Landscape composition is the major driver of the taxonomic and functional diversity of tropical frugivorous birds

Context Anthropogenic land use and cover changes impact biodiversity worldwide. However, ecological groups are differently affected by landscape composition and configuration. Understanding which groups are negatively affected and which thrive in human-modified landscapes is of paramount importance for conservation management, especially for species such as the frugivorous birds, which play an essential role in seed dispersal. Objectives We evaluated the relative importance of landscape composition and configuration, explaining taxonomic and functional diversity and their effects on frugivorous birds in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Methods We used a robust dataset encompassing 153 forest fragments in the Atlantic Forest hotspot. We classified species as frugivores based on the percentage of fruits in the diet, and used functional traits related to seed dispersal to measure functional diversity. Results Our results showed that landscape composition was more important than landscape configuration explaining taxonomic and functional diversity of frugivorous birds. In addition, the interaction between landscape composition and configuration explained the loss of functional traits. Conclusions We demonstrate a disproportional importance of landscape composition explaining taxonomic and functional diversity of frugivorous birds, whereas the traits related to seed dispersal were explained by both compositional and configurational variables. Thus, we highlighted the need to maintain high habitat amount to increase taxonomic and functional diversity of frugivorous birds. However, the interaction of landscape composition and configuration is of paramount importance to sustain functional traits of frugivores in tropical forest landscapes.