Habitat differences in seed-dispersing vertebrates indicate dispersal limitation in tropical bracken-dominated deforested areas

Shifting agriculture and anthropogenic fires are among the main causes of deforestation in the tropics. After fire and land abandonment, vast deforested areas are commonly dominated by the bracken fern Pteridium for long periods. Although forest regeneration in bracken-dominated areas is mainly hindered by dispersal limitation, little is known about the role of seed-disperser communities in slow forest succession. Our objective was to unravel the differences in the properties of the seed-disperser communities between forests and bracken-dominated areas to assess their role in dispersal limitation to foster ecological restoration. We compared species richness, diversity, abundance, and composition of seed-dispersing birds, bats, and medium and large terrestrial mammals between forests and bracken-dominated areas in a montane forest of Bolivia. The species richness and diversity were similar for bats and higher for birds in bracken-dominated areas than in the forest, but species compositi..., A field experiment was conducted in the tropical montane forest of Bolivia, where we compared the community properties of seed-dispersing birds, bats and medium and large terrestrial mammals between two habitats: forest and a fire-deforested habitat dominated by the bracken fern (Pteridium esculentum subsp. arachnoideum), hereafter bracken or bracken-dominated areas. The bird and bat data was obtained using mist-nets. The data of seed-dispersing medium and large terrestrial mammals was obtained using unbaited camera traps. See further details in the main document., , # Data from: Habitat differences in seed-dispersing vertebrates indicate dispersal limitation in tropical bracken-dominated deforested areas

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.cvdncjt9z](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.cvdncjt9z)

A field experiment was conducted in the tropical montane forest of Bolivia, where we compared the community properties of seed-dispersing birds, bats and medium and large terrestrial mammals between two habitats: forest and a fire-deforested habitat dominated by the bracken fern (*Pteridium esculentum subsp.* arachnoideum), hereafter bracken or bracken-dominated areas. The bird and bat data was obtained using mist-nets. The data of seed-dispersing medium and large terrestrial mammals was obtained using camera traps.

## Description of the data and file structure

**Time of data collection:**

For birds and bats between March 2020 and June 2021

For medium and large terrestrial mammals between October 2020 and September 2022

**Geographic location of data collection...