Abstract

OLIVEIRA, Roniel F  and  HANNIBAL, Wellington. Effects of patch attributes on the richness of medium- and large-sized mammals in fragmented semi-deciduous forest . Mastozool. neotrop. [online]. 2017, vol.24, n.2, pp.401-408. ISSN 0327-9383.

We evaluated the effect of patch attributes on the richness of medium- and large-sized mammals in semi-deciduous forest patches in the southern of Goiás state, Brazil. We surveyed 14 semi-deciduous for­est patches (35 to 869 ha) from January to December 2015. Medium- and large-sized mammal were sampled through direct observation, tracks, feces and burrows. In each semi-deciduous forest patch, we measured total area and core area (in hectare), degree of isolation (in meters) and connectivity (patches connected to riparian forest versus isolated patches). We recorded 22 species of medium- and large-sized mammals. Species richness was positively related to the core area of the patches. Patch size had a significant influence on species richness showing that this attribute is important to maintain community structure. Therefore, the fragmented landscape of southern Goiás still harbors a rich fauna of medium- and large-sized mammals.

Keywords : Conservation; Core area; Degree of isolation; Human-altered landscape.

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