Mosses are one of the most important and dominant plant communities, especially in the temperate biome, and play a significant role in ecosystem function and dynamics. They influence the water, energy and element cycle due to their unique ecology and physiology. The present study was undertaken in three different temperate forest sites in the Garhwal Himalayas, viz., Triyuginarayan (Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary (KWLS)), Chakrata, and Kanasar forest range. The study was focused on understanding the influence of mosses on soil physical properties and nutrient availability. Different physico-chemical properties were analysed under two different substrata, that is, with and without moss cover in two different seasons, viz., monsoon and winter. We observed mosses to influence and alter the physical properties and nutrient status of soil in both seasons. All soil physical and chemical properties, except magnesium, showed significant difference within the substrates, among all the sites and across the two seasons. Besides the soil characteristics underneath the moss vegetation, the study also highlights the diversity of mosses found in the area. Mosses appear to create high nutrient microsites via a high rate of organic matter accumulation and retain nutrients for longer periods thus, maintaining ecosystem stability.

Despite its importance for carbon stocks accounting, belowground biomass (BGB) has seldom been measured due to the methodological complexity involved. In this study, we assess woody BGB and related carbon stocks, soil properties and human impact on two common suffrutex grasslands (Brachystegia- and Parinari grasslands) on the Angolan Central Plateau. Data on BGB was measured by direct destructive sampling. Soil samples were analysed for select key parameters. To investigate vegetation dynamics and human impact, we used Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and fire data retrieved via Google Earth Engine. Mean belowground woody biomass of sandy Parinari grasslands was 17 t/ha and 44 t/ha in ferralitic Brachystegia grasslands of which 50% correspond to carbon stocks. As such, the BGB of Brachystegia grasslands almost equals the amount of aboveground biomass (AGB) of neighbouring miombo woodlands. Almost the entire woody BGB is located in the top 30 cm of the soil. Soils were extremely acid, showing a low nutrient availability. Both grassland types differed strongly in EVI and fire seasonality. The Parinari grasslands burnt almost twice as frequent as Brachystegia grasslands in a 10-year period. Our study emphasizes the high relevance of BGB in suffrutex grasslands for carbon stock accounting.

IPCC predictions for Honduras indicate that temperature will increase by up to 3–6°C and precipitation will decrease by up to 7–13% by the year 2050. To better understand how fern and lycophyte communities might be affected by climate change, we comprehensively surveyed the community compositions of ferns and lycophytes at Celaque National Park, the highest mountain in Honduras. We surveyed a total of 80 20 × 20 m2 plots along an altitudinal gradient of 1249–2844 m a.s.l., identifying all species and estimating their abundances. We recorded a total of 11,098 individuals from 160 species and 61 genera. Community composition was strongly influenced by changes in altitude, precipitation and the abundance of bryophytes (a proxy for air humidity). Of the 160 species, 63 are expected, under a RCP2.6 scenario for the year 2050, to shift their range fully or partially above the maximum altitude of the mountain. Of these, 65.1% are epiphytes. We found that species with narrow altitudinal ranges at high altitudes were more at risk. Our study indicated that conservation efforts should prioritise higher altitudinal sites, focusing particularly on preserving the vulnerable epiphytic fern species, which are likely to be at greater risk.

While populations of the Endangered Grey Parrot Psittacus erithacus have collapsed across its range, the species remains remarkably abundant on the island of Príncipe, Gulf of Guinea. We examine how aspects of its ecology interplay with local environmental conditions, to inform conservation strategies for this species and other large parrots. On Príncipe, parrots breed in large trees of common species, with nest densities (42 ± 34 km−2) greatly exceeding those for any comparably sized parrot. Productivity is high (1.9 chicks per cavity), probably reflecting the absence of nest competitors and predators. Food sources are abundant and much of the island is inaccessible to trappers, so many nests are successful each year. Historically harvest has involved taking only chicks from trees in a few traditional patches. These conditions have combined to allow Grey Parrots to thrive on Príncipe, while elsewhere nest trees are timber targets, nest competition and nest predation are likely to be more intense, trapping is indiscriminate, and few areas remain unexploited by trappers. Preservation of large trees as breeding refugia, and vigilance against the indiscriminate trapping of adult birds, are identified as key conditions to stabilize and recover mainland Grey Parrot populations and indeed large parrots generally, given their very similar ecological traits and anthropogenic circumstances.

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam.) is an exotic invasive plant species in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest that causes changes in the environment through the release of allelopathic substances and has high fruit production. We aimed to understand the potential effects of the jackfruit on the non-volant small mammal assemblage in an area protected by law, in the municipality of Cariacica – Espírito Santo, south-eastern Brazil. We sampled the small mammals assemblage using live traps in 18 sites, eight with jackfruit and 10 without. We ordinated the assemblage and tested possible differences in species richness and abundance according to the jackfruit density. We recorded 31 species of non-volant small mammals, with 13 species endemic to the Atlantic Forest. Jackfruit species can affect both positively and negatively the studied assemblage of non-volant small mammals. For species with a frugivory habit, jackfruit has a positive effect favouring these species. On the other hand, for insectivorous species, jackfruit represents an impact inhibiting the presence of these species in an area with high jackfruit density. The results presented are the first step in understanding the effect of this invasive species on a small mammals assemblage and initiating a monitoring of these species in areas affected by jackfruits. Furthermore, management of jackfruits in this protected area is required.

Seed dispersal is an important ecological process that structures plant communities and influences ecosystem functioning. Loss of animal dispersers therefore poses a serious threat to forest ecosystems, particularly in the tropics where zoochory predominates. A prominent example is the near-total extinction of seed dispersers on the tropical island of Guam following the accidental introduction of the invasive brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), negatively impacting seedling recruitment and forest regeneration. We investigated frugivory by a remnant population of Såli (Micronesian starling – Aplonis opaca) on Guam and two other island populations (Rota, Saipan) to evaluate their ecological role as a seed disperser in the Mariana archipelago. Using a combination of behavioural observations, nest contents and fecal samples, we documented frugivory of 37 plant species. Native plants comprised the majority (66%) of all species and 90% of all seeds identified in fecal and nest contents. Diet was highly similar across age classes and sampling years. In addition, plant species consumed by Såli comprised 88% of bird-dispersed adult trees and 54% of all adult trees in long-term forest monitoring plots, demonstrating the Såli’s broad diet and potential for restoring native forests. Overall, we provide the most comprehensive assessment to date of frugivory by the Såli and confirm its importance as a seed disperser on Guam and throughout the Marianas.

We examined quantity and quality components of primary seed dispersal for an assemblage of sigmodontine rodents in a high-elevation montane tropical forest in Peru. We collected faecal samples from 134 individuals belonging to seven rodent species from the subfamily Sigmodontinae (Cricetidae) over a 2-y period. We conducted seed viability tests for seeds found in faecal samples. We identified seeds from eight plant families (Bromeliaceae, Annonaceae, Brassicaceae, Ericaceae, Melastomatacae, Myrtaceae, Rosaceae, Solanaceae), nine genera and 13 morphospecies. The most abundant seeds belonged to Gaultheria sp. 1 (46% of total) and Miconia sp. 1 (31% of total), while the most viable seeds belonged to Greigia sp. (84% viability) and Guatteria sp. (80% viability). We utilized relative rodent abundance, seed species diversity, seed abundance and seed viability per rodent species to calculate an index of rodent disperser effectiveness, and found that Thomasomys kalinowskii was the most effective disperser, followed by Akodon torques, Calomys sorellus, Thomasomys oreas, Oligoryzomys andinus and Microryzomys minutus. Plant genera dispersed by sigmodontine rodents overlapped more with bird- and terrestrial-mammal-dispersed plants than with bat-dispersed plants. Future neotropical seed dispersal studies should consider small rodents as potential seed-dispersers, especially in tropical habitats where small-seeded, berry-forming shrubs and trees are present.

To understand the variation in community dynamics of tropical montane forests along gradients of soil fertility, death, recruitment and growth of trees (≥5 cm diameter) were monitored over 14 y (1997–2011) in nine plots placed in a matrix of three geological substrate types (Quaternary sediments, Tertiary sedimentary rocks and ultrabasic rocks) and three topographical units (ridge, middle and lower slopes) on Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. The plot area was 0.05 ha for ridge, 0.1 ha for middle slope and 0.2 ha (on ultrabasic rocks) and 1 ha (on the other substrates) for lower slope. Recruitment rates did not show a consistent pattern across geological substrates or topographies. Mortality rates were relatively high in almost all plots during the 1997–1999 period, including the El Niño drought, and in three plots on ultrabasic rocks during 2001–2005. Binomial logistic regression analyses showed that mortality during 1997–1999 increased with soil fertility (soluble phosphorus). Background mortality, excluding these periods, did not differ across geological substrates or topographies. The average growth rate during 1997–2011 was higher on more fertile soils and positively correlated with mortality during 1997–1999. We suggest that a high mortality rate during the drought period was related to high species diversity on more fertile soils, whereas a lower growth rate was related to stunted structures on poorer soils.

Understanding the habitat preferences of native and non-native species may offer valuable insights into the mechanisms favouring invasion of disturbed habitats. This study investigated the determinants of trap-site detection probability of three native (Maxomys surifer, Maxomys whiteheadi and Leopoldamys sabanus) and one invasive (Rattus rattus) species of terrestrial murid (Muridae) in logged and unlogged forests of northern Borneo. We established four and two trapping grids in repeatedly logged and unlogged forest, respectively, for a total of 500 sampled trap sites. From these, we obtained 504 detections of the four species over 3420 trap nights. For each species, probability of detection was modelled as a function of both the structural components and disturbance level of the forest patch measured around each trap site. Each of the four species showed contrasting microhabitat preferences: M. surifer favoured increased canopy closure and intermediate ground and understorey vegetation cover; M. whiteheadi preferred increased ground vegetation cover and canopy height; L. sabanus favoured sites with larger amounts of coarse woody debris and less leaf litter; and R. rattus was associated with increased ground vegetation cover. Within logged forest, detection probabilities of the three native species did not vary significantly with level of patch disturbance, whereas that of the invasive R. rattus increased markedly in more degraded sites. This latter finding will have increasingly important implications when considering the rapid degradation of forests in the region, and the resulting expansion of suitable habitat for this competitive species.