El papel funcional de la interacción planta-mamífero en el mantenimiento de la diversidad tropical

Mammals represent a particularly distinctive and charismatic element of tropical biodiversity. Yet, populations of these animals are greatly endangered by hunting and habitat loss. This phenomenon (i.e., defaunation) has direct impacts on tropical biodiversity by removing animal populations, reducing genetic variability and ultimately driving species towards extinction. In addition to these direct effects defaunation has the potential to bring about indirect effects due to the “extinction” of the biotic interactions in which mammals are involved in. For example, defaunation of herbivore mammals has the potential to disrupt trophic cascades by altering seedling establishment patterns. However, the extent to which defaunation of herbivore mammals can impact floristic diversity remains as an open question. In this paper we: a) show the potential of defaunation of mammalian herbivores to impact plant population dynamics through the alteration of herbivory, seed dispersal and seed predation regimes; b) examine the evidence showing how defaunation effects at the plant population-level have the potential to affect the structure and diversity of the forest understory and c) discuss the implications of mammalian herbivore defaunation for the maintenance of tropical biodiversity.