Asian Tapirs Are No Elephants When It Comes To Seed Dispersal

Biotropica

Volumn 44, Issue 2, 2012, Pages 220-227

  Campos Arceiz, Ahimsa ^a,b   Traeholt, Carl ^c   Jaffar, Razak ^d   Santamaria, Luis ^e   Corlett, Richard T ^a  

^a NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF SINGAPORE   (Singapore)

^b UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM MALAYSIA CAMPUS   (Malaysia)

^c CENTER FOR ZOO AND WILD ANIMAL HEALTH   (Denmark)

^d Zoology Department   (Singapore)

^e INSTITUTO MEDITERRÁNEO DE ESTUDIOS AVANZADOS   (Spain)

Author keywords

Defaunation; Dispersal limitation; Feeding trials; Megafauna; Megafaunal dispersal syndrome; Seed dispersal distance; Southeast Asia; Tapirus indicus

Indexed keywords

DICOTYLEDON; ELEPHANT; FEEDING; HERBIVORE; TELEMETRY; TROPICAL FOREST; UNGULATE; WILD POPULATION; ZOOCHORY;

MALAYSIA;

ARTOCARPUS; ARTOCARPUS INTEGER; DILLENIA INDICA; ELEPHANTIDAE; RHINOCEROTIDAE; TAMARINDUS INDICA; TAPIRIDAE; TAPIRUS INDICUS;

EID: 84857691798     PISSN: 00063606     EISSN: 17447429     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1744-7429.2011.00784.x     Document Type: Article

References (47)

1. Abdullah, M. T. B. 1982. Sumatran rhinoceros in Endau-Rompin and future. J. Wildl. Parks1: 19-21.
2. Barlow, C. 2000. The Ghosts of Evolution. Basic Books, New York, New York.
3. Blake, S., S. L.Deem, E.Mossimbo, F.Maisels, and P.Walsh 2009. Forest elephants: Tree planters of the Congo. Biotropica 41: 459-468.
4. Bodmer, R. E. 1991. Strategies of seed dispersal and seed predation in Amazonian ungulates. Biotropica23: 255-261.
5. Campos-Arceiz, A., and R. T.Corlett 2011. Big animals in a shrinking world-studying the ecological role of Asian megafauna as agents of seed dispersal. Innovation10: 50-53.
6. Campos-Arceiz, A., A. R.Larrinaga, U. R.Weerasinghe, S.Takatsuki, J.Pastorini, P.Leimgruber, P.Fernando, and L.Santamaria 2008. Behavior rather than diet mediates seasonal differences in seed dispersal by Asian elephants. Ecology89: 2684-2691.
7. Chua, L. S. L., and L. G.Saw 2006. Plants of Krau. Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
8. Clauss, M., C.Nunn, J.Fritz, and J.Hemmel 2009. Evidence for a tradeoff between retention time and chewing efficiency in large mammalian herbivores. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. A-Mol. Integr. Physiol.154: 376-382.
9. Clements, R., D. M.Rayan, A. W. A.Zafir, A.Venkataraman, R.Alfred, J.Payne, L.Ambu, and D. S. K.Sharma 2010. Trio under threat: Can we secure the future of rhinos, elephants and tigers in Malaysia? Biodiversity Conserv. 19: 1115-1136.
10. Corlett, R. T. 2007. The impact of hunting on the mammalian fauna of tropical Asian forests. Biotropica39: 292-303.
11. Corlett, R. T. 2010. Megafaunal extinctions and their consequences in the tropical Indo-Pacific. In: S. G.Haberle, J.Stevenson, and M.Prebble (Eds.). Terra Australis 32: Altered Ecologies: Fire, Climate and Human Influence on Terrestrial Landscapes, pp. 177-131. ANU E-Press, Canberra, Australia.
12. Fernando, P., and PLeimgruber 2011. Asian elephants and dry forests. InW. J.McShea, S. J.Davies, N.Phumpakphan, and A.Pattanavibool (Eds.). The Ecology and Conservation of Seasonally Dry Forests in Asia. Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, Washington, DC.
13. Flynn, R. W., and M. T.Abdullah 1984. Distribution and status of the Sumatran rhinoceros in peninsular Malaysia. Biol. Conserv.28: 253-273.
14. Fragoso, J. M. V. 1997. Tapir-generated seed shadows: Scale-dependent patchiness in the Amazon rain forest. J. Ecol. 85: 519-529.
15. Fragoso, J. M. V., K. M.Silvius, and J. A.Correa 2003. Long-distance seed dispersal by tapirs increases seed survival and aggregates tropical trees. Ecology84: 1998-2006.
16. Galetti, M., A.Keuroghlian, L.Hanada, and M. I.Morato 2001. Frugivory and seed dispersal by the lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) in southeast Brazil. Biotropica33: 723-726.
17. Gautier-Hion, A., J. M.Duplantier, R.Quris, F.Feer, C.Sourd, J. P.Decoux, G.Dubost, L.Emmons, C.Erard, P.Hecketsweiler, A.Moungazi, C.Roussilhon, and J. M.Thiollay 1985. Fruit characters as a basis of fruit choice and seed dispersal in a tropical forest vertebrate community. Oecologia65: 324-337.
18. Giombini, M. I., S. P.Bravo, and M. F.Martinez 2009. Seed dispersal of the palm Syagrus romanzoffiana by tapirs in the semi-deciduous Atlantic forest of Argentina. Biotropica41: 408-413.
19. Guimaraes, P. R., M.Galetti, and P.Jordano 2008. Seed dispersal anachronisms: Rethinking the fruits extinct megafauna ate. PLoS One 3(3): e1745.
20. Hansen, D. M., and M.Galetti 2009. The forgotten megafauna. Science324: 42-43.
21. Hansen, M. C., S. V.Stehman, P. V.Potapov, T. R.Loveland, J. R. G.Townshend, R. S.Defries, K. W.Pittman, B.Arunarwati, F.Stolle, M. K.Steininger, M.Carroll, and C.Dimiceli 2008. Humid tropical forest clearing from 2000 to 2005 quantified by using multitemporal and multiresolution remotely sensed data. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA.105: 9439-9444.
22. Hawthorne, W. D., and M. P. E.Parren 2000. How important are forest elephants to the survival of woody plant species in Upper Guinean forests?J. Trop. Ecol.16: 133-150.
23. Holden, J., A.Yanuar, and D. J.Martyr 2003. The Asian tapir in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra: Evidence collected through photo-trapping. Oryx 37: 34-40.
24. Howe, H. F. 1985. Gomphothere fruits-a critique. Am. Nat.125: 853-865.
25. IUCN. 2009. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2009.2. Available at (accessed 06 March 2010).
26. Janzen, D. H. 1982a. Seeds in tapir dung in Santa Rosa National Park, Cost Rica. Brenesia19/20: 129-135.
27. Janzen, D. H. 1982b. Wild plant acceptability to a captive Costa Rican Baird's tapir. Brenesia19/20: 99-128.
28. Janzen, D. H., and P. S.Martin 1982. Neotropical anachronisms-the fruits the gomphotheres ate. Science215: 19-27.
29. Kawanishi, K., M.Sunsquist, and S.Othman 2002. Malayan tapirs (Tapirus indicus): Far from extinction in a Malaysian rainforest. Tapir Conserv. 11: 22-27.
30. Koch, P. L., and A. D.Barnosky 2006. Late quaternary extinctions: State of the debate. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Evol. Syst. 37: 215-250.
31. Muller-landau, H. C. 2010. The tolerance-fecundity trade-off and the maintenance of diversity in seed size. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA.107: 4242-4247.
32. Nathan, R., F. M.Schurr, O.Spiegel, O.Steinitz, A.Trakhtenbrot, and A.Tsoar 2008. Mechanisms of long-distance seed dispersal. Trends Ecol. Evol.23: 638-647.
33. Olmos, F., R.Pardini, R. L. P.Boulhosa, R.Burgi, and C.Morsello 1999. Do tapirs steal food from palm seed predators or give them a lift?Biotropica31: 375-379.
34. Padilla, M., and R. C.Dowler 1994. Tapirus terrestris. Mamm Species481: 1-8.
35. R Development Core Team. 2009. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. ISBN 3-900051-07-0. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Available at
36. Redford, K. H. 1992. The empty forest. Bioscience42: 412-422.
37. Saverimuttu, T., and M.Westoby 1996. Seedling longevity under deep shade in relation to seed size. J. Ecol.84: 681-689.
38. Schwarm, A., S.Ortmann, C.Wolf, W. J.Streich, and M.Clauss 2009. More efficient mastication allows increasing intake without compromising digestibility or necessitating a larger gut: Comparative feeding trials in banteng (Bos javanicus) and pygmy hippopotamus (Hexaprotodon liberiensis). Comp. Biochem. Physiol. A-Mol. Integr. Physiol. 152: 504-512.
39. Shoshani, J., and J. F.Eisenberg 1982. Elephas maximus. Mamm. Species182: 1-8.
40. Sodhi, N. S., M. R. C.Posa, T. M.Lee, D.Bickford, L. P.Koh, and B. W.Brook 2010. The state and conservation of Southeast Asian biodiversity. Biodiversity Conserv.19: 317-328.
41. Trakhtenbrot, A., R.Nathan, G.Perry, and D. M.Richardson 2005. The importance of long-distance dispersal in biodiversity conservation. Diversity Distrib.11: 173-181.
42. Venables, W. N., and B. D.Ripley 2002. Modern Applied Statistics with S (4th Edition). Springer, New York, New York.
43. Westcott, D. A., J.Bentrupperbaumer, M. G.Bradford, and A.Mckeown 2005. Incorporating patterns of disperser behaviour into models of seed dispersal and its effects on estimated dispersal curves. Oecologia146: 57-67.
44. Williams, K. D. 1979. Radio-tracking tapirs in the primary rain forest of West Malaysia. Malay. Nat. J.32: 253-258.
45. Williams, K. D., and G. A.Petrides 1980. Browse use, feeding-behavior, and management of the Malayan tapir. J. Wildl. Manage.44: 489-494.
46. Wright, S. J., K. E.Stoner, N.Beckman, R. T.Corlett, R.Dirzo, H. C.Muller-landau, G.Nunez-iturri, C. A.Peres, and B. C.Wang 2007. The plight of large animals in tropical forests and the consequences for plant regeneration. Biotropica39: 289-291.
47. Zaya, D. N., and H. F.Howe 2009. The anomalous Kentucky coffeetree: Megafaunal fruit sinking to extinction? Oecologia 161: 221-226.