DOI: 10.5061/dryad.k0p2ngfjx
title: Anthropogenic disturbances simplify frugivory interactions in Amazonia

description: Frugivory interactions are essential ecological processes for the
 regeneration of tropical forests, ensuring ecosystem resilience following
 disturbances. However, little is known about how frugivory interactions
 are shaped by anthropogenic disturbances, especially in Amazonia – one of
 the most biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. We investigate how selective
 logging and forest fires impact both arboreal and terrestrial frugivory
 interactions in Amazonian forests. We focus on four forest classes:
 Undisturbed, Logged, Logged-and-17y-burned (burned 17 years before
 sampling) and Logged-and-3y-burned (burned three years before sampling).
 We recorded 4670 frugivory interactions at the community level, in a
 sampling effort of 31 484 h. Undisturbed forests sustained a significantly
 higher number of species and interactions when compared to
 Logged-and-17y-burned forests. Selective logging and forest fires did not
 alter significantly the structural properties of the frugivory networks,
 which were highly modular, moderately specialised, poorly connected and
 non-nested. Regarding community composition, we detected high β-diversity
 of plant species, frugivore species, and their interactions between all
 study areas, as well as within and between forest classes, mainly driven
 by spatial turnover. Logged-and-17y-burned forests hosted the most unique
 interaction composition compared to Undisturbed forests. Our study
 provides novel evidence that anthropogenic disturbances, particularly
 selective logging and forest fires, negatively affect frugivory
 interactions in Amazonian forests. These effects may persist for years
 after the initial disturbance events and could be exacerbated due to the
 predicted increase in forest fires driven by climate change.
description: # Anthropogenic disturbances simplify frugivory interactions in Amazonia
 Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.k0p2ngfjx](10.5061/dryad.k0p2ngfjx) ##
 Description of the data and file structure # README - Frugivory
 Interaction Dataset This dataset was collected to study frugivory
 interactions in 17 forest transects subjected to different levels of
 anthropogenic disturbance. The study aimed to assess the impact of logging
 and forest fire on plant-frugivore interactions in Amazonian forests. ###
 Files and variables ## File: `interaction_frequency.xlsx` **Description**:
 This file presents a table in the Supplementary Material with the
 frequency of interactions in each forest class. **Variables**: *
 Interactions: Plant and animal species involved in the interaction (Plant
 species + Animal species). * **Undisturbed forests** – Primary forests
 with no evidence of anthropogenic disturbances. * **Logged forests** –
 Selectively logged primary forests. * **Logged-and-17y-burned forests** –
 Selectively logged primary forests that burned at least 17 years before
 sampling. * **Logged-and-3y-burned forests** – Selectively logged primary
 forests that burned three years before sampling. ### File:
 `interactions_metadata.xlsx` **Description: M**etadata file describing the
 data variables used in the dataset. **Data variables** * **transect**:
 Identifies the studied areas (N = 17). * **forest_class**: Classification
 of the forests based on anthropogenic disturbances: * (1) **Undisturbed
 forests** – Primary forests with no evidence of anthropogenic disturbances
 (n = 5). * (2) **Logged forests** – Selectively logged primary forests (n
 = 4). * (3) **Logged-and-17y-burned forests** – Selectively logged primary
 forests that burned at least 17 years before sampling (n = 4). * (4)
 **Logged-and-3y-burned forests** – Selectively logged primary forests that
 burned three years before sampling (n = 4). * **date**: The date when the
 interaction was recorded. * **method**: The method applied to record the
 interaction, including focal observations and camera trapping. *
 **frugivory_presence**: Binary data indicating the presence of
 interaction: * (1) Interaction occurred. * (0) No interaction recorded. *
 **weight**: Frequency of interactions recorded. * **plant_family**: The
 taxonomic family of the recorded plant species. * **plant_specie**: The
 species of the interacting plant. * **animal_family**: The taxonomic
 family of the recorded frugivore (animal). * **animal_specie**: The
 species of the interacting frugivore (animal). *
 **animal_plant_complete**: Plant and animal species involved in the
 interaction (Plant species + Animal species). ## Data Collection Methods
 Frugivory interactions were recorded using two methods: 1. **Focal
 Observations** – Direct visual monitoring of interactions in the field. 2.
 **Camera Trapping** – Automated camera recordings capturing frugivory
 events.