Influência das características morfológicas e do habitat físico sobre a capacidade de dispersão de Odonata em igarapés amazônicos

Abstract

Species' dispersal capacity is directly related to their individual morphological, physiological and behavioral characteristics and to the ecological context in which they live. Species with a lower dispersal capacity tend to be more vulnerable to climate change and more intensive land use. This is due to the loss of vegetation cover and fragmentation leading to a change in habitat connectivity and thermal conditions in the environment. In this study, we investigated the factors affecting the dispersal capacity of adult Odonata in Amazonian streams, focusing on morphological traits and the effects of land use and environmental integrity. We tested the hypotheses: i) body size, thorax volume, and wing base width are positively related to dispersal capacity and wing aspect ratio is negatively related to dispersal capacity; ii) greater forest cover and habitat integrity are negatively related to dispersal capacity, as a larger canopy filters out individuals with lower flight ability. The study was conducted in 12 streams in Barcarena, Pará, Brazil. We used the mark-recapture method and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling. We considered landscape variables (forest formation and pasture), physical habitat variables (channel cover, undergrowth, channel width, habitat integrity index, and temperature), morphological variables (total body length, thoracic volume, and wing aspect ratio) and we used dispersal capacity (distance in meters) as a response variable. 541 individuals were tagged (n=466 Zygoptera e n=75 Anisoptera). The recapture rate was 29% for Zygoptera and 1.4% for Anisoptera. Most of the individuals recaptured were males belonging to the genera Mnesarete, Argia and Hetaerina. Approximately 91% of the individuals moved less than 60 meters. The results, which related only to Zygoptera, partially confirmed the first hypothesis: wing aspect ratio was negatively related to dispersal capacity, suggesting that shorter and wider wings are associated with greater flight ability. However, no direct relationship was found between habitat integrity or forest formation and dispersion, but forest formation and channel width influenced the morphology of individuals' wing aspect ratio. These patterns suggest that genera occurring in forested environments, such as Heteragrion, which have a higher wing aspect ratio, have a lower dispersal capacity, while those adapted to higher temperatures and light availability, such as Mnesarete and Hetaerina, have a lower wing aspect ratio and greater dispersal capacity. We emphasize the vulnerability of individuals with lower dispersal capacity to changes in their aquatic habitats and changes in the surrounding terrestrial landscape due to loss of vegetation cover.