Abstract
To achieve a balance between conservation and livestock production in the context of highly degraded tropical landscapes, we need a research approach that considers relationships among biodiversity, landscape structure, and farming practices. Given that dung beetles are sensitive to both landscape changes and local scale management practices, these insects are used as ecological indicators that provide information regarding the pasture’s health. We assessed the response of dung beetle diversity to livestock management practices and landscape structure in 22 cattle pastures from a regional relictual landscape dominated by productive land uses. Livestock management practices were the best predictors for species richness, Shannon diversity, and number of individuals. Macrocyclic lactone use was negatively related to species richness and number of individuals; high cattle densities increased Shannon diversity in the studied ranches. Patches of old secondary forest cover had a positive significant relationship with every response variable and was the best predictor for biomass, but also contributed to maintaining high species richness in cattle pastures, suggesting that secondary forests provide favorable microclimatic conditions for dung beetles in highly degraded landscapes. This study provides evidence that conservation of old secondary forests in highly modified landscapes and the rational use of macrocyclic lactones can be useful management tools to favor dung beetle diversity and the ecosystem services they provide, thus ensuring pasture health.
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The datasets generated during and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank S. Almendarez for their fieldwork help, as well as D. Lozano-Sánchez for his help with biomass measurements. We thank I. Martínez, G. Rubio Ruíz and the “Asociación Ganadera de Papantla” for logistic support during fieldwork. We also thank F. Escobar and R. Madrigal‐Chavero for their technical support.
Funding
The present study was funded by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología—CONACYT (Project No. 257894) granted to D. González‐Tokman. The Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología—CONACYT provided a postgraduate scholarship to the first author, LGG (No. 262518).
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All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Lizbeth González-Gómez, Juan García and Daniel González‐Tokman. GIS analysis was performed by Lizbeth González-Gómez and Andrés Lira-Noriega The first draft of the manuscript was written by Lizbeth González-Gómez and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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González-Gómez, L., González-Tokman, D., García, J.H. et al. Influence of landscape and livestock management on dung beetle diversity in tropical cattle pastures. Biodivers Conserv 32, 1687–1707 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-023-02571-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-023-02571-5