CREAF Talk with Lisieux Fuzessy: "Beyond species loss: Functional and phylogenetic dimensions of avian community change in the face of anthropogenic threats"

Tropical and temperate ecosystems are under increasing pressure from habitat transformation and climate change, yet the consequences for the functional and phylogenetic integrity of avian communities remain underexplored.

In this talk, Lisieux Fuzessy will present findings from a recent study conducted with Daniel Sol, where they investigated how deforestation and land-use heterogeneity in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest alter bird species richness, functional diversity, and community structure. Despite species loss, the study found that functional diversity was maintained through a turnover toward mosaic-adapted species, while core forest and threatened species were lost.

Building on these insights, she will outline her ongoing work in the United States, which expands the scope to incorporate temporal dynamics and climate drivers. By integrating high-resolution land cover data, climate variables, and advanced modeling approaches—including hierarchical occupancy models and Bayesian phylogenetic diversity analyses—this project aims to decode how avian communities respond to the dual pressures of habitat and climate change across large spatial and temporal scales. Together, these efforts contribute to a more nuanced understanding of biodiversity resilience, offering critical insights for conservation strategies in rapidly changing landscapes.

Short biography: Lisieux Fuzessy is a Brazilian ecologist with a strong background in community ecology, evolutionary biology, and conservation. She holds a PhD in Plant Biology from the Federal University of Minas Gerais, with research focused on vertebrate-mediated seed dispersal in Neotropical ecosystems. Her work integrates ecological networks, functional and phylogenetic diversity, and big data approaches to understand the effects of environmental change on biodiversity.

Lisieux was a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) postdoctoral fellow at CREAF, where she collaborated with Dr. Daniel Sol on the eco-evolutionary consequences of habitat change for bird communities. Currently, she is conducting research on avian diversity shifts across the United States, combining land-use and climate drivers to uncover patterns of community reorganization under global change.

HOW TO CONNECT: direct link to Lisieux Fuzessy's conference