The following is a series of shots from the first 'Global Camera Trap Mammal' study in the world. These white-lipped Peccary (Tayassu pecari) - a near threatened species - were photographed at the Central Suriname Nature Reserve, Suriname. This site presented the highest number of species diversity (28).
Credit: Conservation International Suriname as part of the TEAM Network Partnership/www.teamnetwork.org.
An ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) at Volcan Barva, Costa Rica.
Credit: Conservation International Suriname as part of the TEAM Network Partnership/www.teamnetwork.org.
A cougar (Puma concolor) at Volcan Barva, Costa Rica.
Credit: Conservation International Suriname as part of the TEAM Network Partnership/www.teamnetwork.org.
A jaguar (Panthera Onca) - a near threatened species - at Central Suriname Nature Reserve, Suriname.
Credit: Conservation International Suriname as part of the TEAM Network Partnership/www.teamnetwork.org.
A giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla at Manaus, Brazil.
Credit: Conservation International Suriname as part of the TEAM Network Partnership/www.teamnetwork.org.
SYDNEY: The direct effect of habitat loss on the survival of worldwide mammal populations has been measured in the largest animal camera trap study to date.
Between 2008 to 2010, 420 cameras were placed at seven protected areas in the Americas, Africa and Asia. 51,949 images were collected, documenting 105 species in reserves in Brazil, Costa Rica, Indonesia, Laos, Suriname, Tanzania and Uganda. Scientists at the Tropical Ecology Assessment and Monitoring Network (TEAM) at Conservation International in the U.S. categorised the animals by characteristics such as species, body size and diet.
They found that the larger protected reserves and continuous forests boasted three similar attributes: a higher diversity of species; a greater variety of animal sizes; and a greater variety of diets among those mammals (insectivores, herbivores, carnivores, omnivores).
"The results of the study are important in that they confirm what we suspected: habitat destruction is slowly but surely killing our planet's mammal diversity" said lead author Jorge Ahumada of the paper published in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society today.
"What makes this study scientifically groundbreaking is that we created for the first time consistent, comparable information for mammals on a global scale setting an effective baseline to monitor change," he added.
Getting more accurate data
In the past, most analyses of biodiversity loss, including assessments of mammal communities, relied on species distribution data and inferences based on habitat association.
According to the study, information on the status or trends of mammal communities is rarely available, particularly in tropical forests.
In tropical environments in particular, mammal diversity plays a significant role in the functioning of the ecosystem, with direct links to seed dispersal, herbivore control and nutrient cycling. Plus some studies argue that the removal of large-bodied terrestrial mammals could see a reduction in the forests' capacity to store carbon, as these animals are responsible for the dispersal of large, high carbon density seeds.
Who's more vulnerable?
Of the sites researched in this study, the Central Suriname Nature Reserve presented the highest number of species diversity with 28, and the Nam Kading National Protected Area in Laos presented the lowest number of species diversity with 13. Sites in highly fragmented forests yielded a lower level of biodiversity than sites in partially fragmented or continuous forests.
The body size of the species photographed ranged from the smallest - Linnaeu's Mouse Opossum (Marmosa murina) at 26 g - to the largest - the African elephant (Loxodonta Africana at 3,940 kg. Most of the species photographed were omnivorous and herbivorous, followed by carnivorous and insectivorous.
