2021-01-222021-01-222020-03-25MAMEDE, A. F. M. Padrões biogeográficos da especialização e distribuição de insetos herbívoros. 2020. 96 f. Tese (Doutorado em Ecologia e Evolução) - Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, 2020.http://repositorio.bc.ufg.br/tede/handle/tede/11053Some studies have questioned the theory that species are more specialized in biotic interactions in tropical regions. On the other hand, there are an increasing number of studies including biotic interactions to understand the distribution of species and their responses to climate change. Species distribution can be affected by factors linked to their ecological niche. However, biotic interactions are often associated with small spatial scales, while environmental conditions are associated with the distribution of species on a biogeographic scale. Using interaction networks compiled from the literature, I sought to understand: (i) the effect of different measures of specialization on the detectability of the relationship between latitude and feeding specialization of herbivorous insects; (ii) how the latitudinal distribution of frugivorous flies (Tephritidae) in the Americas is related to the specialization in the use of host plants and climatic seasonality; (iii) how climate change can alter the distribution of species of frugivorous flies of the genus Anastrepha spp. (modeled considering abiotic and biotic factors) and how the degree of specialization in plants can influence species responses to climate change. We found that secondary factors, related to the data sets, and not the difference in calculating the different indexes of specialization affected the specialization of herbivorous insects. Additionally, we observed no evidence of a relationship between the latitude and specialization of herbivorous insects after estimating different specialization indexes using the same data set. We also show that fruit flies species that occur at higher latitudes have smaller distribution ranges, thus contradicting the expectation according to the Rapoport effect. The breadth of latitudinal distribution were explained by the width of the feeding niche, seasonality in precipitation and the species origin (being native or introduced). Finally, we find that the Anastrepha fruit flies from the American continent will have their distributions increased as a result of climate change and this increase is related to the degree of specialization in host plants.Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 InternationalInsetos herbívorosGradiente latitudinalLargura de nichoMudanças climáticasNicho abióticoHerbivorous insectsLatitudinal Latitudinal gradientNiche widthClimate changeAbiotic nicheCIENCIAS BIOLOGICAS::ECOLOGIA::ECOLOGIA APLICADATese