Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest
Critically endangered African forest elephants preferentially eat fruits and disperse seeds of carbon-dense trees, including the highly valued and threatened African ebony. The illegal ivory trade has led to severe declines in elephant populations, but the long-term impacts on tree species are poorl...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | Inglés |
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American Association for the Advancement of Science
2025
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| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176564 |
| _version_ | 1855517962590486528 |
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| author | Deblauwe, V. Luskin, M.S. Assola, S.D. Hardy, O.J. Jansen, S. Loubières, C. Mempong, G.G. Ntsihe, J.M. Ndjock, G.O Kwecheu, E.R.O. Powell, L.L. Sonke, B. Smith, T.B. |
| author_browse | Assola, S.D. Deblauwe, V. Hardy, O.J. Jansen, S. Kwecheu, E.R.O. Loubières, C. Luskin, M.S. Mempong, G.G. Ndjock, G.O Ntsihe, J.M. Powell, L.L. Smith, T.B. Sonke, B. |
| author_facet | Deblauwe, V. Luskin, M.S. Assola, S.D. Hardy, O.J. Jansen, S. Loubières, C. Mempong, G.G. Ntsihe, J.M. Ndjock, G.O Kwecheu, E.R.O. Powell, L.L. Sonke, B. Smith, T.B. |
| author_sort | Deblauwe, V. |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Critically endangered African forest elephants preferentially eat fruits and disperse seeds of carbon-dense trees, including the highly valued and threatened African ebony. The illegal ivory trade has led to severe declines in elephant populations, but the long-term impacts on tree species are poorly understood. Using a comprehensive dataset including age-class, spatial, genetic, and experimental data, across a hunting pressure gradient, we show how paired declines in elephant and ebony populations are linked by a previously unrecognized mutualism in which elephant dung protects ebony seeds against seed predators. Disruption of this mutualism by poaching exacerbates seed predation by herbivores and was associated with a 68% reduction in small sapling recruitment. This threat to the survival of a valuable and iconic tree species raises concerns about the far-reaching consequences of forest elephant extermination. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace176564 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| publisherStr | American Association for the Advancement of Science |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1765642025-12-02T10:59:51Z Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest Deblauwe, V. Luskin, M.S. Assola, S.D. Hardy, O.J. Jansen, S. Loubières, C. Mempong, G.G. Ntsihe, J.M. Ndjock, G.O Kwecheu, E.R.O. Powell, L.L. Sonke, B. Smith, T.B. forestry seeds hunting elephants Critically endangered African forest elephants preferentially eat fruits and disperse seeds of carbon-dense trees, including the highly valued and threatened African ebony. The illegal ivory trade has led to severe declines in elephant populations, but the long-term impacts on tree species are poorly understood. Using a comprehensive dataset including age-class, spatial, genetic, and experimental data, across a hunting pressure gradient, we show how paired declines in elephant and ebony populations are linked by a previously unrecognized mutualism in which elephant dung protects ebony seeds against seed predators. Disruption of this mutualism by poaching exacerbates seed predation by herbivores and was associated with a 68% reduction in small sapling recruitment. This threat to the survival of a valuable and iconic tree species raises concerns about the far-reaching consequences of forest elephant extermination. 2025-08-29 2025-09-18T08:30:09Z 2025-09-18T08:30:09Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176564 en Open Access application/pdf American Association for the Advancement of Science Deblauwe, V., Luskin, M.S., Assola, S.D., Hardy, O.J., Jansen, S., Loubières, C., ... & Smith, T.B. (2025). Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest. Science Advances, 11, (35): eady4392, 1-12. |
| spellingShingle | forestry seeds hunting elephants Deblauwe, V. Luskin, M.S. Assola, S.D. Hardy, O.J. Jansen, S. Loubières, C. Mempong, G.G. Ntsihe, J.M. Ndjock, G.O Kwecheu, E.R.O. Powell, L.L. Sonke, B. Smith, T.B. Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title | Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title_full | Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title_fullStr | Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title_full_unstemmed | Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title_short | Declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an African rainforest |
| title_sort | declines of ebony and ivory are inextricably linked in an african rainforest |
| topic | forestry seeds hunting elephants |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/176564 |
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