What is it about?
We present an ecological study about the poorly known lizard fauna from the upper Madeira river with the purpose of understanding the river effect as a barrier, and simultaneously how the different types of environments contribute to the spatial structuring of the assemblasges.
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Why is it important?
Our findings show that regional lizard assemblages are structured by the upper Madeira river and different sets of environmental gradients between river banks or even within a river bank. So when analyzing this two distinct perspectives provide us with deep insights into factors that cause and maintain biodiversity at megadiverse regions such as the Amazon. The novelty of the study is to integrate multiple spatial scales to test the simultaneous effects of historical and ecological factors on the structure of the lizard assemblages, taking advantage of a standardized and unparalleled sampling effort conducted by us in Amazonia.
Perspectives
I hope that with this article we can add to information to conservation strategies since they require an understanding of species distributions. Amazonian lizards are likely under threat because of human disturbance, given the pace of modification in the Amazon Basin and the lack of public policies for the effective conservation of biodiversity, what makes these approaches essential for the long-term maintenance of the forest and its biodiversity.
Gabriela Marques Peixoto
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Hierarchical effects of historical and environmental factors on lizard assemblages in the upper Madeira River, Brazilian Amazonia, PLoS ONE, June 2020, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0233881.
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