Evaluation of solid residues removed from a mangrove swamp in the Sao Vicente Estuary, SP, Brazil

Mangrove swamps are found in estuaries along the coastal plains of tropical regions and have be subjected to heavy occupation and use pressure due to their privileged locations and abundance of biological resources. The present work evaluated the ecological characteristics and solid wastes accumulated in eight areas along the Santos - Sao Vicente Estuary Complex. The superficially deposited residues at each sampling site were collected and subsequently washed, drained, counted, weighed and separated into classes according to their composition and predominant use. The predominant litter type in terms of density was plastic (62.81%) and, by weight, wood (55.53%). The greatest deposition of residues was associated with areas that were less inclined and that had low plant density levels, indicating that the presence of obstacles was not critical for retaining floating residues in mangrove areas. The presence of the most frequently encountered types of solid waste residues could be explained by local activities. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Floristic relationships among inland swamp forests of Southeastern and Central-Western Brazil

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

Vegetation and environmental heterogeneity relationships in a Neotropical swamp forest in southeastern Brazil (Itirapina, SP)

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Tree species composition and environmental relationships in a Neotropical swamp forest in Southeastern Brazil

We examined the relationships between topography, soil properties and tree species composition in a Neotropical swamp forest in southeastern Brazil. Plots were sampled in the forest, encompassing three different soil ground water regimes along the topographical declivity. All non-climbing plant individuals with trunk height >1.3 m were sampled. A canonical correspondence analysis-CCA-of the species-environmental relationships grouped tree species according to drainage and chemical soil conditions. A total of 86 species were found, being 77 species in the inferior, 40 species in the intermediate and 35 species in the superior topographic section. Some species were among the 10 most abundant ones, both in the overall sampled area and in each topographical section, with alternation events occurring only with their abundance position. However, substantial differences in floristic composition between sections were detected in a fine spatial scale, due to higher number of species, diversity index (H′) and species unique (exclusives) in the inferior topographic section. These higher values can be attributed to its higher spatial heterogeneity that included better drained and seasonally waterlogged soils, higher soil fertility and lower acidity. The increase of the soil water saturation and the uniform conditions derived from the superficial water layer has led to a lower number of species and an increase on the palm trees abundance in the intermediate and superior sections. Our results showed that at a small spatial scale niche differentiation must be an important factor related to the increase of the local diversity. The wide distribution of the most abundant species in the studied area and the increase of local diversity corroborate the pattern of distribution of species in larger scales of swamp forests, in which the most abundant species repeat themselves in high densities in different remnants. However, the floristic composition of each remnant is strongly variable, contributing to the increase of regional diversity. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.

Breeding season diet of Scarlet Ibises and Little Blue Herons in a Brazilian mangrove swamp

We studied the diet composition and overlap of Scarlet Ibises (Eudocimus ruber) and Little Blue Herons (Egretta caerulea in a mangrove swamp in southeast Brazil during the 1996-1997 breeding season, which occurs during the rainiest period. Crabs comprised 95% of all prey taken by the ibises and 80% of the prey of the herons, Nevertheless, diet overlap was small (similar to 30%) due to ibises feeding mostly on Uca spp. and Eurythium limosum crabs, which were taken from their burrows; the herons fed on the arboreal and semi-arboreal Aratus Pisonii and Metasesarma rubripes crabs. Divergent hunting strategies of ibises (tactile foragers) and herons visually-oriented predators) explains the diet segregation when preying on an ecologically diverse crab guild, but it is unclear why herons prey rarely on fiddler crabs. Scarlet Ibises bred successfully while feeding oil estuarine organisms living in low salinities in the mangroves, showing that mangroves may be adequate foraging habitats for chick-rearing ibises during periods of low salinity.

Microphallus fonti sp. n. (Digenea: Microphallidae) from the Red Swamp Crawfish in Southern United States

A new species of digenean, Microphallus fonti, is described from the red swamp crawfish in Louisiana, USA. It has a small pharynx and a rudimentary gut like M. opacus and possibly related species from crayfishes, but it differs from them by its relatively large male copulatory papilla and a conspicuous metraterm.

Composition of swamp waters from the lower Tom' River Basin

New data on chemical and trace component compositions of acidic and low acidic swamp waters and other types of low mineralized waters are reported in the paper. Special attention is paid to dissolved organic compounds: fulvic and humic acids, bitumen, and hydrocarbons. For the first time detailed data on organic trace components (alkanes, pentacyclic terpenoids, steranes, alkylbenzenes, naphthalenes, phenanthrenes, tetraarenes, etc.) in the swamp waters of the Western Siberia: are reported.