Indigenous lands protect 23% of the Brazilian Amazon, covering more than 100 million hectares, and area the size of Colombia. Maintaining the integrity of these lands is crucial to contain deforestation, maintain the stability of the regional climate, mitigate global climate change, and protect indigenous rights. Indigenous land rights in the Amazon, however, are at important risk. Around 60% of mining concessions in Brazil are in the Amazon region. Indigenous lands have frequently reported illegal mining.
Leafcutter Ant Nests Inhibit Low-Intensity Fire Spread in the Understory of Transitional Forests at the Amazon’s Forest-Savanna Boundary
Leafcutter Ant Nests Inhibit Low-Intensity Fire Spread in the Understory of Transitional Forests at the Amazon’s Forest-Savanna Boundary
Leaf-cutter ants (Atta spp.) remove leaf litter and woody debris—potential fuels—in and around their nests and foraging trails. We conducted single and three annual experimental fires to determine the effects of this leaf-cutter ant activity on the behavior of...