Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island
The presence of exotic herbivores can have detrimental effects on insular ecosystems because it usually involves the introduction of a previously absent functional group. Understanding feeding behavior is crucial to manage potential impacts, as it provides valuable information on which species may b...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Artículo |
| Language: | Inglés |
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Springer
2025
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22010 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w |
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| author | Salom, Amira Borrelli, Laura Beatriz Testoni, Daniel Ramos, Diego P. Raya Rey, Andrea Biganzoli, Fernando |
| author_browse | Biganzoli, Fernando Borrelli, Laura Beatriz Ramos, Diego P. Raya Rey, Andrea Salom, Amira Testoni, Daniel |
| author_facet | Salom, Amira Borrelli, Laura Beatriz Testoni, Daniel Ramos, Diego P. Raya Rey, Andrea Biganzoli, Fernando |
| author_sort | Salom, Amira |
| collection | INTA Digital |
| description | The presence of exotic herbivores can have detrimental effects on insular ecosystems because it usually involves the introduction of a previously absent functional group. Understanding feeding behavior is crucial to manage potential impacts, as it provides valuable information on which species may be most susceptible to the actions of these herbivores. We estimated diet selection of introduced red deer (Cervus elaphus) and goats (Capra hircus) in western Isla de los Estados, Argentina. We conducted floristic surveys to assess plant composition and forage availability at the landscape level. We evaluated the diet of both ungulates through microhistological analysis of feces during two spring-summer seasons. Overall, we detected 44 plant taxa in their feces, representing 67.7% of the plant richness detected in the field. Diet composition was similar between species, including a wide range of vascular plants and two groups of non-vascular plants, though both were dominated by a few species of shrubs and forbs. Nonetheless, both species select grasses, predominantly found in marine tussock grasslands, and trees mainly found as seedlings and sapling in forests and stunted trees in wetlands. Our results suggest that the introduced species exhibit overlapping forage selection, possibly having negative synergic effects on forest and grassland regeneration. This is concerning as these grasslands are of great importance for seabirds’ reproduction. Our findings provide valuable information to develop management plans for the conservation of this unique island ecosystem. |
| format | Artículo |
| id | INTA22010 |
| institution | Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina) |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Springer |
| publisherStr | Springer |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | INTA220102025-04-23T13:01:48Z Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island Salom, Amira Borrelli, Laura Beatriz Testoni, Daniel Ramos, Diego P. Raya Rey, Andrea Biganzoli, Fernando Ungulado Histología Forrajes Venado Caprinos Especies Introducidas Ungulates Histology Forage Deer Goats Introduced Species Especies Exóticas The presence of exotic herbivores can have detrimental effects on insular ecosystems because it usually involves the introduction of a previously absent functional group. Understanding feeding behavior is crucial to manage potential impacts, as it provides valuable information on which species may be most susceptible to the actions of these herbivores. We estimated diet selection of introduced red deer (Cervus elaphus) and goats (Capra hircus) in western Isla de los Estados, Argentina. We conducted floristic surveys to assess plant composition and forage availability at the landscape level. We evaluated the diet of both ungulates through microhistological analysis of feces during two spring-summer seasons. Overall, we detected 44 plant taxa in their feces, representing 67.7% of the plant richness detected in the field. Diet composition was similar between species, including a wide range of vascular plants and two groups of non-vascular plants, though both were dominated by a few species of shrubs and forbs. Nonetheless, both species select grasses, predominantly found in marine tussock grasslands, and trees mainly found as seedlings and sapling in forests and stunted trees in wetlands. Our results suggest that the introduced species exhibit overlapping forage selection, possibly having negative synergic effects on forest and grassland regeneration. This is concerning as these grasslands are of great importance for seabirds’ reproduction. Our findings provide valuable information to develop management plans for the conservation of this unique island ecosystem. EEA Bariloche Fil: Salom, Amira. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas. Laboratorio de Ecología y Conservación de Vida Silvestre; Argentina Fil: Salom, Amira. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución; Argentina Fil: Borrelli, Laura Beatriz. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Bariloche. Instituto de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias Bariloche. Laboratorio de Microhistología; Argentina Fil: Borrelli, Laura Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Forestales y Agropecuarias Bariloche; Argentina Fil: Testoni, Daniel. Administración de Parques Nacionales. Parque Nacional Los Glaciares; Argentina Fil: Ramos, Diego P. Secretaría de Ambiente de la Provincia de Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Isla del Atlántico Sur. Dirección General de Recursos Hídricos; Argentina Fil: Raya Rey, Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas. Laboratorio de Ecología y Conservación de Vida Silvestre; Argentina Fil: Raya Rey, Andrea. Wildlife Conservation Society; Argentina Fil: Biganzoli, Fernando. Universidad Nacional de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía; Argentina 2025-04-23T12:53:20Z 2025-04-23T12:53:20Z 2025-04 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22010 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w 1616-5047 1618-1476 https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w eng info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf Springer Mammalian Biology : 1-12 (Published: 08 April 2025) |
| spellingShingle | Ungulado Histología Forrajes Venado Caprinos Especies Introducidas Ungulates Histology Forage Deer Goats Introduced Species Especies Exóticas Salom, Amira Borrelli, Laura Beatriz Testoni, Daniel Ramos, Diego P. Raya Rey, Andrea Biganzoli, Fernando Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title | Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title_full | Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title_fullStr | Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title_full_unstemmed | Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title_short | Forage selection overlap between co-occurring introduced ungulates: insights for conservation management of a Sub-Antarctic Island |
| title_sort | forage selection overlap between co occurring introduced ungulates insights for conservation management of a sub antarctic island |
| topic | Ungulado Histología Forrajes Venado Caprinos Especies Introducidas Ungulates Histology Forage Deer Goats Introduced Species Especies Exóticas |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/22010 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w https://doi.org/10.1007/s42991-025-00488-w |
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