Assessing landscape connectivity allows us to identify critical areas that impede or facilitate the movement of organisms and their genes and to plan their conservation and management. In this article, we assessed landscape connectivity and ecological condition of the habitat patches of a highly biodiverse region in Chiapas, Mexico. We employed data of three cracid species with different characteristics in habitat use and mobility. The habitat map of each species was derived from a spatial intersection of the models of potential distribution and a high-resolution map of current land cover and land use. The ecological condition of vegetation types was evaluated using 75 field plots. Structure of landscape was estimated by fragmentation metrics, while functional connectivity was assessed using spatially explicit graph analysis. The extent of suitable habitat for Oreophasis derbianus, Penelopina nigra, and Penelope purpurascens correspond to 25%, 46%, and 55% of the study area (5,185.6 km2), respectively. Although the pine-oak forests were the most fragmented vegetation type, habitats of the three species were well connected, and only 4% to 9% of the fragments located on the periphery of the corridor had low connectivity. Landscape connectivity depends mainly on land uses with an intermediate and lower ecological condition (secondary forests and coffee agroforestry systems). Therefore, we suggest that in addition to promoting the improvement in connectivity in fragmented forests, conservation efforts should be aimed at preventing the conversion of mature forests into agricultural uses and maintaining agroforestry systems.

Species distribution modeling (SDM) is a booming area of research that has had an exponential increase in use and development in recent years. We performed a search of scientific literature and found 5,533 documents published from 1993 to 2018 using SDM, representing a global network of 4,329 collaborating institutions from 155 countries, with Brazil and Mexico being in the top 10 of the most prolific countries globally. National Autonomous University of Mexico, Chinese Academy of Sciences, University of Kansas, and U.S. Geological Survey are the most prolific institutions worldwide. Latin American institutions ( n = 556) participated in 1,000 (18% of global productivity) documents published in collaboration with 591 institutions outside Latin American countries, from which the National Autonomous University of Mexico, Federal University of Goiás, Institute of Ecology A.C., National Scientific and Technical Research Council in Argentina, University of São Paulo, and University of Brasilia were the most productive. From this body of literature, the most frequently modeled taxonomic groups were Chordata and Insecta, and the most common realms of application were conservation planning and management, climate change, species conservation, epidemiology, evolutionary biology, and biological invasions. From the 36 modeling methods identified to generate SDMs, MaxEnt is used in 73.5% of the papers, followed by Genetic Algorithm for Rule-Set Prediction (GARP) with 18.7%, and just 7.4% of the papers compared between 3 and 10 modeling methods. In Latin American countries, productivity in SDM research could be improved as the network of collaborations diversifies and connects with other productive countries (such as United Kingdom, China, Spain, Germany, Australia, and France). The scientific collaboration between Latin American countries should be increased, as the most prolific countries (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia) share less than 10% of its productivity. Some of the main challenges for SDM development in Latin America include bridging the gaps from (a) software use to research productivity and (b) translation to decision-making. To address these challenges, we propose to strengthen communities of practice where modelers, species experts, and decision-makers come together to discuss and develop SDM to shift and enhance current paradigms on how science and decision-making are linked.

Historically, dogs have played a prominent role in subsistence hunting. In the contemporary Mayab, the group hunting or batidaprovides multiple sociocultural benefits for those who practice it, in addition to wild meat. Here, we analyze the social perception of dogs used in batidaas part of the cosmovision of Maya peasant-hunters in a rural community of Campeche, Mexico. We conducted semistructured interviews with 36 local batidahunters who owned a total of 51 dogs. Batidadogs provide different benefits (meat and social prestige for Maya peasant-hunters) depending on their roles as maestros(leader dogs) or secretarios(support dogs) and the type of prey captured. Hunting dogs go beyond their utilitarian value as a hunting technology and play an important role in the sociocultural dynamic of the batida, one of the main wildlife practices mediating the relationships between peasant communities and their natural surroundings in the Yucatan Peninsula.

Beaucarnea inermis is a threatened plant of the seasonally dry tropical forests of the northeastern Sierra Madre Oriental mountains. It has been affected by habitat loss and fragmentation, mainly from changes in land use and poaching. The number of B. inermis plants, sexual proportion, and structural parameters were recorded in natural populations inside the Sierra del Abra Tanchipa Biosphere Reserve and unprotected sites. Effects of chronic disturbance on demography parameters and asymmetry coefficient were estimated. Average population density is 280 ind*ha−1 inside the protected area and 186 ind*ha−1 in unprotected sites. Life tables indicate a high seedling to juvenile mortality rate, but life expectancy increases in juveniles, suggesting a survival type III curve. Population size distribution skewness indicates differences associated with disturbance. Sex ratio was 0.93:1 (m:f) inside the protected area and 0.76:1 (m:f) in unprotected sites. Anthropogenic disturbance affects life expectancy and the survival and mortality rates mainly in early life classes; however, once the adult stage is reached, mortality rate is reduced and survival rate increases. The natural protected area represents a refuge for the species from the effects of anthropogenic disturbance and illegal poaching. Additional studies are needed to evaluate the genetic diversity in B. inermis in protected and unprotected sites, and how it is affected by disturbance. Also, it is important to highlight other species inside the protected area such as Dioon edule, Zamia fischeri, and Stanhopea tigrina, which are considered as endangered or threatened.

Central American dry forest has experienced high rates of deforestation and intense human-induced disturbance. As a consequence, the remaining forests exist almost entirely as small, degraded, and isolated fragments. Until now, the effect of anthropogenic disturbance on the diversity of Central American tropical dry forest is largely unexplored, making it difficult to understand the consequences for plant and animal communities and the provision of ecological services. Here, we address the impact of small-scale anthropogenic disturbance on local richness and abundance of hummingbirds in a dry forest of Guatemala. To do this, we established 15 point counts on nine transects located within patches of dry forest with different levels of human-induced disturbance. Visits to each site were done twice during the dry season and twice during the rainy season. We found differences in overall number of hummingbird registered between the dry and the wet seasons; we registered higher number of hummingbirds at the end of the wet season and beginning of the dry season, when the availability of flowers was higher. These data suggest that seasonal resource variation could be an important factor influencing the variation in the number of hummingbird present at our study area. Our results also showed resilience of hummingbirds to different levels of disturbance probably related to the generalist behavior of the dominant resident species and the availability of food resources for hummingbirds at different levels of disturbance.

We assessed the effects of seed priming and soil retainers on seed germination and early seedling performance of useful species in a tropical semideciduous forest in Veracruz, México. We determined mass and water and lipid content in the seeds of Albizia saman, Cedrela odorata, Enterolobium cyclocarpum, and Swietenia macrophylla. The seeds were exposed to hydropriming and natural priming (seed burial inside the soil) and germinated at 25°C and 25/35°C. The produced seedlings were grown in a shade house and planted in a plain terrain and a hillside (slope 75%). Seedling growth and survival were evaluated. S. macrophylla and E. cyclocarpum seeds had the lowest and highest water content, respectively. S. macrophylla and C. odorata had oil seeds. A. saman and E. cyclocarpum seeds had physical dormancy. Natural priming improved germination in A. saman, C. odorata, and S. macrophylla while hydropriming and 25/35°C enhanced germination in E. cyclocarpum. In the shade house, natural priming promoted seedling growth in all studied species and in the field survival of A. saman and S. macrophylla. In E. cyclocarpum, this effect was obtained with hydropriming in the plain terrain. In the hillside, hydropriming and natural priming and 25/35°C improved survival of S. macrophylla and E. cyclocarpum, respectively. Seed burial for 8 days improved germination, seedling performance, and survival. To bury seeds inside a pot placed in a shade house induced natural priming in C. odorata. We suggest natural priming for A. saman, C. odorata, and S. macrophylla, and hydropriming for E. cyclocarpum seeds. Germination pretreatments were inexpensive and easy tools potentially applicable in restoration and conservation programs.

The wild bird trade is a major driver of species loss in Indonesia. However, studies of the Indonesian bird trade have focused on the island of Java, providing little information on the bird trade in other regions, such as Kalimantan. We conducted the first-ever market surveys in rural West Kalimantan from July 2015 to August 2016 and in the capital city of each of the five provinces of Kalimantan from August 2016 to February 2017. At each market, we recorded the number of individuals of each species, the price per individual for each species, and the source of each individual. In addition, we asked 32 bird traders and owners from Kalimantan to fill out a questionnaire addressing their perceptions of changes in price and availability of commercial species over time. Across our survey, we located 201 shops and 25,298 individuals for sale from 153 identified species. We conclude that our market surveys document only part of the trade and affirm that the bird trade is of considerable size in Kalimantan. We recommend that conservationists focus on conserving Kalimantan’s remaining forest and reducing demand through education and behavior change programs. We echo the calls of other conservationists for Indonesia to update the Conservation Act (No. 5) of 1990 to include current species of concern and for law enforcement efforts to stop both local trade and cross-island trade between Kalimantan and Java. Our study underlines the threat to the persistence of many Indonesian avian species.

The secondary succession of tropical rainforest in abandoned agricultural fields modifies components of species diversity and processes of species colonization and replacement. In general, knowledge on invertebrate reassembly is lacking, even though invertebrate assemblages directly influence the maturation of forests. Ants are especially useful for testing hypotheses about the effects of resource diversity and microhabitat conditions. We experimentally assessed the effects of different successional stages on nest colonization. Then, we assessed whether nesting resources and microhabitat conditions (i.e., abiotic conditions) are potential mechanisms that influence the colonization pattern of twig-dwelling ants along a natural chronosequence for 1 year in the Lacandon region, Mexico. We found that ant species richness in twigs is correlated with total species found in leaf litter. The nest occupancy increased as succession progressed, but species richness did not change. Nests occupation increased to greater artificial nesting resource decomposition rates and lower soil pH. Meanwhile, species richness was increased only with lower soil compaction. Species composition changes among successional categories; the changes were greater with greater soil compaction and soil pH. The diversity of nesting resources did not drive twig-dwelling ant assembly. We conclude that the natural maturation of tropical forest enables greater colonization of twig-dwelling ants, but recovery of the species composition of assemblages after 30 years is incomplete, although it shows a recovery trend.

Rhino poaching in Africa has risen alarmingly over the last decade, driven by illegal trade and demand for horns in Asia, where it is used medicinally. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has deep cultural roots, and understanding demand drivers will inform conservation decision-making. We interviewed 15 TCM practitioners in Hong Kong, investigating their familiarity with rhino horn, prescription experiences, and perspectives toward its use and trade. All interviewees believe that rhino horn possesses medicinal properties, despite general unfamiliarity with its chemical composition or any active ingredient. We compiled a list of 16 substitutes, finding that dosage adjustments produce equivalent treatment outcomes that compensate for potency differences. While most interviewees expressed support for trade legalization, most would prefer to continue prescribing substitutes. Further research into TCM stakeholder perspectives and preferences for rhino horn can inform conservation policy.

Plasticity may be a key factor to determine plant survival under a changing environment as a result of climate change or land use modification. Plasticity in physiological and morphological traits was evaluated in seven epiphytic Tillandsia species (Bromeliaceae) from six vegetation communities along a precipitation gradient in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Microenvironmental conditions (air temperature and humidity, light, and vapor pressure deficit), as well as Δ titratable acidity, osmotic potential, relative water content, and succulence were characterized during wet, early dry, and dry seasons. We calculated the relative distances plasticity index using physiological data from the wet and dry seasons; morphological plasticity was also calculated for foliar trichome and stomatal traits from previously published data. We found high variation in microenvironmental conditions between seasons, particularly for the tropical dry deciduous forest. The dry season had a negative effect in all physiological variables (decrease from 40% to 59% for Δ titratable acidity and 10% to 38% for relative water content). The highest plasticity was registered for T. balbisiana (physiological: 0.29, anatomical: 0.18) and the lowest for T. fasciculata and T. yucatana. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling analysis separated individuals distributed in the wettest vegetation types from those distributed in the driest vegetation types, irrespective of the species, showing convergent physiological strategies to confront environmental variation. We found higher plasticity in water use traits in atmospheric species, compared to tanks and higher plasticity in general in species with wide distribution compared to those with small distribution ranges.