Higher temperature variability in deforested mountain regions impacts the competitive advantage of nocturnal species

Deforestation is a major contributor to biodiversity loss, yet the impact
of deforestation on daily microclimate variability and its implications
for species with different daily activity patterns remain poorly
understood. Using a recently developed microclimate model, we investigated
the effects of deforestation on the daily temperature range (DTR) in
low-elevation tropical areas and high-elevation temperate areas. Our
results show that shade loss due to deforestation substantially increases
DTR in these areas, suggesting a potential impact on species interactions.
To test this hypothesis, we studied the competitive interactions between
nocturnal burying beetles and all-day active blowfly maggots in forested
and deforested habitats in Taiwan. We show that deforestation leads to
increased DTR at higher elevations, which enhances the competitiveness of
blowfly maggots during the day and leads to a higher failure rate of
carcass burial by the beetles at night. Thus, deforestation-induced
temperature variability not only modulates exploitative competition
between species with different daily activity patterns but also likely
exacerbates the negative impacts of climate change on nocturnal organisms.
Our study highlights the need to protect forests, especially in areas
where deforestation can greatly alter temperature variability, in order to
prevent potential adverse effects on species interactions and their
ecological functions.