Habitat Loss and Fragmentation in Chaco Forests: A Review of the Responses of Insect Communities and Consequences for Ecosystem Processes

EZEQUIEL GONZÁLEZ; ROSSETTI, MARÍA ROSA; MORENO, MARÍA LAURA; BERNASCHINI, MARÍA LAURA; CAGNOLO, LUCIANO; MUSICANTE, MARIANA; SALVO, ADRIANA; VALLADARES, GRACIELA

Insect Decline and Conservation in the Neotropics

Springer Nature Switzerland AG

Año: 2024; p. 1 - 311

Habitat loss and fragmentation are landscape transformations with profoundimpacts on biodiversity. Insects are particularly affected by these processes, withconsequences for ecosystem services. In the Neotropics, the Chaco forest is oneof the largest phytogeographic regions and has suffered critical deforestationrates in recent decades. For 20 years, we have studied the impact of these modifcations on insect communities in Córdoba, Argentina, and the interactionbetween forests and adjacent crops. Here, we review 25 empirical studies of theinfuence of fragment area, forest cover, and edge habitats on different insectfunctional groups, ecological processes, and ecological networks in fragmented Chaco forests in central Argentina. Small fragments and landscapes with lowproportions of forest cover were generally linked to impoverished insect communities across most functional groups. Fragment area reductions negativelyaffected aboveground processes such as herbivory and parasitoidism, whereasleaf litter decomposition and most network parameters were not affected. Edgeeffects were variable, favoring some insect groups (i.e., ground-dwelling arthropods and parasitoids) and parasitoidism rates. Moreover, intense insect movement between forests and crops increased ecosystem service provision near theforest. Our results indicate that fragmentation of Chaco forests has clear implications for potential changes in insect communities and ecosystem services.Maintaining forest remnants and promoting native forest plantations should beprioritized to guarantee insect biodiversity conservation.