Data from: Biodiversity extinction thresholds are modulated by matrix type

Biodiversity extinction thresholds are abrupt declines in biological
diversity that occur with habitat loss, associated with a decline in
habitat connectivity. Matrix quality should influence the location of
thresholds along habitat loss gradients through its effects on
connectivity; however these relationships have seldom been explored
empirically. Using field data from 23 independent 1,254 ha landscapes in
the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, we evaluated how tropical avian
biodiversity responds to native forest loss within habitat patches
embedded either in homogeneous pasture matrix context (with a high
proportion of cattle pastures), and heterogeneous coffee matrix context
(with high abundance of sun coffee plantations). We considered taxonomic,
functional, and phylogenetic diversity, and tested if matrix type and
choice of diversity metric influenced the location of biodiversity
thresholds along the forest cover gradient. We found that matrix type
postponed the abrupt loss of taxonomic diversity, from a threshold of 35%
of forest cover in homogeneous pasture matrix to 19% in heterogeneous
coffee matrix. Phylogenetic diversity responded similarly, with thresholds
at 30% and 24% in homogeneous-pasture and heterogeneous-coffee matrices,
respectively, but no relationship with forest cover was detected when
corrected for richness correlation. Despite the absence of a threshold for
functional diversity in either matrix types, a strong decline below 20% of
habitat amount was detected. Finally, below 20% native habitat loss, all
diversity indices demonstrated abrupt declines, indicating that even
higher-quality matrices cannot postpone diversity loss below this critical
threshold. These results highlight that taxonomic diversity is a more
sensitive index of biodiversity loss in fragmented landscapes, which may
be used as a benchmark to prevent subsequent functional and phylogenetic
losses. Furthermore, increasing matrix quality appears an efficient
conservation strategy to maintain higher biodiversity levels in fragmented
landscapes over a larger range of habitat loss.