Different effects of alpine woody plant expansion on domestic and wild ungulates
Espunyes, Johan (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge)
Lurgi Rivera, Miguel (Université Paul Sabatier (Toulouse). Centre for Biodiversity Theory and Modelling)
Büntgen, Ulf (Department of Geography, University of Cambridge)
Bartolomé, Jordi (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Calleja, Juan Antonio (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Gálvez Cerón, Arturo Leonel (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Medicina i Cirurgia Animals)
Peñuelas, Josep (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Claramunt López, Bernat (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Serrano Ferron, Emmanuel (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge)

Fecha:	2019
Resumen:	Changes in land-use and climate affect the distribution and diversity of plant and animal species at different spatiotemporal scales. The extent to which species-specific phenotypic plasticity and biotic interactions mediate organismal adaptation to changing environments, however, remains poorly understood. Woody plant expansion is threatening the extent of alpine grasslands worldwide, and evaluating and predicting its effects on herbivores is of crucial importance. Here, we explore the impact of shrubification on the feeding efficiency of Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra p. pyrenaica), as well as on the three most abundant coexisting domestic ungulate species: cattle, sheep and horses. We use observational diet composition from May to October and model different scenarios of vegetation availability where shrubland and woodland proliferate at the expense of grassland. We then predicted if the four ungulate species could efficiently utilize their food landscapes with their current dietary specificities measuring their niche breath in each scenario. We observed that the wild counterpart, due to a higher trophic plasticity, is less disturbed by shrubification compared to livestock, which rely primarily on herbaceous plants and will be affected 3. 6 times more. Our results suggest that mixed feeders, such as chamois, could benefit from fallow landscapes, and that mountain farmers are at a growing economic risk worldwide due to changing land-use practices and climate conditions.
Ayudas:	European Commission 726176 Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad RYC-2016-21120
Derechos:	Tots els drets reservats.
Lengua:	Anglès
Documento:	Article ; recerca ; Versió acceptada per publicar
Materia:	Diet preference ; Free-ranging livestock ; Habitat change ; Herbivory ; Mountain ecosystems ; Pyrenean chamois ; Shrubification
Publicado en:	Global change biology, Vol. 25, issue5 (May 2019) , p. 1808-1819, ISSN 1365-2486

DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14587
PMID: 30737872

Postprint 33 p, 1.4 MB

El registro aparece en las colecciones:
Documentos de investigación > Documentos de los grupos de investigación de la UAB > Centros y grupos de investigación (producción científica) > Ciencias de la salud y biociencias > Grupo de investigación Wildlife Ecology & Health
Documentos de investigación > Documentos de los grupos de investigación de la UAB > Centros y grupos de investigación (producción científica) > Ciencias > CREAF (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i d'Aplicacions Forestals)
Documentos de investigación > Documentos de los grupos de investigación de la UAB > Centros y grupos de investigación (producción científica) > Ciencias de la salud y biociencias > Ruminant Research Group (G2R)
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