Fire frequency drives structural changes in bat-mediated seed dispersal networks in Neotropical dry forests

Fire frequency drives structural changes in bat-mediated seed dispersal networks in Neotropical dry forests | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Fire frequency drives structural changes in bat-mediated seed dispersal networks in Neotropical dry forests Nicolás Corredor Ospina, Ana I Rios-Cruz, Carlos Bravo García, and 4 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7852822/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Fire is a major driver of biodiversity change, influencing ecosystem composition, structure, and function. In Colombian tropical dry forests (TDF), however, its effects on ecological interactions remain largely unknown. We evaluated the effects of fire frequency changes over the structure of bat-mediated seed dispersal networks by analyzing connectance, specialization, modularity, and nestedness across three sites with contrasting fire histories. Connectance increased from 0.38 in unburned forests to 0.52 in high-frequency fire sites, while network specialization (H2′) decreased from 0.41 to 0.29 and modularity declined from 0.48 to 0.33, indicating a shift toward more generalized and less compartmentalized networks. Conversely, nestedness rose from 0.56 to 0.71, suggesting greater overlap in interactions among species. These structural shifts appear to be driven by the proliferation of super-generalist species, particularly Carollia perspicillata and Piper marginatum, which assumed central roles as connections from other species declined. Such dynamics highlight a trade-off between robustness and vulnerability: while generalist species sustain key ecosystem services under recurrent disturbance, the dependence on a few central taxa may increase long-term instability. To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the effects of fire frequency on bat-mediated seed dispersal networks, offering novel perspectives on species resilience and the ecological functioning of fire-affected ecosystems. Fire Ecology Mutualistic Networks Ecological Resilience Restoration Strategies Pyrodiversity Full Text Supplementary Files Annex.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 04 Nov, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 31 Oct, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 17 Oct, 2025 First submitted to journal 13 Oct, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7852822","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":537824386,"identity":"58375ba0-345c-49e2-b1a8-170f6c24a6e5","order_by":0,"name":"Nicolás Corredor Ospina","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA5klEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACZgjF2MDAfMDgA5DFxk68FraEwhkgLcxEWgbUwmPwmQfJEJzAnJ354ePKPTay/dJnDDfb/Nomz8fMwPjhYw5uLZbNbMaGZ56lGc/sSys2zu27bdjGzMAsOXMbbi0Gh3nYJBsOHE7ccIZ5m3Fuz21GoBY2Zl7CWv4DtTCY/7bsuW1PrJYDQC0sBsYMP24nEqEF6JeGA8nGM3vYEgx7G24ntzEzNuP3y/nDDx82HLCT7ecBRuWPP7dt57c3H/zwEY8WVMDYBiYbiFUPAn9IUTwKRsEoGAUjBQAA57tQMgmtavsAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0006-8845-7356","institution":"District University Francisco José de Caldas Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources: Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas Facultad del Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Nicolás","middleName":"Corredor","lastName":"Ospina","suffix":""},{"id":537824387,"identity":"46cd03d1-16f2-4505-9ae8-6006f11898b4","order_by":1,"name":"Ana I Rios-Cruz","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas: Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ana","middleName":"I","lastName":"Rios-Cruz","suffix":""},{"id":537824388,"identity":"d9189ac9-fd23-4158-8b3a-3b2a6fee5e84","order_by":2,"name":"Carlos Bravo García","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt: Instituto de Investigacion de Recursos Biologicos Alexander von Humboldt","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Carlos","middleName":"Bravo","lastName":"García","suffix":""},{"id":537824389,"identity":"b5ecf78e-4b7a-43ff-8a02-88a718599eb1","order_by":3,"name":"Maria Camila Rodríguez Uriza","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas: Universidad Distrital Francisco Jose de Caldas","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Maria","middleName":"Camila Rodríguez","lastName":"Uriza","suffix":""},{"id":537824390,"identity":"b1dee489-d1bf-473e-8e4a-fb04d8fcf7b6","order_by":4,"name":"Aileen R. 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