Arid
DOI10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00552.x
Giant Tortoises as Ecological Engineers: A Long-term Quasi-experiment in the Galapagos Islands
Gibbs, James P.1; Sterling, Eleanor J.2; Javier Zabala, F.3
通讯作者Gibbs, James P.
来源期刊BIOTROPICA
ISSN0006-3606
出版年2010
卷号42期号:2页码:208-214
英文摘要

Giant tortoises were once a megafaunal element widespread in tropical and subtropical ecosystems. The role of giant tortoises as herbivores and seed dispersers, however, is poorly known. We evaluated tortoise impacts on Opuntia cactus (Cactaceae) in the Galapagos Islands, one of the last areas where giant tortoises remain extant, where the cactus is a keystone resource for many animals. We contrasted cactus populations immediately inside and outside natural habitats where tortoises had been held captive for several decades. Through browsing primarily and trampling secondarily tortoises strongly reduced densities of small (0.5-1.5 m high) cacti, especially near adult cacti, and thereby reduced densities of cacti in larger size classes. Tortoises also caused a shift from vegetative to sexual modes of reproduction in cacti. We conclude that giant tortoises promote a sparse and scattered distribution in Opuntia cactus and its associated biota in the Galapagos Islands.


英文关键词cactus Ecuador herbivory opuntia saurocory trampling tropical dry forest
类型Article
语种英语
国家USA ; Ecuador
收录类别SCI-E
WOS记录号WOS:000275215700011
WOS关键词CHIHUAHUAN DESERT ; OPUNTIA ; POPULATION ; VEGETATION ; CACTACEAE ; ECUADOR ; GROWTH ; PLANTS ; CACTUS ; GOATS
WOS类目Ecology
WOS研究方向Environmental Sciences & Ecology
资源类型期刊论文
条目标识符http://119.78.100.177/qdio/handle/2XILL650/163516
作者单位1.SUNY Syracuse, Coll Environm Sci & Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210 USA;
2.Amer Museum Nat Hist, Ctr Biodivers & Conservat, New York, NY 10024 USA;
3.Charles Darwin Res Stn, Santa Cruz, Galapagos Isl, Ecuador
推荐引用方式
GB/T 7714
Gibbs, James P.,Sterling, Eleanor J.,Javier Zabala, F.. Giant Tortoises as Ecological Engineers: A Long-term Quasi-experiment in the Galapagos Islands[J],2010,42(2):208-214.
APA Gibbs, James P.,Sterling, Eleanor J.,&Javier Zabala, F..(2010).Giant Tortoises as Ecological Engineers: A Long-term Quasi-experiment in the Galapagos Islands.BIOTROPICA,42(2),208-214.
MLA Gibbs, James P.,et al."Giant Tortoises as Ecological Engineers: A Long-term Quasi-experiment in the Galapagos Islands".BIOTROPICA 42.2(2010):208-214.
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