Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards

Autores
Dajil, Juan Esteban; Block, Carolina; Vega, Laura Estela; Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal
Año de publicación
2026
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
Anthropogenic landscape change involves habitat loss and shifts in configuration, often increasing patch number and isolation. Ecological specialization is hypothesized to mediate species vulnerability, with specialists sensitive to habitat amount and generalists potentially utilizing structural heterogeneity. We tested this scale-dependent differential response across seven Pampean coastal dune sites in Argentina, focusing on two sympatric lizards: the endangered habitat specialist Liolaemus multimaculatus and the habitat generalist Liolaemus wiegmannii. We assessed relative lizard abundance using fixed-route visual encounter transects and modeled species abundance association with landscape metrics using Generalized Linear Mixed Models across three nested spatial scales (100-m, 300-m, and 500-m). Results revealed a clear dichotomy driven by specialization. The specialist L. multimaculatus's abundance was explained exclusively by habitat composition metrics, showing a strong positive association with the total area of active dune habitat (500-m scale) and a consistent negative relationship with the total area of low-quality habitats (exotic forestation, semi-fixed dune, and beach) across all three scales. This indicates its vulnerability stems primarily from habitat loss. In contrast, the generalist L. wiegmannii's abundance was explained exclusively by configuration metrics at the smallest scale (100-m), showing a positive association with the number and complexity of semi-fixed dune patches. This suggests the generalist benefits from fragmentation-induced heterogeneity. Our findings confirm that ecological specialization critically dictates species vulnerability and scale-dependent responses to landscape change. Conservation efforts for the vulnerable L. multimaculatus must prioritize maintaining the amount of core active dune habitat.
Fil: Dajil, Juan Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Block, Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Vega, Laura Estela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Materia
Anthropogenic impact
Conservation
Habitat quality
Landscape
Liolaemus
Pampas
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
Repositorio
CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Institución
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
OAI Identificador
oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/288051
Acceder
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oai_identifier_str oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/288051
network_acronym_str CONICETDig
repository_id_str 3498
network_name_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
spelling Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizardsDajil, Juan EstebanBlock, CarolinaVega, Laura EstelaStellatelli, Oscar AníbalAnthropogenic impactConservationHabitat qualityLandscapeLiolaemusPampashttps://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1Anthropogenic landscape change involves habitat loss and shifts in configuration, often increasing patch number and isolation. Ecological specialization is hypothesized to mediate species vulnerability, with specialists sensitive to habitat amount and generalists potentially utilizing structural heterogeneity. We tested this scale-dependent differential response across seven Pampean coastal dune sites in Argentina, focusing on two sympatric lizards: the endangered habitat specialist Liolaemus multimaculatus and the habitat generalist Liolaemus wiegmannii. We assessed relative lizard abundance using fixed-route visual encounter transects and modeled species abundance association with landscape metrics using Generalized Linear Mixed Models across three nested spatial scales (100-m, 300-m, and 500-m). Results revealed a clear dichotomy driven by specialization. The specialist L. multimaculatus's abundance was explained exclusively by habitat composition metrics, showing a strong positive association with the total area of active dune habitat (500-m scale) and a consistent negative relationship with the total area of low-quality habitats (exotic forestation, semi-fixed dune, and beach) across all three scales. This indicates its vulnerability stems primarily from habitat loss. In contrast, the generalist L. wiegmannii's abundance was explained exclusively by configuration metrics at the smallest scale (100-m), showing a positive association with the number and complexity of semi-fixed dune patches. This suggests the generalist benefits from fragmentation-induced heterogeneity. Our findings confirm that ecological specialization critically dictates species vulnerability and scale-dependent responses to landscape change. Conservation efforts for the vulnerable L. multimaculatus must prioritize maintaining the amount of core active dune habitat.Fil: Dajil, Juan Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; ArgentinaFil: Block, Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; ArgentinaFil: Vega, Laura Estela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; ArgentinaFil: Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; ArgentinaElsevier2026-01info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/11336/288051Dajil, Juan Esteban; Block, Carolina; Vega, Laura Estela; Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal; Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards; Elsevier; Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation; 1-2026; 1-102530-0644CONICET DigitalCONICETenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2530064425000677info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.pecon.2025.12.004info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas2026-06-17T09:41:14Zoai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/288051instacron:CONICETInstitucionalhttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/oai/requestdasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:34982026-06-17 09:41:14.914CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicasfalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
title Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
spellingShingle Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
Dajil, Juan Esteban
Anthropogenic impact
Conservation
Habitat quality
Landscape
Liolaemus
Pampas
title_short Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
title_full Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
title_fullStr Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
title_full_unstemmed Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
title_sort Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Dajil, Juan Esteban
Block, Carolina
Vega, Laura Estela
Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal
author Dajil, Juan Esteban
author_facet Dajil, Juan Esteban
Block, Carolina
Vega, Laura Estela
Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal
author_role author
author2 Block, Carolina
Vega, Laura Estela
Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal
author2_role author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Anthropogenic impact
Conservation
Habitat quality
Landscape
Liolaemus
Pampas
topic Anthropogenic impact
Conservation
Habitat quality
Landscape
Liolaemus
Pampas
purl_subject.fl_str_mv https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv Anthropogenic landscape change involves habitat loss and shifts in configuration, often increasing patch number and isolation. Ecological specialization is hypothesized to mediate species vulnerability, with specialists sensitive to habitat amount and generalists potentially utilizing structural heterogeneity. We tested this scale-dependent differential response across seven Pampean coastal dune sites in Argentina, focusing on two sympatric lizards: the endangered habitat specialist Liolaemus multimaculatus and the habitat generalist Liolaemus wiegmannii. We assessed relative lizard abundance using fixed-route visual encounter transects and modeled species abundance association with landscape metrics using Generalized Linear Mixed Models across three nested spatial scales (100-m, 300-m, and 500-m). Results revealed a clear dichotomy driven by specialization. The specialist L. multimaculatus's abundance was explained exclusively by habitat composition metrics, showing a strong positive association with the total area of active dune habitat (500-m scale) and a consistent negative relationship with the total area of low-quality habitats (exotic forestation, semi-fixed dune, and beach) across all three scales. This indicates its vulnerability stems primarily from habitat loss. In contrast, the generalist L. wiegmannii's abundance was explained exclusively by configuration metrics at the smallest scale (100-m), showing a positive association with the number and complexity of semi-fixed dune patches. This suggests the generalist benefits from fragmentation-induced heterogeneity. Our findings confirm that ecological specialization critically dictates species vulnerability and scale-dependent responses to landscape change. Conservation efforts for the vulnerable L. multimaculatus must prioritize maintaining the amount of core active dune habitat.
Fil: Dajil, Juan Esteban. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Block, Carolina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Vega, Laura Estela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
Fil: Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras; Argentina
description Anthropogenic landscape change involves habitat loss and shifts in configuration, often increasing patch number and isolation. Ecological specialization is hypothesized to mediate species vulnerability, with specialists sensitive to habitat amount and generalists potentially utilizing structural heterogeneity. We tested this scale-dependent differential response across seven Pampean coastal dune sites in Argentina, focusing on two sympatric lizards: the endangered habitat specialist Liolaemus multimaculatus and the habitat generalist Liolaemus wiegmannii. We assessed relative lizard abundance using fixed-route visual encounter transects and modeled species abundance association with landscape metrics using Generalized Linear Mixed Models across three nested spatial scales (100-m, 300-m, and 500-m). Results revealed a clear dichotomy driven by specialization. The specialist L. multimaculatus's abundance was explained exclusively by habitat composition metrics, showing a strong positive association with the total area of active dune habitat (500-m scale) and a consistent negative relationship with the total area of low-quality habitats (exotic forestation, semi-fixed dune, and beach) across all three scales. This indicates its vulnerability stems primarily from habitat loss. In contrast, the generalist L. wiegmannii's abundance was explained exclusively by configuration metrics at the smallest scale (100-m), showing a positive association with the number and complexity of semi-fixed dune patches. This suggests the generalist benefits from fragmentation-induced heterogeneity. Our findings confirm that ecological specialization critically dictates species vulnerability and scale-dependent responses to landscape change. Conservation efforts for the vulnerable L. multimaculatus must prioritize maintaining the amount of core active dune habitat.
publishDate 2026
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2026-01
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/11336/288051
Dajil, Juan Esteban; Block, Carolina; Vega, Laura Estela; Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal; Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards; Elsevier; Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation; 1-2026; 1-10
2530-0644
CONICET Digital
CONICET
url http://hdl.handle.net/11336/288051
identifier_str_mv Dajil, Juan Esteban; Block, Carolina; Vega, Laura Estela; Stellatelli, Oscar Aníbal; Habitat specialization drives differential responses to habitat loss and fragmentation across multiple spatial scales in sympatric lizards; Elsevier; Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation; 1-2026; 1-10
2530-0644
CONICET Digital
CONICET
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2530064425000677
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.pecon.2025.12.004
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
application/pdf
application/pdf
application/pdf
application/pdf
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application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
reponame_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
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instname_str Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.name.fl_str_mv CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.mail.fl_str_mv dasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.ar
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