Padrão de frugivoria por Tapirus terrestris na Mata Atlântica do norte do Espírito Santo, Brasil

• Ano de defesa: 2015
• Autor(a) principal: Seibert, Jardel Brandão
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: por
• Instituição de defesa: Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo; BR; Mestrado em Biologia Animal; UFES; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas
• Palavras-chave em Português: Tapirus terrestris; Atlantic Forest; Seeds; Frugivoria; Mata Atlântica; Anta; Umbu-cajá; Sementes - Dispersão; Florestas tropicais; Zoologia; 57
• Link de acesso: http://repositorio.ufes.br/handle/10/1421

The lowland tapir Tapirus terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758) the last representative of the Pleistocene megafauna in the Neotropical region, represents an important functional group, dispersing a variety of vegetables, especially fruits. However, pattern in frugivory can vary among different areas. Here we investigated the degree of frugivory of this specie in two different areas in the state of Espírito Santo, and its importance for forest dynamics. We collected fecal samples, through active search at different environments, in the Private Natural Heritage Reserve Recanto das Antas (RPNN Recanto das Antas), and in the Córrego do Veado Biological Reserve (Rebio Córrego do Veado), between January 2011 and December 2013. After triage of biological material, the seeds were individualized, classified and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. Was had a sampling effort of 130 days, resulting in 325 fecal samples, which 53.2% were collected in the Rebio Córrego do Veado, and 46.8% in the RPPN Recanto das Antas. From the samples, 41.8% were deposited in or near water bodies and 58.2% were collected from the litter or dry substrate. The diet of the lowland tapir was composed of 94.1% fiber and 5.9% of fruit. We found twice as much samples containing seeds in the RPPN Recanto das Antas than in Rebio Córrego do Veado. From the 30 morphospecies found in the samples, we identified 15 at species level, belonging to eight families. The most representative families were Anacardiaceae, Fabaceae and Myrtaceae. The most frequent species were Spondias macrocarpa Engl. and S. venulosa (Engl.) Engl. From the seeds found, 60% with zoochoric dispersion syndrome, 46.7% had the seed size varying from large to very large and 50% had dry fruits types. From the morphospecies found, seven were recorded in both protected areas, 21 were found only in the RPPN Recanto das Antas and two were only found in the Rebio Córrego do Veado. This may indicate that the RPPN Recanto das Antas can provide more fruits than the Rebio Córrego do Veado, which may be a result of anthropogenic disturbances occurred in the last protect area. In the 1980s, a fire burned 80% of the Rebio Córrego do Veado, and today, the reserve completely isolated, surrounded mainly by pastures. In the contrary, the RPPN Recanto das Antas had its area extensively explored in the 1950s, but it is still inserted within the largest remaining of Atlantic Forest in the Espírito Santo. Although the lowland tapir has a diet composed of a variety of fruits, in our study areas it appears to be less frugivorous than in other areas of the Atlantic Forest. However, it is evident the importance of T. terrestris to the dispersion of a large number of plants, especially of those with large seeds, increasing the recruitment of plants that are not dispersed by small animals.