Effects of local and regional factors on the fish assemblage structure in Meridional Amazonian streams

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of local, regional and temporal factors structuring fish assemblages in Meridional Amazonian streams during the months of May (rainy season) and August (dry season) of 2008. To accomplish this task, 14 streams located in Serra do Expedito (Aripuanã River basin) were sampled along 30-m stretches. A total of 3,212 specimens distributed among five orders, 18 families, and 55 species were recorded. The fish assemblage structure in the streams presented variation among types of riparian vegetation (local factor) and watersheds (regional factor), but did not present variation between seasons (temporal factor) and stream order (regional factor). Larger streams with margins covered with pasture presented higher species richness and abundance than smaller streams with margins covered with forest. © 2012 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Caracterização dos agregados em solos sob cultivo no Cerrado, MS

Impacts on the environment and soil biological activity result in changes in the processes of formation of biogenic and fisiogenic aggregates. Aiming to evaluate the influence on physical and biological genesis of aggregates of Cerrado soils and determine the main environmental factors that determine the characteristics of households in the area of production under integrated crop-livestock (ICL), was developed this study in Farm Cabeceira, Maracaju-MS, in areas of ICL. The areas evaluated were: Savana, pasture/maize, corn/cotton and cotton/soybeans being evaluated during the dry (May/2009) and rainy (March 2010) season. To identify the pathways of aggregation were used morphological patterns, and established three clusters: fisiogenic, biogenic and intermediates. The aggregates were analyzed for exchangeable cations, carbon and aggregate stability, soil was analyzed for the exchangeable cations, particle size fractionation of soil organic matter, oxidizable fractions of total organic carbon, particle size analysis and soil macrofauna. In all areas studied, in the dry season, the highest values were quantified aggregate intermediates, while in the rainy season, in general, no differences were observed aggregates formed by different routes in areas except cotton/soybeans. The aggregates showed positive correlation with biogenic carbon and were found in lesser amounts compared to fisiogenic and intermediates. The different types of aggregates formed, besides having different characteristics morphological also differ as to chemical characteristics.

Epidemiological Survey of Equine Pythiosis in the Brazilian Pantanal and Nearby Areas: Results of 76 Cases

A clinical epidemiological study was conducted among 34 rural properties located within the Brazilian Pantanal region and nearby areas between 2007 and 2010. The diagnosis of equine pythiosis was based on antibody detection (by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay), polymerase chain reaction, histopathological analysis, and cultures positive for Pythium insidiosum. The majority of the affected animals (85%) were in the Pantanal biome, which had a higher disease prevalence (0.9%-66.7%) than that of the Cerrado (2.7%-33.3%). The disease was more prevalent in the rainy season (January-March), with an abrupt fall in the number of cases during the drought period (April-September; correlation of R 2 = 0.77; P < .01). Generally, the average prevalence of equine pythiosis in both regions was 5%, with mortality and lethality rates of 1.3% and 23.1%, respectively, in the Pantanal and 2.3% and 45.5%, respectively, in the Cerrado. However, the treatment with immunotherapy may have underestimated these numbers, especially in the Pantanal. Animals older than 1 year were 8.09 times more affected by the disease than younger animals in the same environment (P < .05). A correlation between the anatomical area of the lesion and the type of skin color was also observed. Approximately 73% of the lesions were found in dark-pigmented areas, and animals with a dark coat color were affected more frequently. These findings highlight the importance of hematophagous insects in the epidemiology of pythiosis because these areas are preferred for blood feeding. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An analysis of diurnal cycles in the mass of ambient aerosols derived from biomass burning and agro-industry

Strong diurnal cycles in ambient aerosol mass were observed in a rural region of Southeast Brazil where the trace composition of the lower troposphere is governed mainly by emissions from agro-industry. An optical particle counter was used to record size-segregated aerosol number concentrations between 13 May 2010 and 15 March 2011. The data were collected every 10 min and used to calculate aerosol mass concentrations. Aerosol samples were also collected onto filters during daytime (10:00-16:00 local time) and nighttime (20:00-06:00) periods, for subsequent analysis of soluble ions and water-soluble organic carbon. Biomass burning aerosols predominated during the dry winter, while secondary aerosols were most important in the summer rainy season. In both seasons, diurnal cycles in calculated aerosol mass concentrations were due to the uptake of water by the aerosols and, to a lesser extent, to emissions and secondary aerosol formation. In neither season could the observed mass changes be explained by changes in the depth of the boundary layer. In the summer, nighttime increases in aerosol mass ranged from 2.7-fold to 81-fold, depending on particle size, while in the winter, the range was narrower, from 2.2-fold to 9.5-fold, supporting the possibility that the presence of particles derived from biomass burning reduced the overall ability of the aerosols to absorb water. Key Points Diurnal cycle of agro-industrial aerosol mass governed by humidity Biomass burning emissions act to suppress particle growth Need to consider diurnal mass cycles in aerosol dry deposition models ©2013. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.

Desenvolvimento corporal de novilhas leiteiras suplementadas com minerais inorgânicos e orgânicos em pastejo na época das águas

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Estimativa das radiações ultravioleta (UV), fotossintéticamente ativa (PAR) e infravermelha (IV) em função da razão de insolação

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Ictiofauna nos trechos médio e baixo rio Pardo, Alto Paraná: inventário

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Avifauna da Ilha Queimada Grande, SP: diversidade, estrutura trófica e sazonalidade

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

História natural das serpentes dos gêneros Echinanthera e Taeniophallus (Echinantherini)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Caracterização da comunidade de microcrustáceos e avaliação de potenciais predadores vertebrados e invertebrados em dois reservatórios na região noroeste do Estado de São Paulo

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Biologia comportamental de Agelaia vicina: forrageio, comportamento das operárias e desenvolvimento dos ninhos (Hymenoptera: Vespidae; Epiponini)

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

Relação de custo/benefício na interação entre a aranha Peucetia flava (Oxyopidae) e a planta Rhynchanthera dichotoma (Melastomataceae)

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

Estrutura de taxocenoses de girinos de Mata Atlântica

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

Estrutura de comunidades e influência da heterogeneidade ambiente na diversidade de anuros em área de pastagem no sudeste do Brasil

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

Similaridade ecológica em comunidades de girinos: o papel de componentes históricos (filogenéticos) e contemporâneos (ecológicos)

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