Filogenia molecular de fungos gasteroides das ordens Phallales e Geastrales (Phallomycetidae)

Gasteroids fungi are characterized by the basidiospores maturation inside the basidioma, from which spores liberation occurs in a passive manner. These fungi were once seen as a well definite class of Basidiomycota, but nowadays they are considered an artificial assemblage, because the organisms have independent evolutionary histories forming a polyphyletic group with a vast morphological variety. Despite their diversity, studies with this group in the tropics are incipient, and the phylogenetic relationships of the species from temperate climate remain unknown. Thus, this work aimed to elucidate the phylogenetic relationships of gasteroids fungi from the Geastrales and Phallales orders, with the inclusion of tropical and temperate species, and with these analyses suggest a systematic position of species like Aseroë floriformis and Phallus roseus, as well as to verify if the lignicolous habit can indicate parental relationship in the Geastrum genus. For this, basidiomata were collected at Atlantic rain forest areas, during the rainy season, and the specimen identification followed specific literature for gasteroid fungi. The phylogenetic analyses were performed with Maximum Parsimony and Bayesian Analysis, making use of RPB2 and 28S nuclear genes and atp6 mitochondrial gene. It could be observed on the Phallales dendogram, that Aseroë floriformis did not cluster with A. rubra, and that it has an anterior divergence from all others species of the family Clathraceae used in this analysis, assuming a basal position in the clade. Phallus roseus, which once was recognized as Itajahya, has previous divergence from the group formed by Phallus species. At the Geastrales dendogram, in the group corresponding to Geastrum genus, it could be observed that species with lignicolous habitat clustered in a clade with high support values. So, the results suggest the creation of a new genus to accommodate A. floriformis, and the revalidation of Itajahya, as well as it can be affirmed that the lignicolous habitat on the Geastrum genus in fact indicates parental relationships, and that it has arised only once at the evolutionary history of the genus

Diversidade de paronellidae (collembola, arthropleona, entomobryoidea) no nordeste brasileiro, com ênfase em áreas úmidas da caatinga

Paronellidae is among the most diverse and distinctive components of epiedaphic Collembola in tropical countries. However, only 15 species of the family were recorded in Brazil, and only two of them were record in northeast region of the country. This condiction is clearly related to low sampling efforts and lack of specialists working with the group. Due to this reality, this work aimed to study the Paronellidae fauna, under a taxonomic point of view, in six distinct environments in Northeastern Brazil (from Alagoas, Bahia, Ceará, Piauí and Paraíba states), five areas of Caatinga and one from Atlantic Rain Forest biome. Collections were made during the rainy season on each area. The specimens were analyzed under stereomicroscope and mounted in glass slides for microscopy. The specimens identified as Paronellidae had their occurrence recorded and five new species were described. An identification key to the brazilian genera of the family was also prepared. Twelve species of Paronellidae were recorded for the first time to Brazil: Campylothorax mitrai; Lepidonella. sp. nov. 1; Lepidonella sp. nov. 2, Lepidonella sp. nov. 3, Lepidonella sp. nov 4, Lepidonella sp. nov. 5; Dicranocentruga sp. Nov. 1; Dicranocentruga sp. Nov. 2; Dicranocentruga sp. Nov. 3; Paronella sp. nov.1; Serroderus sp. nov.1 and Trogolaphysa. sp. 1, where C. mitrai, Lepidonella. sp. nov 1, Dicranocentruga sp. nov 1, Dicranocentruga sp. nov 2 and Dicranocentruga sp. nov 3 were described. Serroderus and Dicranocentruga genera were recorded for the first time to Brazil. The description of Lepidonella sp. nov 1 also represents the first description of a species of the genus for the country. The data presented show a high potential species richness to Paronellidae, not only in the northeast region, but as in Brazil. In fact, with the records presented in this work, the number of recorded species of Paronellidae in the country increased by 80%. The study of this particular fauna may direct environmental conservation policies, especially in areas of Caatinga

Gato-do-mato-pequeno (Leopardus tigrinus) na Caatinga: ocupação e padrão de atividade de um felídeo ameaçado e pouco conhecido na floresta tropical seca do nordeste do Brasil

While the carnivores are considered regulators and structuring of natural communities are also extremely threatened by human activities. Endangered little-spotted-cat (Leopardus tigrinus) is one of the lesser known species from the Neotropical cats. In this work we investigate the occupancy and the activity pattern of L. tigrinus in Caatinga of Rio Grande do Norte testing: 1) how environmental and anthropogenic factors influence their occupation and 2) how biotic and abiotic factors influence their activity pattern. For this we raised occurrence data of species in 10 priority areas for conservation. We built hierarchical models of occupancy based on maximum likelihood to represent biological hypotheses which were ranked using the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC). According to the results the feline occupancy is more likely away from rural settlements and in areas with a higher proportion of woody vegetation. The opportunistic killing of L. tigrinus and in retaliation for poultry predation close to residential areas can explain this result; as well as more complex vegetation structure can better serve as refuge and ensure more food. Analyzing the records of the species through circular statistics we conclude that the activity pattern is mostly nocturnal, although considerable crepuscular and a small diurnal activity. L. tigrinus activity was directly affected by the availability of small terrestrial mammals, which are essentially nocturnal. In addition, the temperatures recorded in the environment directly and indirectly affect the activity of the little-spotted-cat, as also influence the activity of their potential prey. Generally, the cats were more active when possible prey were active, and this happened at night when lower temperatures are recorded. Moreover, the different lunar phases did not affect the activity pattern. The results improve the understanding of an endangered feline inhabiting the Caatinga biome, and thus can help develop conservation and management strategies, as well as in planning future research in this semi-arid ecosystem.

Percepção ambiental de crianças em ambientes naturais protegidos

This study aimed at exploring and describing children s perceptions in threatened natural settings, specifically, the Rain Forest in Brazil. Several studies point to the significance of perceptions for people s pro-environmental attitudes and actions. We try to understand the person-environment interaction from an ecological perspective, and we present theoretical references for the understanding of how crucial nature is for psychological development and well-being. The children s drawings, individual interviews, discussion groups, photographies and informal and indirect sources, as teachers, brought material for the analysis. Participated in our study, carried on through a multi-method strategy, 209 children from six to eleven years old, living in the neighborhood of the Biological Reserve of Una, State of Bahia, created to protect Rain Forest fragments. The Rain Forest landscape is well portrayed in children s drawings, the vegetal elements prevailing over artificial and human elements. The figured plants and trees, however, are pointed with no precision as to their species. Most of the defined species are eatable. The children seem to be aware of the environment degradation, and of the importance of its conservation, but they describe episodes of hunting and feeding wild threatened animals. Our results indicate a utilitarian trend in the perception of living beings, in terms of their immediate usefulness for people. The multimethod approach seems to be appropriate to the complexity of the theme; the methodological strategies were well accepted by the children, offering them opportunities to express themselves. We observed how children, in different life phases, organize natural elements and processes in their drawings, and how these images relate to the local landscape. We discuss the results in the light of theoretical references of personenvironment studies and from previous investigations about children s perceptions of natural environment

Biologia populacional comparada de duas espécies de heliconius (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae) em um ambiente sazonal de floresta atlântica do nordeste brasileiro

Tropical environments often face strong seasonal variations in climate, such as alternate periods of dry and rain, that may often be important influence in the annual X the organisms lives. Here we assess how population dynamics of two butterfly species (Heliconius erato and Heliconius mepomene) respond to environmental and seasonal variations. A mark-release-recapture study carried out in an Atlantic forest reserve, 15 Km from Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, for 3 years, during the dry and rainy season, with three visits weekly done. Information such as species, wing lenght, site of capture, pollen load and phenotype (number of spots) (in H. erato only) were noted for each capture. Seasonal variation exists in capture rates of the two species, with great capture rates during the rainy season. Despite finding differences in the mean density of individuals of the two species among the different collection areas, this difference was only significant between floodplain and central areas, and no influence of seasonality was observed in the mean density between the areas. Seasonality in wing size was only observed for H. erato, with larger wings during the rainy season. Females carried larger pollen loads than males both species, but species were similar. Only males differed seasonally, with larger pollen loads during the rainy season. The distribution of the number of wing spots did not vary between the dry and rainy seasons, and the number of spots in males and females was similar. Therefore, we conclude that there was a strong influence of seasonal variation in the population dynamic of the two Heliconius species, as well as in several aspects of their biology

Sobrevivência e tamanho populacional do Tiê-preto Tachyphonus Rufus (aves: thraupidae) em fragmento de restinga no extremo Norte da Mata Atlântica

For a long time, we believed in the pattern that tropical and south hemisphere species have high survival. Nowadays results began to contradict this pattern, indicating the need for further studies. Despite the advanced state of the study of bird population parameters, little is known about their variation throughout the year and the factors affecting them. Reproduction, for example, is one factor that may alter adult survival rates, because during this process the breeding pair allocates resources to maintain itself to maintain offspring, making itself more susceptible to diseases and predation. The aim of this study was to estimate survival and population size of a Central and South America passerine, Tachyphonus rufus (Boddaert, 1783), testing hypotheses about the factors that define these parameters. We performed data collection between Nov/2010 and ago/2012 in 12 ha plot, in a fragment of Atlantic Forest in northeastern Brazil. We used capture-mark-recapture methods to generate estimates using Closed Design Robust model in the program MARK. We generated Multi-state models to test some assumptions inherent to Closed Robust Design. The influence of co-variables (time, rain and reproductive cycle) and the effect of transient individuals were measured. Capture, recapture and apparent survival parameters were defined by reproductive cycle, while temporary dispersal was influence by rain. The estimates showed a higher apparent survival during the non-breeding period (92% ± 1%) than during breeding (40% ± 9%), revealing a cost of reproduction and suggesting a trade-off between surviving and reproducing. The low annual survival observed (34%) did not corroborate the pattern of high rates expected for a tropical bird. The largest population size was estimated to be 56 individuals in Nov/11, explained by high recruitment of juveniles, while the lowest observed in May/12: 10 individuals, probably as a result of massive influx of competitor species. Results from this study add to the growing literature on life history of Neotropical species. We encourage studies like this especially in Brazil, where there are few information, and suggest that covariates related to habitat quality and environmental changes should be tested, so that we can generate increasingly reliable models

O efeito do regime hidrológico do semiárido na composição de espécies durante dominância de cianobactérias em um reservatório tropical

The potentially toxic cyanobacterial blooms in water bodies are spread across the globe, resulting in the loss of water quality and adverse effects on human health. In arid and semiarid regions, the hydrologic regime characterized by an annual cycle of drought and rain, change the volume and the retention time of the reservoir. Such changes affect the limnological characteristics and causing changes in composition and biomass community of cyanobacteria. The reservoir Cruzeta (Zmax = 8.7 m) is a eutrophic water supply source located in the semiarid tropical (Northeast Brazil). Raised the hypothesis that the hydrological regime of semi-arid tropical is a determining factor in the availability of resources in eutrophic water sources, which influences the composition of dominant species of cyanobacteria. The aim of this study was to analyze the changes in biomass and species composition of cyanobacteria for two annual hydrological cycles and evaluate factors drivers. The study was divided into five distinct periods (dry 2010, rain 2011, dry 2011, rain 2012, dry 2012). The dominant group found in all periods was Cyanobacteria (99% of total biomass), which contributed to the low diversity. The filamentous species Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii was present at both points in almost every study. The colonial species Microcystis panniformis and Sphaerocavum brasiliensis dominated only in periods with lower volumes of water. The diatoms contribute more to the biomass during the period of severe drought. The point near the dam (P1) had phytoplankton biomass larger than the point near the tributary (P2). The dominant species of colonial cyanobacteria lasted until the overflow in P1, and P2 this dominance was until the first rains. The redundancy analysis indicated that physical factors such as light availability and water level were the main factors driving the seasonal succession of phytoplankton. The composition of phytoplankton in spring was alternated by species of filamentous cyanobacteria in conditions of poor stability of the water column, such as Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii, and colonial species under conditions of high stability of the water column, such as Microcystis panniformis and Sphaerocavum brasiliensis. The extremes of torrential rains and severe droughts, governed by the hydrological regime of the semi-arid region led to the availability of resources in the watershed, directing the spatial and temporal dynamics of phytoplankton in the reservoir Cruzeta