Dinâmica espaço-temporal em uma guilda de borboletas frugívoras no limite norte da floresta atlântica nordestina

The extent of the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest, a global biodiversity hotspot, has been reduced to less than 7% of its original range. Yet, it contains one of the richest butterfly fauna in the world. Butterflies are commonly used as environmental indicators, mostly because of their strict association with host plants, microclimate and resource availability. This research describes diversity, composition and species richness of frugivorous butterflies in a forest fragment in the Brazilian Northeast. It compares communities in different physiognomies and seasons. The climate in the study area is classified as tropical rainy, with two well defined seasons. Butterfly captures were made with 60 Van Someren-Rydon traps, randomly located within six different habitat units (10 traps per unit) that varied from very open (e.g. coconut plantation) to forest interior. Sampling was made between January and December 2008, for five days each month. I captured 12090 individuals from 32 species. The most abundant species were Taygetis laches, Opsiphanes invirae and Hamadryas februa, which accounted for 70% of all captures. Similarity analysis identified two main groups, one of species associated with open or disturbed areas and a second by species associated with shaded areas. There was a strong seasonal component in species composition, with less species and lower abundance in the dry season and more species and higher abundance in the rainy season. K-means analysis indicates that choice of habitat units overestimated faunal perceptions, suggesting less distinct units. The species Taygetis virgilia, Hamadryas chloe, Callicore pygas e Morpho achilles were associated with less disturbed habitats, while Yphthimoides sp, Historis odius, H. acheronta, Hamadryas feronia e Siderone marthesia likey indicate open or disturbed habitats. This research brings important information for conservation of frugivorous butterflies, and will serve as baseline for future projects in environmental monitoring

Estudo comparativo da variação temporal da comunidade fitoplanctônica do açude Cruzeta inserido no bioma caatinga, Rio Grande do Norte

The Cruzeta impoundment, situated in the city of Cruzeta, hinterland of the state of the Rio Grande do Norte state has significant importance to the municipality as it represents the only source of supplying water to the region. It was hypothesized that the regional consequence of the global warming and the warming of surface water could substantially contribute the significant growth of the aquatic macrophytes in the years 2008-2009. The growth of these vegetation believed to be improved the degree of water transparency and as a consequence of the improved growth of phytoplankton species and chlorophyll biomass. At the same time the aquatic macrophyte could interact and compete potentially for the dissolved inorganic nutrients resources and the phytoplankton community. This study presents a comparison of years 2004-2005 when it did not have the expressive presence of the aquatic macrophyte community or restricted to the littoral region. In contrast, the years 2008-2009 showed a significant growth of the aquatic macrophyte in the Cruzeta/RN impoundments. The present study is an attempt to elucidate the significant presence of the aquatic macrophyte, Eichhornia crassipes, Ceratophyllum submersum, Nymphea sp and Pistia sp, and its interference on the ecology of phytoplankton. The samplings had been carried out from September of 2008 to April of 2009 and consistently between 10:00 h and 12:00 h with the aid of Van Dorn bottle and the plankton net of mesh size 20 Qm. The collections were made in three depths ie., surface, mid-column and bottom. The Physical-Chemical parameters such as pH, temperature, electrical conductivity and dissolved oxygen had been analyzed in situ. The samples for analysis of nutrients and chlorophyll were kept under refrigeration for posterior analysis in the laboratory. Phytoplankton samples were preserved in Lugol-iodine and kept for sedimentation for quali-quantitative analysis of phytoplankton. Enumeration of cells, colonies and filaments was done with the aid of Sedgwick-Rafter counting chamber and expressed as numbers/ml. Chlorophyll a was analyzed as a functional component of phytoplankton biomass and extracted with cold 90% acetone. The results indicate that the chlorophyll concentration varied between 5,65-8,08 Qg.L-1 for the dry period and 5,09-6,23 Qg.L-1 for the rainy period and showed considerable reduction when compared to the values to the 2004-2005 study period. The temperature was always presented higher in relation to the 2004-2005 study. Phytoplankton species showed a relative abundance of the Cyanophyceae for both the period of dry and rainy. The predominance species are filamentous Leptolymbya geophila Borzi (Planctolyngbya sp), Anabaena plankctônica Brunnthaler, Oscillatória limosa Ag. and Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii (Wolosz). The concentration of the nutrients such as nitrate and orto-phosfato had always presented higher values during the rainy period and the ammoniacal nitrogen retained moderate values in the dry period and a slight increase in rainy season. The main conclusions are the reduction of the concentration of chlorophyll, diversity of phytoplankton, and the increase in temperature and transparency of the water during the period of the study

Variação temporal da riqueza de táxons, abundância e biomassa de artrópodes em ambiente de restinga do Rio Grande do Norte, Brasil

Arthropods are abundant organisms possess great wealth and diversity representing about 82% of all known animal species. Contribute as a source of biomass and their abundance is an indicator of ecological change. The aim of this study was to evaluate the biomass and abundance found in the salt marsh environment throughout the year and relate them to the climatic factors (temperature, precipitation and relative humidity) that can influence the abundance and biomass of arthropods. The study was conducted at the Centro de Lançamento de Foguetes Barreira do Inferno, city of Parnamirim, Rio Grande do Norte, in the period February 2011 to January 2012, using pitfall traps, stationary window and beating tray. Among the 26 orders found, the most abundant were: Hymenoptera, Orthoptera, Araneae. Taxa Hymenoptera, Blattodea and Orthoptera showed higher biomass volume. Climatic factors did not influence the fall of Arthropods in the traps, however, the lowest abundance during the rainy season the action of raindrops, reduced the activity of these arthropods on vegetation, reducing its capture in traps (pitfall traps and stationary window ) and method of collection(entomological umbrella)

Agregação familiar e resultados maternos e perinatais da pré-eclâmpsia severa em população do Rio Grande do Norte

To determine whether there is familiar aggregation of severe preeclampsia in a Brazilian population from Rio Grande do Norte and to characterize the maternal and perinatal outcomes in the studied population. Methods: A case control study was performed with 412 participants who were admitted at Maternidade Escola Januário Cicco (MEJC) for medical care. Of these, 264 subjects presented normal blood pressure and 148 were cases. Cases were composed of eclampsia (n=47), HELLP Syndrome (n=85) and Eclampsia associated with HELLP syndrome (n=16). The diagnosis of these illness were based on the citeria developed by National High Blood Pressure Education Program Working (2000). An interview was performed with each subject and questions related to personal and familiar history of hypertension, preeclampsia, HELLP syndrome and eclampsia. Statistical analysis was performed and comparison of median and mean between cases and controls were performed, with the level of significance of 5%. The Odds-Ratio was determined to estimate the risk of preeclampsia within the families. Results: There were no difference in the demographic data between cases and controls. Previous history of chronic hypertension and preeclampsia was more frequent in the case group. Headaches were more frequent in eclampsia and epigastric pain in the HELLP syndrome cases. Bleeding and oliguria were more frequently found in the eclampsia associated with HELLP syndrome cases. Acute Renal insufficiency was a common complication in the case group, but these cases did not evolve to chronic renal insufficiency. The maternal mortality was 0.4% and the perinatal mortality was high, 223 per 1,000 live births. The 111 risk of a woman to develop preeclampsia whose mother has hypertension or had preeclampsia was respectively 2.5 and 3.5. This risk was increased 5 times, when a sibling has hypertension and 6 times when both sibling and mother had previous history of preeclampsia. Conclusions: This study confirms that there is familiar aggregation of preeclampsia in this Brazilian population. The potential for cardiovascular complications due to development of chronic hypertension indicates the need of closely follow up of women who develop preeclampsia

Análise da distribuição espaço-temporal de dengue e da infestação larvária no município de Tupã, Estado de São Paulo

INTRODUÇÃO: O vírus da dengue é transmitido pela picada do mosquito Aedes aegypti e, o atual programa de controle não atinge o objetivo de impedir sua transmissão. Este trabalho objetivou analisar a relação entre a distribuição espaço-temporal de casos de dengue e os indicadores larvários no município de Tupã, de janeiro de 2004 a dezembro de 2007. MÉTODOS: Foram construídos indicadores larvários por quarteirão e totalidade do município. Utilizou-se o método cross-lagged correlation para avaliar a correlação entre casos de dengue e indicadores larvários. Foi utilizado estimador kernel para análise espacial. RESULTADOS: A correlação cruzada defasada entre casos de dengue e indicadores larvários foi significativa. Os mapas do estimador Kernel da positividade de recipientes indicam uma distribuição heterogênea, ao longo do período estudado. Nos dois anos de transmissão, a epidemia ocorreu em diferentes regiões. CONCLUSÕES: Não ficou evidenciada relação espacial entre infestação larvária e ocorrência de dengue. A incorporação de técnicas de geoprocessamento e análise espacial no programa, desde que utilizados imediatamente após a realização das atividades, podem contribuir com as ações de controle, indicando os aglomerados espaciais de maior incidência.

Sistemas de informação geográfica e análise espacial de dados como ferramentas para determinação de agregação espacial de doenças: a hanseníase como modelo

This work demonstrates the importance of using tools used in geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial data analysis (SDA) for the study of infectious diseases. Analysis methods were used to describe more fully the spatial distribution of a particular disease by incorporating the geographical element in the analysis. In Chapter 1, we report the historical evolution of these techniques in the field of human health and use Hansen s disease (leprosy) in Rio Grande do Norte as an example. In Chapter 2, we introduced a few basic theoretical concepts on the methodology and classified the types of spatial data commonly treated. Chapters 3 and 4 defined and demonstrated the use of the two most important techniques for analysis of health data, which are data point processes and data area. We modelled the case distribution of Hansen s disease in the city of Mossoró - RN. In the analysis, we used R scripts and made available routines and analitical procedures developed by the author. This approach can be easily used by researchers in several areas. As practical results, major risk areas in Mossoró leprosy were detected, and its association with the socioeconomic profile of the population at risk was found. Moreover, it is clearly shown that his approach could be of great help to be used continuously in data analysis and processing, allowing the development of new strategies to work might increase the use of such techniques in data analysis in health care

Temporal variability of soil CO2 emission after conventional and reduced tillage described by an exponential decay in time model

A quantificação do impacto das práticas de preparo sobre as perdas de carbono do solo é dependente da habilidade de se descrever a variabilidade temporal da emissão de CO2 do solo após preparo. Tem sido sugerido que as grandes quantidades de CO2 emitido após o preparo do solo podem servir como um indicador das modificações nos estoques de carbono do solo em longo termo. Neste trabalho é apresentado um modelo de duas partes baseado na temperatura e na umidade do solo e que inclui um termo exponencial decrescente do tempo que é eficiente no ajuste das emissões intermediárias após preparo: arado de disco seguido de uma passagem com a grade niveladora (convencional) e escarificador de arrasto seguido da passagem com rolo destorroador (reduzido). As emissões após o preparo do solo são descritas utilizando-se estimativa não linear com um coeficiente de determinação (R²) tão alto quanto 0.98 após preparo reduzido. Os resultados indicam que nas previsões da emissão de CO2 após o preparo do solo é importante considerar um termo exponencial decrescente no tempo após preparo.

Short-term temporal changes of soil carbon losses after tillage described by a first-order decay model

Tillage stimulates soil carbon (C) losses by increasing aeration, changing temperature and moisture conditions, and thus favoring microbial decomposition. In addition, soil aggregate disruption by tillage exposes once protected organic matter to decomposition. We propose a model to explain carbon dioxide (CO2) emission after tillage as a function of the no-till emission plus a correction due to the tillage disturbance. The model assumes that C in the readily decomposable organic matter follows a first-order reaction kinetics equation as: dC(sail)(t)/dt = -kC(soil)(t) and that soil C-CO2 emission is proportional to the C decay rate in soil, where C-soil(t) is the available labile soil C (g m(-2)) at any time (t). Emissions are modeled in terms soil C available to decomposition in the tilled and non-tilled plots, and a relationship is derived between no-till (F-NT) and tilled (F-Gamma) fluxes, which is: F-T = a1F(NT)e(-a2t), where t is time after tillage. Predicted and observed fluxes showed good agreement based on determination coefficient (R-2), index of agreement and model efficiency, with R-2 as high as 0.97. The two parameters included in the model are related to the difference between the decay constant (k factor) of tilled and no-till plots (a(2)) and also to the amount of labile carbon added to the readily decomposable soil organic matter due to tillage (a,). These two parameters were estimated in the model ranging from 1.27 and 2.60 (a(1)) and - 1.52 x 10(-2) and 2.2 x 10(-2) day(-1) (a(2)). The advantage is that temporal variability of tillage-induced emissions can be described by only one analytical function that includes the no-till emission plus an exponential term modulated by tillage and environmentally dependent parameters. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Short-term temporal changes of bare soil CO2 fluxes after tillage described by first-order decay models

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

Soil CO2 emission of sugarcane fields as affected by topography

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

Agregação de um argissolo sob pomar de goiabeiras após aplicação de resíduos da indústria processadora de goiaba

A utilização de resíduos da indústria de processamento de frutas na agricultura pode proporcionar melhorias à qualidade do solo. Dessa forma, objetivou-se com este estudo avaliar o efeito da aplicação de resíduos de sementes de goiaba na agregação e no estoque de carbono orgânico do solo (EC). O experimento esteve inserido em um pomar comercial irrigado de goiabeiras (cv. Paluma), com sete anos de idade, sobre um Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo distrófico típico. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos casualizados e parcelas subdivididas, sendo cinco tratamentos (doses de: 0;9;18;27 e 36 Mg ha-1 de resíduo) e duas camadas de solo (0-0,10 e 0,10-0,20 m). Foi avaliado o mesmo tipo de solo sobre mata nativa adjacente à área experimental. As análises realizadas foram a distribuição do tamanho dos agregados estáveis em água, o diâmetro médio ponderado, o diâmetro médio geométrico, os agregados maiores que 2 mm e o EC. Os dados foram submetidos à análise de variância (Teste F), seguindo o delineamento em blocos casualizados com parcelas subdivididas (5 doses x 2 camadas). As médias dos tratamentos foram comparadas pelo teste de Tukey, a 5% de probabilidade, e as médias das camadas foram comparadas pelo teste F, a 5% de probabilidade. Os dados coletados no solo sob mata foram utilizados apenas como referência de um solo em estado natural e, portanto, não foram considerados como fator de variação nas análises de variância. Os valores dos índices de agregação com o estoque de carbono orgânico do solo foram submetidos à correlação de Pearson (p < 0,05). O efeito das doses de resíduo de sementes de goiaba sobre o estoque de carbono orgânico, na camada de 0-0,20 m do solo, foi avaliado por análise de regressão. Os tratamentos não diferiram em relação à agregação do solo, contudo EC foi diretamente relacionado à quantidade de resíduo aplicado ao solo. Houve correlação positiva e significativa entre os índices de agregação e o EC. A aplicação de resíduos de sementes de goiaba proporcionou melhoria da qualidade do solo.

Temporal analysis of the reduction in gas emission in areas of mechanically-harvested sugarcane using satellite imagery

The primary objective of this study was to estimate the amount of gas not emitted into the air in areas cultivated with sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) that were mechanically harvested. Satellite images CBERS-2/CCD, from 08-13-2004, 08-14-2005, 08-15-2006 and 08-16-2007, of northwestern São Paulo State were processed using the Geographic Information System (GIS)-IDRISI 15.0. Areas of interest (the mechanically-harvested sugarcane fields) were identified and quantified based on the spectral response of the bands studied. Based on these data, the amount of gas that was not emitted was evaluated, according to the estimate equation proposed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The results of 396.65 km(2) (5.91% for 2004); 447.56 km(2) (6.67% for 2005); 511.54 km(2) (7.62% in 2006); and 474.60 km(2) (7.07% for 2007), calculated from a total area of 6,710.89 km(2) with sugarcane, showed a significant increase of mechanical harvesting in the study area and a reduction of gas emissions of more than 300,000 t yr(-1).

Índice de floculação e agregação de um latossolo vermelho sob dois sistemas de colheita da cana-de-açúcar

The objective of this work was to evaluate the soil physics and chemical attributes of Rhodic Ferralsol, in sugarcane systems harvest compared with soil forest. The treatments were consisted by native forest, manual and mechanized sugarcane harvesting. The soil was sampled at 0-0.10; 0.10-0.20 and 0.20-0.30 m soil depths. The soil organic matter, pH and PCZ values, flocculation degree and soil aggregation were evaluated in each soil sample. The statistics analysis was carried in a split-plot completely randomized design with five replications, exception for the soil aggregation,, with six replications The soil under MN, the soil organic matter and aggregates percentage (7.93 mm class) were higher. The higher mean weigh diameter aggregates was observed at 0-0.20 soil depth, in MN.

Agregação de ume nitossolo vermelho distroférrico sob sistemas de plantio direto, preparo convencional e mata nativa

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of time since the adoption of the no-till system, in comparison with a native forest area and a conventional tillage area, using the distribution of soil aggregates in a Distroferric Red Nitosol. Treatments were as follows: native forest (NF), conventional tillage (CT), no-till for one year (NT1), no-till for four years (NT4), no-till for five years (NT5), and no-till for 12 years (NT12). Aggregate samples were collected randomly within each treatment at depths of 0-5 and 10-15 cm. After sifting the aggregates in water they were separated into the following aggregate classes > 2 mm; < 2 mm; 2-1 mm, and < 1 mm. The adoption time in the no-till system favored soil aggregation. The mean weighted diameter (MWD) of the soil aggregates and the percentage of aggregates greater than 2 mm increased with adoption time in the no-till system at the 0-5 cm depth. The NF and NT12 treatments had higher MWD values in the 0-5 cm layer. CT had the highest percentage of aggregates smaller than 1 mm.

Análise da dinâmica espaço-temporal de macrófitas submersas mapeadas com técnicas hidroacústicas no reservatório de Taquaruçu, rio Paranapanema

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o desenvolvimento da vegetação submersa, em termos da altura dos dosséis, considerando as dimensões espaço e tempo, usando técnicas de hidroacústica. Foram realizados dez levantamentos de campo no período de outubro de 2009 a dezembro de 2010, para aquisição de pontos georreferenciados de altura dos dosséis, frequência de ocorrência de vegetação, bem como de profundidade. Medidas limnológicas também foram feitas, a fim de verificar se suas variações poderiam explicar a distribuição espacial das macrófitas. Os dados de vegetação foram analisados por levantamento e por profundidade; além disso, compuseram um banco de dados implementado em um Sistema de Informação Geográfica. Foram então interpolados e das superfícies resultantes foram geradas cartas, que indicam a distribuição espacial do crescimento ou decaimento da vegetação. Modelos em três dimensões dos dosséis foram produzidos, para representar a ocupação volumétrica das macrófitas submersas. Os resultados mostraram que houve significativa redução da infestação de um ano para outro. Observou-se, ainda, que os maiores dosséis concentram-se em uma profundidade de 2 a 4 m. O mapeamento identificou tanto áreas de crescimento quanto de decaimento, distribuídas de modo heterogêneo. Não foi possível observar relação direta das medidas limnológicas com a dinâmica da vegetação, pois não apresentaram variação espaço-temporal significativa. Foi possível estimar o volume ocupado pelas macrófitas submersas, e a tendência observada é de que o aumento de volume é precedido por uma aparente homogeneização dos dosséis.