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- Title
Does Restinga degradation impact the association between mites and dung beetles?
- Authors
Lyra, Raphael Rodrigues; de Araujo Rodrigues, Taís Helena; da Costa, Cristiane Maria Queiroz; Correa, César M. A.; Louzada, Julio Neil Cassa; de Oliveira Bernardi, Leopoldo Ferreira
- Abstract
The conservation state of an environment can be a key factor in maintaining the existence of some interactions between species. The relationship between the dung beetle Dichotomius schiffleri, a habitat‐specific species endemic to the Restinga ecosystem, and endangered, and its symbiont mites can serve as a model to improve knowledge about this issue. In this study, we investigated whether the conservation state of Brazilian Restingas, a native ecosystem of the coastal zone that has suffered from anthropic pressure and impacts due to irregular occupation by humans, affects the abundance of mites present on D. schiffleri. Beetles and their associated mites were collected using pitfall traps in Conserved and Degraded Restingas at nine locations in the Brazilian states of Espírito Santo, Bahia, Sergipe, and Pernambuco. The abundance of mites associated with beetles was significantly higher in conserved sites than in degraded sites. Our findings provide evidence that Restinga degradation can affect not only abundance of dung beetle species, as previously reported, but also the ecological relationships that can be established between dung beetles and mites. The habitat quality and hosts availability are some mechanisms that may explain the maintenance of the interactions between dung beetles and mites. Finally, imbalance in ecological relationships is one more factor capable of signalling as human modified habitats impact fauna.
- Subjects
SERGIPE (Brazil); ESPIRITO Santo (Brazil : State); PERNAMBUCO (Brazil); DUNG beetles; BEETLES; MITES; PITFALL traps; HUMAN settlements; COASTS; ECOSYSTEMS; COASTAL ecosystem health
- Publication
Austral Ecology, 2024, Vol 49, Issue 2, p1
- ISSN
1442-9985
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/aec.13463