DISSERTATION RESEARCH: A Comparison of the Fates of Seeds and Seedlings in Hunted and Unhunted Tropical Forest Sites in Southern Belize

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REJMANEK DEB-9623505 Whether or not humans indirectly affect forest regeneration by changing natural mammal densities is an unresolved problem. Neotropical mammals may exert a significant impact on tree regeneration in rainforests because they are key dispersers and predators of seeds. In many parts of the Neotropics, local hunters supplement their diet by killing medium-sized and large mammals, dramatically lowering their densities. Since different mammalian herbivores have different effects on the fates of seeds and seedlings, we expect that the rates of seed dispersal and predation and seedling recruitment of trees in hunted sites will be different from those in unhunted sites. Using exclosure experiments to separate the effects of different size classes of mammals, this project will address (1) whether or not different types of herbivorous mammals differentially affect tree seed fates and seedling survival and (2) whether or not the effects of these mammals differ between unhunted and hunted portions of a wet tropical forest. Addressing these issues will provide information about the efficacy of employing subsistence hunting as a long-term conservation tool in attempting to limit destruction of Neotropical forests.