Dispersão de sementes por guigós (Callicebus coimbrai) e conservação da Mata do Junco, Capela - SE

• Ano de defesa: 2014
• Autor(a) principal: Correia, Fernanda Bezerra de Aragão
• Orientador(a): Ferrari, Stephen Francis
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Tipo de acesso: Acesso aberto
• Idioma: por
• Programa de Pós-Graduação: Pós-Graduação em Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente
• Palavras-chave em Português: Japuça - Habitat - Sergipe; Ecologia animal; Japuça; Animais frugívoros; Proteção ambiental - Sergipe; Mata do Junco, Capela, SE; Mata do Junco, Capela, SE - Conservação
• Palavras-chave em Inglês: Animal ecology; Environmental protection; Frugivores; Sergipe (Brazil); Titis (Mammals)
• Área do conhecimento CNPq: CNPQ::OUTROS
• Link de acesso: https://ri.ufs.br/handle/riufs/4120

The present study, part of the Guigó Project , was based on the continuation of the analysis of the role of Callicebus coimbrai in the seed dispersal and regeneration of habitats in the fragmented landscape of the Atlantic Forest of Sergipe, Brazil. A group of C. coimbrai with six members (a breeding pair, two subadults, one juvenile, and one infant) was monitored between December, 2012, and October, 2013, in the Mata do Junco State Wildlife Refuge in the municipality of Capela, Sergipe. During five days per month, the study group was monitored continuously throughout the daily activity period. Data were collected in feeding-tree focal samples for the analysis of feeding behavior, with fecal samples being collected for the verification of the ingestion of seeds by the animals. Focal-animal samples were also collected, in which group members were monitored continuously during the daily activity period for the recording of feeding and defecation events (with the same set of data being collected for each event). Specimens of dung beetles (Scarabaeidae) were also collected, whenever they were found in association with the feces. During each feeding event, the time, source, number of individuals visiting the source, and the number of fruits ingested were recorded, as well as the geographic coordinates, using a GPS. Details of the feeding behavior were also recorded, in relation to the parts of the fruit consumed and the ingestion of seeds. For each observed defecation event, the time, individual, and location (GPS) were recorded, and whenever possible, a sample of the feces was collected (together with specimens of dung beetles) for analysis. Seed dispersal was evaluated by measuring the distance (in ArcGis) between the sites at which the seeds were found in the feces and the probable source of the seeds. The members of the Junco group fed primarily on fruit, with a smaller contribution of leaves, flowers, seeds, and insects. A total of 488 defecation events were observed, resulting in the collection of 359 fecal samples (73.6% of the total) for analysis. In approximately 10% of these events (n = 46), scarabaeid specimens were collected for identification. Analysis of the fecal samples indicated that just over half the feces (56.5%) contained the seeds of at least 11 different plants species (with one to 26 seeds being found in a sample). In the focal-animal samples, between one and 15 events were recorded in a single day. Dispersal distances were generally between 100 m and 200 m, with a maximum distance of 211 m being recorded. Systematic variation was found in all parameters, related primarily to the seasonal variation in the availability of fruit. Longitudinal variation was also found in the plant species exploited by the group in the same period of 2012. Overall, the results of the study emphasize the importance of C. coimbrai as a seed disperser, and in particular, its role in the regeneration of the fragmented habitats that are typical of the Atlantic Forest of Sergipe.