Water availability determines the richness and density of fig trees within Brazilian semideciduous forest landscapes

The success of fig trees in tropical ecosystems is evidenced by the great diversity (+750 species) and wide geographic distribution of the genus. We assessed the contribution of environmental variables on the species richness and density of fig trees in fragments of seasonal semideciduous forest (SSF) in Brazil. We assessed 20 forest fragments in three regions in Sao Paulo State, Brazil. Fig tree richness and density was estimated in rectangular plots, comprising 31.4 ha sampled. Both richness and fig tree density were linearly modeled as function of variables representing (1) fragment metrics, (2) forest structure, and (3) landscape metrics expressing water drainage in the fragments. Model selection was performed by comparing the AIC values (Akaike Information Criterion) and the relative weight of each model (wAIC). Both species richness and fig tree density were better explained by the water availability in the fragment (meter of streams/ha): wAICrichness = 0.45, wAICdensity = 0.96. The remaining variables related to anthropic perturbation and forest structure were of little weight in the models. The rainfall seasonality in SSF seems to select for both establishment strategies and morphological adaptations in the hemiepiphytic fig tree species. In the studied SSF, hemiepiphytes established at lower heights in their host trees than reported for fig trees in evergreen rainforests. Some hemiepiphytic fig species evolved superficial roots extending up to 100 m from their trunks, resulting in hectare-scale root zones that allow them to efficiently forage water and soil nutrients. The community of fig trees was robust to variation in forest structure and conservation level of SSF fragments, making this group of plants an important element for the functioning of seasonal tropical forests. © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Analysis of hybrid waste-to-energy for medium-sized cities

Urban centers have a huge demand for electricity and the growing problem of the solid waste management generated by their population, a relevant social and administrative problem. The correct disposal of the municipal solid waste (MSW) generated in cities is one of the most complex engineering problems that involves logistics, safety, environmental and energetic aspects for its adequate management. Due to a national policy of solid wastes recently promulgated, Brazilian cities are evaluating the technical and economic feasibility of incinerating the non-recyclable waste. São José dos Campos, a São Paulo State industrialized city, is considering the composting of organic waste for biogas production and mass incineration of non-recyclable waste. This paper presents a waste-to-energy system based on the integration of gas turbines to a MSW incinerator for producing thermal and electric energy as an alternative solution for the solid waste disposal in São José dos Campos, SP. A technical and economic feasibility study for the hybrid combined cycle plant is presented and revealed to be attractive when carbon credit and waste tax are included in the project income. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.

Tropical influence in oriental gardens in Brazil

In the contemporary landscaping, among the gardening styles, the Japanese Garden plays very important rule and influence. The Japanese Garden has originated in China-the cradle of gardening culture; and Korea. Their vegetable elements, architectural features and fauna are characteristic, due to use of stones, water, bridges, stoned lamp, bonsai, carps and bamboo (Prunus serrulata, Camellia japonica, Ophiopogon japonicas) and many others. In Brazil, the Japanese Garden has massive influence, the presence of native elements typically tropical is very noticeable. This influence can be observed both in architecture, vegetation and fauna. Thus, this study aimed to identify and analyze the tropical elements in Japanese Gardens in cities such as São Paulo. Japanese Gardens in Brazil were chosen from the following cities: Sao Paulo State, Garça, Jaboticabal and Ribeirão Preto. It was observed, mostly in the presence of different palms species, plants of the Zingiberales order, Alpinia purpurata and styled architectural elements such as lakes. Some elements were able to apply the philosophy of the Japanese Garden, other not.

Seven years of external control of fluoride levels in the public water supply in Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil

luoridation of the public water supplies is recognized as among the top ten public health achievements of the twentieth century. However, the positive aspects of this measure depend on the maintenance of fluoride concentrations within adequate levels. Objective: To report the results of seven years of external control of the fluoride (F) concentrations in the public water supply in Bauru, SP, Brazil in an attempt to verify, on the basis of risk/ benefit balance, whether the levels are appropriate. Material and Methods: From March 2004 to February 2011, 60 samples were collected every month from the 19 supply sectors of the city, totaling 4,641 samples. F concentrations in water samples were determined in duplicate, using an ion-speciflc electrode (Orion 9609) coupled to a potentiometer after buffering with TISAB II. After the analysis, the samples were classified according to the best risk-benefit adjustment. Results: Means (±standard deviation) of F concentrations ranged between 0.73±0.06 and 0.81±0.10 mg/L for the different sectors during the seven years. The individual values ranged between 0.03 and 2.63 mg/L. The percentages of the samples considered low risk for dental fluorosis development and of maximum benefit for dental caries prevention (0.55-0.84 mg F/L) in the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh years of the study were 82.0, 58.5, 37.4, 61.0, 89.9, 77.3, and 72.4%, respectively, and 69.0% for the entire period. Conclusions: Fluctuations of F levels were found in the public water supply in Bauru during the seven years of evaluation. These results suggest that external monitoring of water fluoridation by an independent assessor should be implemented in cities where there is adjusted fluoridation. This measure should be continued in order to verify that fluoride levels are suitable and, if not, to provide support for the appropriate adjustments.

Context-dependence in seed removal by lekking and non-lekking frugivorous birds in Brazilian Atlantic forest

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Arborização urbana: estudo das praças do bairro centro de Teresina

Pós-graduação em Geografia - IGCE

Influência de variáveis meteorológicas sobre a fenologia de espécies arbóreas em áreas urbanas

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

A novel association between Rhodnius neglectus and the Livistona australis palm tree in an urban center foreshadowing the risk of Chagas disease transmission by vectorial invasions in Monte Alto City, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Trypanosoma cruzi strains from triatomine collected in Bahia and Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

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

Effects of litter manipulation in a tropical Eucalyptus plantation on leaching of mineral nutrients, dissolved organic nitrogen and dissolved organic carbon

Although many studies have shown that soil solution chemistry can be a reliable indicator of biogeochemical cycling in forest ecosystems, the effects of litter manipulations on the fluxes of dissolved elements in gravitational soil solutions have rarely been investigated. We estimated the fluxes of NH4-N, NO3-N, K, Ca, Mg, Na, Cl, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) over the first two years after re-planting Eucalyptus trees in the coastal area of Congo. Two treatments were replicated in two blocks after clear-cutting 7-year-old stands: in treatment R, all the litter above the mineral soil was removed before planting, and in a double slash (DS) treatment, the amount of harvest residues was doubled. The soil solutions were sampled down to a depth of 4 m and the water fluxes were estimated using the Hydrus 1D model parameterized from soil moisture measurements in 4 plots. Isotopic and spectroscopic analytical techniques were used to assess the changes in dissolved organic matter (DOM) properties throughout the transfer in the soil. The first year after planting, the fluxes of NH4-N, K, Ca, Mg, Na, Cl and DOC in the topsoil of the DS treatment were 2-5 times higher than in R, which showed that litter was a major source of dissolved nutrients. Nutrient fluxes in gravitational solutions decreased sharply in the second year after planting, irrespective of the soil depth, as a result of intense nutrient uptake by Eucalyptus trees. Losses of dissolved nutrients were noticeably low in these Eucalyptus plantations despite a low cation exchange capacity, a coarse soil texture and large amounts of harvest residues left on-site at the clear cut in the DS treatment. All together, these results clarified the strong effect of litter manipulation observed on eucalypt growth in Congolese sandy soils. DOM fluxes, as well as changes in delta C-13, C:N and aromaticity of DOM throughout the soil profile showed that the organic compounds produced in the litter layer were mainly consumed by microorganisms or retained in the topsoil. Below a depth of 15 cm, most of the DOC and the DON originated from the first 2 cm of the soil and the exchanges between soil solutions and soil organic matter were low. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

First Baseline of Circulating Genotypic Lineages of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Patients from the Brazilian Borders with Argentina and Paraguay

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Occurrence of heat waves in Triangulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaiba and their effect on milk yield and feed intake in cattle

The aim of this study was to estimate milk production and food consumption during the occurrence of heat waves in the Triangulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaiba, MG by means of bioclimatic zoning based on the Temperature and Humidity Index (THI). Therefore a history of heat wave occurrence between the years 2000-2010 was compiled. The decline in milk production (DMP) and reduced food consumption (RFC) were simulated in cities where periods of heat waves were identified. Frutal and Ituiutaba had the highest rate of heat wave occurrence per year. The DMP and RFC showed bioclimatic differences between the cities of Uberaba, Ituiutaba and Frutal. The cities with the best bioclimatic conditions were Sacramento and Patrocinio, as they presented a THI classified outside of the emergency range, with a night THI of below 76 and without heat waves. Therefore, the occurrence of heat waves can impair food intake and decrease milk production, thereby most effectively demonstrating the effects of thermal stress on dairy cows in the Triangulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaiba, MG region.

Os ventos e seus impactos na área urbana de Rio Claro (SP) entre 2005 e 2010: um análise através dos jornais e dos boletins de ocorrência

The intensive development in the urbanization process implied a series of economic, social, and gradually, environmental transformations, essentially, since its intensification, which took place from the Industrial Revolution in Europe and North America. In Latin American countries, including Brazil, there was such acceleration in urban sprawl, only in the middle of the twentieth century, fomented by a peculiar industrialization, coming from the scientific-technical revolution, which occurred in developing countries. In this context, and with a lack of planning and an effective organization, cities of the dependent countries face an inordinate population growth and an unprecedented industrial swelling. Brazil, following this trend, presents several issues regarding the gaps in the provision of necessary infrastructure to meet the most basic needs of its population and the intense activity and anthropogenic effects on the environment. In this sense, environmental problems, related to air and water pollution, degradation and contamination of soil, paving roads, reduction of green areas, urban heat island, among others, reaching ever deeper into the Brazilian urban areas. It is important the analysis in this final project, the weather events related to episodes of strong winds and the events and the impacts to the population of Rio Claro (SP) in the period 2005 to 2010, basing themselves in Geographical Climatology and Urban climate studies. In this scenario, we found the prevalence of occurrences linked to falling trees in the study area, connected, at the same time, to the occurrence and to the absence of episodes of extreme events, with measurements of strong winds, showing a connection between the events and external facts to episodes of winds

Chlorophyll fluorescence in guanandi tree (calophyllum brasiliense) after herbicide application

Chlorophyll fluorescence is currently used as a rapid diagnostic and nondestructive method to detect and quantify damage on the photosynthetic apparatus of leaves on weeds, crops and ornamental/coniferous trees in response to both environmental stress and herbicides. This study aimed to evaluate chlorophyll fluorescence in guanandi plants (Calophyllum brasiliense) after application of different postemergence herbicides. The experiment was performed in a completely randomized design, with six treatments (control, bentazon, sulfentrazone, isoxaflutole, atrazine and glyphosate) and five replications. The herbicide treatments were applied with a stationary sprayer, and electron transport rate (ETR) was subsequently analyzed with OS5p Multi-Mode Chlorophyll Fluorometer. In the monitored period, guanandi plants subjected to atrazine showed higher sensitivity to chlorophyll fluorescence than the other treatments. Although bentazon is a photosystem II inhibitor, it showed no major changes in electron transport for the studied species and in the monitored period. In summary, ETR is a good parameter to evaluate the effect of some herbicides on Calophyllum brasiliense plants.

Serological and molecular survey of Leptospira spp. among cart horses from an endemic area of human leptospirosis in Curitiba, southern Brazil

Introduction: Cart horses are a re-emerging population employed to carry recyclable material in cities. Methods: Sixty-two horses were sampled in an endemic area of human leptospirosis. The microscopic agglutination test (MAT) and real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) were performed. Results: A seropositivity of 75.8% with serovar Icterohaemorrhagiae in 80.8% of the horses was observed. Blood and urine were qPCR negative. MAT showed positive correlations with rainfall (p = 0.02) and flooding (p = 0.03). Conclusions: Although horses may be constantly exposed to Leptospira spp. in the environment mostly because of rainfall and flooding, no leptospiremia or leptospiruria were observed in this study.