Determinants of geographical distribution in Atlantic Forest species of Drymophila (Aves: Thamnophilidae)

Rajão, HenriqueCerqueira, RuiLucia Lorini, Maria

Climate, altitude and vegetation are usually considered as limiting factors in plant and animal distribution. Among vertebrates, climate and vegetation have consistently been considered as major determinants of geographical distributions. Here we analyzed the role of climate and the vegetation in limiting the geographical range of Atlantic Forest species of Drymophila Swainson, 1824 and assessed the performance of discriminant analysis to model the distribution of sympatric taxa. From each empirical point (locality) we recorded the values for nine climatic variables and the type of vegetation. The climatic data were obtained from a climate database elaborated by the Laboratório de Vertebrados and vegetation data from the ecoregions digital map of Latin America. The overlap of the climatic distribution map with the ecoregion map suggested that both factors are important in limiting the geographical range of Drymophila species. The discriminant approach, as applied here, was not satisfactory when compared with similar analysis carried out on parapatric species.

1. climate
2. vegetation
3. potential distribution
4. Biogeography
5. sympatric species