Effect of vertebrate exclusion on ecosystem functioning
Vertebrate communities can be the most sensitive to deforestation, therefore it is important to understand how their loss impacts the ecosystem. This study investigated the removal of top-down control by vertebrates and the resulting trophic cascade, through exclusion plots. Here, I examined the effect of vertebrate exclusion on aboveground invertebrate communities and herbivory rate, and the effect on belowground invertebrate communities and decomposition rate. I also assessed whether this trophic cascade accumulated over time by comparing results in newly established plots to those established the previous year.
4worksheets
56taxa
24/24locations resolved
Authors
- Mackintosh, Emma — Imperial College London
- Fraser, Adam — Imperial College London
- Banks-Leite, Cristina — Imperial College London
- Ewers, Robert M — Imperial College London
- Chung, Arthur — Sabah Forestry Department
Keywords
- Vertebrate exclusion
- invertebrate
- aboveground
- leaf litter
- belowground
- decomposition rate
- herbivory rate
- ecosystem functioning
- forest quality gradient
- trophic cascade
Funders
- No funders recorded.
Permits
- Research — Sabah Biodiversity Centre (JKM/MBS.1000-2/2 JLD.8 (57))
Worksheets
| Name | Title | Fields | Rows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aboveground_abundance | Aboveground invertebrate abundance | 49 | 144 |
| Leaf_litter_abundance | Leaf litter invertebrate abundance | 52 | 134 |
| Soil_abundance | Soil invertebrate abundance | 34 | 44 |
| Decomposition_rate | Decomposition rate | 6 | 42 |
Files
- Mackintosh_ExclusionPlotData_Invertebrates_2019.xlsx
Taxa
56 GBIF taxa, 0 sequence-derived taxa.