Concept explainers
Are toucans important to tropical forests?
Human activities are causing the fragmentation of the Brazilian Atlantic rain forest. One consequence is that toucans have become extinct or nearly extinct in some of the forest fragments. Does the absence of toucans affect the forest?
Toucans disperse seeds of key forest species such as juçara palms by eating the fruit and defecating the seeds in new locations, sometimes more than a kilometer away. If there are no toucans, is the genetic diversity of palms likely to increase or decrease within forest fragments (and why)?
a. increase (due to increased genetic drift)
b. decrease (due to decreased gene flow)
c. decrease (due to decreased mutation rate)
d. decrease (due to decreased natural selection)
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Biological Science (7th Edition)
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