Human-induced reduction in mammalian movements impacts seed dispersal in the tropics

Abstract

Seed dispersal is a key process affecting the structure, composition and spatial dynamics of plant populations. Numerous plant species in the tropics rely upon animals to disperse their seeds. Humans have altered mammalian movements, which will likely affect seed dispersal distances (SDD). Altered SDD may have a range of consequences for plant communities including reduced seedling recruitment and plant biomass, seed trait homogenization, altered gene flow and a reduced capacity to respond to environmental changes. Therefore, modelling the consequences of altered animal behaviour on ecosystem processes is important for predicting how ecosystems will respond to human impacts. While previous research has focused on the link between animal species extirpation and SDD, it remains unclear how changes in mammalian movement will impact SDD. Here we implemented a mechanistic modelling approach to examine how mammalian movement reductions impact SDD in the tropics. We combined allometric theory with a mechanistic seed dispersal model to estimate SDD via the movement of 37 large frugivorous mammals (> 10 kg) in the tropics under different levels of human footprint, a global proxy of direct and indirect human disturbances. Our results suggest that assemblage-level SDD reductions are estimated to be up to 80% across the tropics in response to human disturbance. This is particularly the case in areas with high human impact such as agricultural landscapes and suburban areas. The region with the largest reductions in SDD was the Asia-Pacific with average reductions of 25%, followed by Central–South America (16%) and then Africa (15%). Our study provides insights into how human-induced changes in movement behaviour of large mammals could translate into altered ecosystem functioning.