The Atlantic rainforest of northeastern Brazil, one of the world’s most species-rich tropical rainforests, is in serious trouble, according to an article by Brazilian scientists in the journal Nature. Ecological processes like seed dispersal and pollination are being disrupted and may lead to the extinction of 34 percent of the region’s tree species, said researcher Jose Maria Cardoso da Silva. “I noticed that some of the larger fruit-eating birds were disappearing in the forest and I asked myself how many of the tree species that depend on the birds for seed dispersal would also die out,” da Silva said. Most of the current forest protection reserves are too small to support large fruit-eating species, da Silva said. He argues that conservation efforts need to focus on reforesting large areas if birds and trees are to survive.
