Diversidade de morcegos (Mammalia, Chiroptera) em remanescentes florestais do município de Fênix, noroeste do Paraná, Brasil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Frugivory and habitat use by fruit-eating birds in a fragmented landscape of southeast Brazil

To investigate the movement of seeds transported by fruit-eating birds in an agricultural, fragmented landscape of the Atlantic forest of southeast Brazil, I asked which bird species are the main seed dispersers in such environment, and how they use the available habitats (small forest fragments, forest thickets, live fences, isolated trees, and active pastures) where they are most likely to drop the seeds they swallow the relative importance of fruit-eating birds as seed vectors was evaluated based on the number of fruit species eaten, the number of visits, and visitation rate to fruiting plants. Habitat use was accessed by recording the habitats where birds were seen or heard during walks conducted throughout the study area. Sixteen plant species were observed during 308.3 plant-hours. Forty-one bird species were observed eating fruits in a total of 830 visits to fruiting plants. Sayaca Tanagers (Thraupis sayaca) and Pale-breasted Thrushes (Turdus leucomelas) ate the greatest number of fruit species, were the most frequent plant visitors in terms of number and rate of visits, and had a broad range of habitat use. These two species and the Rusty-margined Guan (Penelope superciliaris), which is able to swallow large fruits with large seeds that smaller bird species cannot cat, likely have a great contribution to the movement of seeds throughout this highly degraded landscape.

Experimental assessment of Heliconia acuminata growth in a fragmented Amazonian landscape

1 Fragmentation severely alters physical conditions in forest understories, but few studies have connected these changes to demographic impacts on forest species using detailed experimental examination at the individual and population levels.2 Using a 32-month, reciprocal-transplant experiment, we show that individuals of the Amazonian understory herb Heliconia acuminata transplanted into forest fragments lost over 20% of their vegetative shoots, while those transplanted to continuous forest showed a slight gain. The leaf area of plants in fragments also increased at half the rate it did in continuous forest sites.3 It appears that the normal dry season stresses to which forest understorey plants are exposed are greatly exacerbated in fragments, causing plants to shed shoots and leaves.4 the observed shifts in size could help explain why populations in fragments are more skewed towards smaller demographic stage classes than those in continuous forest. These shifts in size structure could also result in reduced abundances of flowering plants, as reproduction in H. acuminata is positively correlated with shoot number.5 Fragmentation-related changes in growth rates resulting from abiotic stress may have significant demographic consequences.

Densidade e tamanho populacional de primatas em um fragmento florestal no sudeste do Brasil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Habitat Split as a Cause of Local Population Declines of Amphibians with Aquatic Larvae

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Evolutionary history of Scinax treefrogs on land-bridge islands in south-eastern Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Questioning the implementation of habitat corridors: a case study in interior São Paulo using ants as bioindicators

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Edge effect and phenology in Erythroxylum tortuosum (Erythroxylaceae), a typical plant of the Brazilian Cerrado

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Fenologia reprodutiva e disponibilidade de frutos de espécies arbóreas em mata ciliar no rio Formoso, Mato Grosso do Sul

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Combinação linear ponderada na definição de áreas prioritárias à conectividade entre fragmentos florestais em ambiente SIG

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Mamíferos do município de Fênix, Paraná, Brasil: etnozoologia e conservação

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Persistência de mamíferos de médio e grande porte em fragmentos de floresta ombrófila mista no estado do Paraná, Brasil

The Araucaria Forest is now represented by remnants of what was a continuous area of about 200,000 km(2). Medium and large mammals inhabiting this forest have suffered the impacts from the disturbance process and environmental degradation. Thus, this study determined which medium and large mammal species still inhabit the remnants of this vegetation type in Western Parana State. Three study areas, with 520, 405 and 135 hectares, consisting of stretches of primary forest mixed with secondary forest, were considered for mammal inventory. The evidence of mammals was verified directly (views) and indirectly (traces, trichology and interviews with local dwellers). It was recorded 32 species (including one exotic and two small ones), belonging to eight orders and 18 families. Nine animals of these species are at risk of extinction in the Parana State and five configure with insufficient data in the List of Endangered Species of the state. The results of this study indicate the great importance of these forest fragments in the conservation of several medium and large mammals in the Araucaria Forest of Parana State. Nevertheless, due to the negative pressures that these areas have been suffering, immediate and concrete public actions are required to ensure the maintenance of these mammal populations.

Contemporary pollen flow, mating patterns and effective population size inferred from paternity analysis in a small fragmented population of the Neotropical tree Copaifera langsdorffii Desf. (Leguminosae-Caesalpinioideae)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Interações entre aves frugívoras e plantas em um fragmento de mata atlântica de Minas Gerais

We studied the frugivorous birds and their fruiting plants during two years in a forest fragment in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Our aim was to identify the importance of birds and plants based on an importance index that comprise both the number of interactions and interaction exclusiveness. Twentynine bird species and 25 plant species were recorded. Small birds (< 100 g) comprised 85% of the interactions, and Chiroxiphia caudata reached the largest importance index (0.296), with 12 interactions, being six exclusive. Among plants, the melastome Miconia cinnamomifolia reached the largest importance index (0.277), interacting with 72.4% (21) of the bird species. This study showed that seed dispersal by small birds couldn't be underestimated because they disperse seeds of many plant species, even in pristine forests. Studies like this are also important to list the main food resources to frugivorous birds that could be used in management plans.

Variação e parâmetros genéticos em teste de progênies de polinização livre de Peltophorum dubium (Sprengel) taubert em Luiz Antonio -SP

Intensive deforestation and forest fragmentation of the Brazilian forest biomes has contributed to increase the number of trees species under the risk of extinction. Peltophorum dubium (Sprengel) Taubert is one of these species. Some of its populations are being conserved ex situ by the Instituto Florestal de São Paulo through provenance and progeny tests. The aim of this study was to investigate the genetic variation and to estimate genetic parameters at age 24 years in a progeny test of P. dubium established in Luiz Antônio, São Paulo State, Brazil. The trial was established in a random block design, with six replications, five plants per plot and 18 open-pollinated progenies. Measured were: diameter at breast height (DBH), height and stem form. The genetic parameters heritability, genetic variation and effective population size were estimated. Significant genetic differences were observed only for DBH. This trait also presented a high coefficient of genetic variation (CV g=4.8%) and heritability, especially among progeny means (h m 2=0.6607). This indicates that DBH is the most indicated trait for selection in the population. The effective population size conserved ex situ in the test was estimated to be 38.9. Concerning genetic conservation, although the effective population size in the test is small, the values of the genetic variation and of the heritability indicate that the ex situ population has sufficient genetic variation and potential to respond to changes promoted by natural and artificial selection.