugivores capable of
dispersing large seeds. Due to anthropogenic actions, the Osa Peninsula in
southwestern Costa Rica has been fragmented into small islands with only a few
protected areas. It is unknown to what extent mutualistic interactions, such as seed
dispersal of large seeds by monkeys, are maintained within these small protected
reserves. We evaluate the status of Ateles geoffroyi as seed dispersers in the tropical
rainforest at Punta Rio Claro Wildlife Refuge (500 ha; 90% mature forest). If this small

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 The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
Anual Metting: Linking Tropical Biology with Human Dimensions
.July 15-19, 2007 Morelia , Mexico

SYMPOSIA MONDAY MORNING

reserve is successful in maintaining the mutualistic interactions offered by Ateles we

expected: 1) large-seeded plants will be included in their diet, 2) most fruits consumed
will result in seed dispersal, 3) foraging will occur mainly in mature forest, and 4)
monkeys will be present year around within the reserve. Ateles consumed fruits from 52
of the 70 tree species reported for the reserve. Their diet included 30% large-seeded
species, with all species being swallowed and dispersed. Large-seeded tree species
were the most important in their diet. Approximately 90 % of their foraging time occurred
in primary forest. Although it appears as if the mutualistic interaction of seed dispersal by
Ateles is maintained within this small reserve, monkeys were not found year around,
being absent in the months coinciding with the lowest fruit availability. These results
suggest that 500 ha may not be big enough to sustain local populations of Ateles within
the region. Their absence within small fragments, even for part of the year, may have
consequences for the regeneration of large-seeded plants and ultimately effect forest
structure and composition. We suggest that conservation efforts within the region focus
on preserving larger fragments of mature forest to ensure the maintenance of mutualisitc
interactions between large-seeded plants and their dispersers.

Keywords: frugivory, mutualism, fragmentation, primates

12:00 Human dimension of primate conservation issues in tropical countries and

conservation value of some current, traditional and alternative land management
practices from Mesoamerica

Alejandro Estrada, Genoveva Trejo and Cristina Jasso

Estación de Biología Tropical Los Tuxtlas, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional
Autónoma de México
Email: aestrada@primatesmx.com

Pressures for land use have been pointed out as the major cause of tropical rain forest
loss and fragmentation throughout the world, and a major cause of increases in rates of
species extinction in recent decades. The high primate diversity found in the Neotropics,
Africa and Asia makes these regions one of the world’s greatest conservation
challenges. In this paper we examine several aspects of the human dimension of the
conservation problem of primates and their habitats in these three regions. We
specifically review available data on human population growth trends, levels of poverty,
major land use patterns as they relate to food production, and deforestation rates and
trends. We additionally inspect the PrimateLit database to generally assess the richness
of our data banks on the basic biology, ecology and behavior of primate taxa for the three
geographic regions of interest. We further examine regional conservation initiatives and
their possible impact upon the persistence of primate habitats. Finally, using a landscape
approach, we look at some current, traditional and alternative land management
practices in Mesoamerica as possible conservation scenarios of primate populations in
human-modified landscapes.

Keywords: Mesoamerica, deforestation, poverty, traditional land-use, tropical rain forest

conservation

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 The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
Anual Metting: Linking Tropical Biology with Human Dimensions
.July 15-19, 2007 Morelia , Mexico

ORAL PRESENTATIONS MONDAY MORNING

14 bird-dispersed plants to test the defense trade-off hypothesis. We prevented fruit

removal by covering 4 branches with a net and left another 4 branches available to birds.
The survival of ripe fruits was drastically different among species for bagged and open
fruits and all fruit species persisted longer when protected by frugivores. Fruit traits
influence survival rate of bagged and open fruits, whereas fruits with high lipid and
energy contents persisted for a short period of time, fruits with high phenol and tannin
contents persisted for longer periods in both treatments. In our study, fruit removal was
mediated by the stimulating effects of energy and lipids contents and the deterring
effects of phenol and tannin. The removal-rate model of the trade-off hypothesis states
that profitable fruits are quickly removed and contain low levels of secondary compounds
and thus explains the found pattern. Since the content of secondary compounds also
affected the persistence time, our results corroborated the assumptions that secondary
compounds increase persistence time preserving fruits against microbial and
invertebrate pests, which can be particularly advantageous for plant species that depend
on rare or unreliable seed dispersers or survival in degraded landscapes with low
abundance of frugivores.

10:40 Are scarlet macaws (Ara macao) and mealy parrots (Amazona farinosa) redundant pre-
dispersal seed predtors? Evidence from the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
Riba Pablo
Universidad de Costa Rica
proyectocarey@yahoo.com.mx

Psittacids represent the highest biomass of volant granivores in Neotropical areas.

Some studies have shown that sympatric parrots can share a high number of plant
species in their diet, suggesting that they may be redundant pre-dispersal seed
predators in tropical regions. Scarlet macaws and Mealy parrots are the largest
psittacids in the tropical humid forest of the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica and are
sympatric. The goal of this study is to determine if these two species are redundant
seed predators in this region. I documented seed predation of these two psittacids using
feeding bout observations during systematic trail walks in two habitats (coastal and
interior forest). During the preliminary six month assessment 132 feeding observations
were registered; 125 correspond to seed predation events (71 macaws and 52 parrots).
These two psittacids had a very specialized diet with low niche overlap. Only three of the
24 seed species preyed upon by these two psittacids were shared. Combretaceae
species were the most important seed resource used by macaws, while Elaeocarpaceae
was the most common tree family in the diet of parrots. Macaws preyed on more seeds
of animal-dispersed plants, while parrots preyed on more wind-dispersed plants. Neither
of the two species showed preference for a particular fruit size. Moreover, macaws were
observed feeding more in coastal forest, while parrots were observed more in inland
forest. These diet differences and feeding habitat preferences suggest that these
sympatric psittacids are not redundant as seed predators in tropical areas, and further,
suggest that the disappearance of either of these species could have potential
implications on tropical forest dynamics.

11-00 Coffee Break

11:20 Secondary dispersal by dung beetles and fate of Rollinia edulis (Annonaceae) seeds

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 The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
Anual Metting: Linking Tropical Biology with Human Dimensions
.July 15-19, 2007 Morelia , Mexico

ORAL PRESENTATIONS MONDAY AFTERNOON

to recruitment distances reveals mean recruitment distances > 100 m. The results imply
a fitness advantage to seeds dispersed long distances. Results are discussed in terms
of the role of random (gap availability) and non-random processes (Janzen-Connell
processes) in generating the observed recruitment curve. I will also briefly present data
on how dispersal and recruitment create patterns of spatial genetic structure and some
demographic consequences of spatial genetic structure to seed production in adults.
Finally, I will discuss implication of these results to the maintenance of forest
biodiversity.

15:00 Coffee Break

15:20 Pervasive predation of nutmeg (Virola koschnyi) seed by land crabs (Gecarcinus
quadratus) in the Osa peninsula, Costa Rica.
Riba PABLO; Terry Jennifer
Universidad de Costa Rica; Humboldt State University
proyectocarey@yahoo.com.mx

Land crabs and small mammals are terrestrial granivores in coastal and inland tropical
rain forests. This study attempt to determine whether nutmeg seeds survival is affected
differently by the change of land crabs density. Coastal rainforest is dominated by land
crabs and their density drops toward inland. It was expected to find a greater rate of
seed removal by crabs in coastal forest (crab zone) than in inland forest (ƒ?ocrab-
lessƒ?? zone), while the opposite seed removal rate was expected to be found by small
rodents. In addition, we were interested to determine the fate of seeds handled by land
crabs. We used experimental seed stations (N=12) in both zones (N=6 per habitat).
Coastal forests seed stations were located 50 meters from the ocean. Inland seed
stations were located at 600 meters inland from the coastal stations. At each seed
station, seeds were under three exclosure treatment: 1) large mammals, 2) land crabs,
and 3) rodents and land crabs and 4) no exclosure. Each treatment had three threaded
seeds with 1 meter fishing line and a 0.2 meter of pink flagging tape to locate them after
removal. Coastal zone had a greater density of crabs than inland zone. After 10 days of
the experiment, most seeds were removed from the open experiment. Seed removal
rate comparison among treatments, and seed deposition location after removal, showed
no evidence of rodent activity in both habitats. Rather, it suggests that land crabs
removed the majority of seeds, and protection of seeds from land crabs increased their
survival in our study site. In addition, all seeds removed by land crabs were destroyed
and no nutmeg seedlings were found around the crabƒ?Ts burrows. This study suggests
that land crabs play an important role in the early regeneration of nutmeg trees in the
Osa peninsula, Costa Rica.

15:40 Dispersal dynamics affect the distribution, but not the abundance, of tropical trees: A
study of tropical tree communities in Amazonian Peru
Dexter Kyle
Duke University
kyle.dexter@duke.edu

The dispersal assembly perspective holds that dispersal dynamics are the primary
determinant of the distribution and relative abundance of species. I present patterns in

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