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adult individual of Ameiva ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758), at the Base de estudos do Pantanal, Federal university of mato Grosso do sul, Corumbá, mato Grosso do sul, Brazil. abb. 1: adulte Ameiva ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758) in der Base de estudos do Pantanal der universität von mato Grosso do sul, Corumbá, mato Grosso do sul, Brasilien.
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The authors studied the influence of three environmental traits on the microhabitat selection of Ameiva ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758), in the Brazilian Pantanal, an environment with a marked effect of seasonality, i.e., alternating periods of flooding and falling dry. microhabitat selection was assessed in the dry season using a Resource selection Functi...
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Context 1
... ameiva (Linnaeus, 1758), is a medium-sized (snout-vent length up to 174 mm after Vitt & CoLLi 1994; Fig. 1) grounddwelling lizard that spends a large amount of its activity period moving, a typical pattern of wide/ active foragers ( RoCha et al. 2009). it has a vast geographical distribution, living mainly in open areas of south america (VanzoLini et al. 1980) and occurring in almost all Brazilian territory (aViLa-PiRes 1995). across its ...
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Citations
... Here, we used conditional logistic regression (CLR) models to solve the RSF, pairing the data of used and available perches for each individual. In this way we could determine whether available perches were true absences that the bird could have selected at the moment of observation but did not (Jones, 2001;Duchesne et al., 2010;Benício et al., 2019). The response variable was the presence of the bird on the perch (1, used perch; 0, unused perch). ...
Selecting a suitable perch can offer many benefits for fish-eating birds such as kingfishers. However, factors affecting perch selection in these species remain poorly studied. We studied perch selection in three species of kingfishers inhabiting the Pantanal of Brazil during the dry season: Megaceryle torquata, Chloroceryle amazona, and Chloroceryle americana. First, we determined the habitat use of the three species. We then assessed the perches these kingfishers used based on four ecologically relevant traits: (1) artificial or natural, (2) perch height, (3) distance to the water, and (4) plant cover. We hypothesized that artificial perches could be more likely selected as they may offer better visibility to fish. We used a resource selection function, in a case/control design, solving it by model selection of six conditional logistic regression competing models. The probability of presence was independent of the artificial origin of a perch for the three species. It was also independent of the other studied variables, except for individuals of C. amazona, which selected higher perches. We conclude that artificial perches do not influence perch selection of the studied kingfishers, which may indicate that these artificial structures are not altering their behavioral choices.
... Despite lack of changes in species richness in all vegetation types, we detected changes in species composition, which mainly occurred from conserved areas to more degraded areas (open secondary vegetation and agricultural areas). In Relictual Humid Forest areas studied, species turnover reflects the loss of forest species and colonization by generalist, more tolerant to open and disturbed environments, and widely distributed species (for example, Ameiva ameiva- Benício et al., 2019;Vitt & Colli, 1994;Appendix S3). Species found in pristine areas of Relictual Humid Forest, which have lower temperatures and radiation levels (Vitt et al., 2003), such as Copeoglossum nigropunctatum (Spix, 1825) and C. meridionalis were absent in more disturbed areas. ...
Anthropogenic changes in habitats are one of the main threats to biodiversity.
Understanding how species diversity and their functions are affected by these
changes is crucial to assess environmental impacts. In this work, we aim to
understand how lizard composition, taxonomic and functional diversity respond
to differences in native vegetation regeneration stages (conserved vegetation
and open secondary vegetation) and agricultural land use in different vegetation
types (Caatinga sensu stricto, Cerrado sensu stricto and Relictual Humid Forest)
in Caatinga domain, Brazil. In more degraded areas (open secondary vegetation and agricultural areas), we found a decline in species evenness, shown
by greater dominance of few species. Moreover, we found a lower functional
evenness in agricultural areas than in areas of conserved vegetation, which suggests that a smaller portion of functional traits present greater dominance in
more anthropized areas. We did not detect any significant differences in species
richness, but we did registered differences in species composition in Relictual
Humid Forest. Contrary to our expectations, lizard abundance was also greater
in more degraded areas, probably as a result of the increased abundance of
species benefited by anthropization. In this work, we advance the knowledge of
how anthropogenic changes influence lizard diversity and emphasize the importance of analysing different facets of diversity and different habitat environments
to understand how anthropization affects patterns in community ecology.
... This case/control method seeks to compare the used microhabitat with those available to each male at that time, constituting true availabilities (e.g., Benício et al., 2019;Ortega et al., 2019). To avoid pseudoreplication, we marked all the microhabitats sampled and subsequently searched for males, always focusing on a new potential microhabitat in each study area. ...
Amphibian species require specific conditions for reproduction, such as cover structures and shelters, in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats, which directly influence reproductive success. A careful selection of calling sites is an important process, driving life-history strategies and tactics in amphibians. Despite this, a significant knowledge gap on how different variables modulate amphibian microhabitat selection processes is noted. Thus, we aimed to: (1) describing the microhabitat use of adult neotropical Boana punctata males during the breeding season; and (2) quantitatively analyzing the selection process of five resource variables (i.e., vegetation cover, vegetation density, vegetation height, water depth, and distance to the water shore). We then compared the microhabitat selection of males that achieved spawning and that of males that did not achieve spawning. To quantify selection, we used a resource selection function approach, applying a case/control design where the calling site used by each male was paired to eight surrounding, unused locations. We found that males selected microhabitats with higher vegetation than surrounding areas for reproduction, which suggests territorialism, and selected microhabitats slightly (∼ 30 cm) inside the assessed ponds. Males also acted randomly with regard to the other variables, not influencing the males' microhabitat selection. Microhabitat use of males successful in obtaining females to spawn was similar to that of males exhibiting mating failure. In addition to being of ecological interest, our study highlights that preserving tall vegetation and the ponds' shores is important for the conservation of existing B. punctata urban populations.
... However, there is still a lack of knowledge about microhabitat selection for various lizard species and habitats, as is the case of the Pantanal (Brazil), where organisms experience complex climatic changes and flood dynamics (Alho et al., 2001). Until now, and recently, only three studies evaluated the microhabitat use and/or selection of lizards in the Pantanal (i.e., Terra et al., 2018;Benício et al., 2019;Ortega et al., 2019). In this particular biome, the dynamic of organisms is primarily driven by flood and dry cycles that are quite variable in terms of recurrence and duration (Gonçalves et al., 2011;Mercante et al., 2011;Souza et al., 2017). ...
... ocellifera) is independent of substrate temperature, but are strongly dependent on solar radiation . In addition, neither substrate temperature nor sun exposure affect the microhabitat selection by Ameiva ameiva at the same location of this study (Benício et al., 2019). However, it is important to remember that A. ameiva is a ground-dwelling active forager that moves constantly through space (Rocha et al., 2009), whilst T. lagunablanca is an arboreal ambush forager. ...
Understanding how different environmental factors influence species occurrence is a key issue to address the study of natural populations. However, there is a lack of knowledge on how local traits influence the microhabitat use of tropical arboreal lizards. Here, we investigated the microhabitat selection of the poorly known lizard Tropidurus lagunablanca (Squamata: Tropiduridae) and evaluated how environmental microhabitat features influence animal's presence. We used a Resource Selection Function approach, in a case/control design where we analyzed the effect of substrate temperature and tree's diameter at breast height (DBH) in the probability of presence of lizards using mixed Conditional Logistic Regression. We found that T. lagunablanca uses trees with DBH from 0.40 m to 4 m and substrate temperatures ranging from 25.9℃ to 42℃. Moreover, we showed that thickness of the trees and substrate temperatures significantly increased the probability of presence of T. lagunablanca individuals, being the probability of presence higher than 50% for trees up to 1.5 m DBH and temperature of substrate up to 37.5℃. Our study probed that T. lagunablanca individuals choose trees non-randomly, selecting thicker and warmer tree trunks. This information advances the knowledge of the spatial ecology of Neotropical arboreal lizards and is relevant for conservation, putting an emphasis on preserving native vegetation in the Pantanal.
