Preliminary report on the Myrmeleontidae (Neuroptera) of Paraguay

Ten species of antlions are confirmed as present in Paraguay and seven additional species are suspected to be present there. All of the species are found also in Argentina and Brazil except for Eremoleon pulchra (Esben- Petersen) which is endemic to Paraguay. A key to the adults is provided as well as distributional data for Paraguay with two new country records (Ameromyia dimidiata Navás and Austroleon dispar (Banks)).Se documentan diez especies de Myrmeleontidae en Paraguay con otras siete especies conocidas de países limítrofes probablemente también presentes en Paraguay. Todos las especies están presentes también en Argentina y Brazil salvo Eremoleon pulchra (Esben-Petersen) que parece ser endémica. Se presenta una clave para las especies y también datos sobre distribución en Paraguay con dos registros nuevos Ameromyia hirsuta Navás y Austroleon dispar (Banks)

The impact of significant input of fine sediment on benthic fauna at tributary junctions: a case study of the Bermejo-Paraguay River confluence, Argentina

This study examines the morphological features, suspended sediment inputs and hydraulic conditions within a large river in association with ecological patterns before and after a tributary confluence. In order to examine these effects, the macroinvertebrate distributions from three reaches of the Paraguay and Bermejo Rivers (Paraguay-Argentina) are investigated. The Bermejo River is a tributary that supplies significant quantities of fine sediment to the Paraguay River, primarily in suspension. Two reaches were examined on the Paraguay River, upstream and downstream of the Bermejo River junction, with the third study reach located on the Bermejo River, upstream of the confluence with the Paraguay River. The results provide clear evidence that a significantly increased loading of fine sediment at a river confluence has effects on the distribution and potential movement of benthic invertebrates in the lotic environment by representing physical barriers at affected sites. These effects may be important at both local and regional scales, and such increases in suspended sediment (especially associated with anthropogenic change) may thus pose a major threat to ecosystem integrity that has been historically underestimated

Logistics and the Chaco War Bolivia versus Paraguay, 1932-1935

This article provides an assessment of how Paraguay, the weaker power, managed to defeat Bolivia in the 1932-35 Chaco War, fought over the disputed and remote Gran Chaco region that separated the two countries. The article argues that Paraguay’s logistical superiority was a decisive factor leading to victory in 1935. It uses a broad definition of logistics to include the acquisition of matériel before the war as well as the establishment of national and international supply lines during the war. Comparing and contrasting Bolivia and Paraguay in the period from the early 1920s to 1935, this article suggests that the preparation and development of an effective logistical infrastructure by Paraguay in the late 1920s and early 1930s were vital for the operational success that it had achieved on the battlefields of the Chaco by late 1933

Meeting the Poverty-Reduction MDG in the Southern Cone

This paper assesses the likelihood of meeting the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty by 2015 in Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. We simulate the poverty impact of changes in growth rates and redistributive policies, and trace the poverty consequences of various alternative economic scenarios using microeconometric decompositions. Sustainable and vigorous productivity growth seems to be a necessary condition to meet the poverty MDG by 2015 in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. The required growth rate could be significantly lower if some modest well-targeted redistribution could be performed. In contrast to its neighbors, Chile has already achieved the poverty MDG.MDG, poverty, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay

Poverty, Language, and Participation in Non-Farm Labor Markets in Rural Paraguay

Paraguay is a society comprised of two vastly different populations. One population is urban, Spanish speaking, educated and employed in the formal sector. The other is rural, speaks Guaraní, has little schooling, and is self-employed. This paper examines rural labor markets in Paraguay. The effect of deficiencies in social services on participation in non-farm labor and household income is identified.Labor and Human Capital,

Ferrerianus, new genus for Aphodius biimpressus Schmidt, 1909 (Scarabaeoidea: Aphodiidae)

Ferrerianus, new genus of South American Aphodiini is created for Aphodius biimpressus Schmidt from Paraguay; the latter is figured and lectotype is designated

The Blood of Going Green: Using Environmental Initiatives to Account for the Human Rights Violations of the Green Movement

Part I of this Note first illustrates the science of climate change and the push for biofuel development. Next, this Note uses human rights to define the problems associated with biofuel development in Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, and introduces the environmental law framework that can address these human rights violation. Part II details the main human rights violations in Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay occurring at the hands of the soy industry, and surveys the main existing certification proposals that attempt to mitigate social and environmental abuses. Finally, Part III proposes ways that developed countries can collectively mitigate the negative human rights and environmental implications from biofuel development beyond their borders by implementing a comprehensive certification scheme in climate change initiatives that contain emissions reduction requirements

Parallel modernities. Notes on artistic modernity in the Southern Cone of Latin America: The case of Paraguay

The author of this article is one of the most important intellectuals in the Latin American artistic scene. Focusing on the particular case of Paraguay, which was governed by the dictatorship of Alfred Stroessner from 1954 until 1989, Escobar traces the modernist impulse in Paraguay and traces its complicated and disturbed relationship with European and North American models and antecedents: Neo-Impressionism, Cubism, Expressionism, Abstraction, and similar. While they reflect the particular political conditions under which the artists worked, the diverse and many-voiced Paraguayan responses also offer an exemplary set of responses that shed light on the development of twentieth-century modernist art and visual culture across the broader South American continent

Multiple incursion pathways for Helicoverpa armigera in Brazil show its genetic diversity spreading in a connected world

The Old World cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera was first detected in Brazil with subsequent reports from Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, and Uruguay. This pattern suggests that the H. armigera spread across the South American continent following incursions into northern/central Brazil, however, this hypothesis has not been tested. Here we compare northern and central Brazilian H. armigera mtDNA COI haplotypes with those from southern Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay. We infer spatial genetic and gene flow patterns of this dispersive pest in the agricultural landscape of South America. We show that the spatial distribution of H. armigera mtDNA haplotypes and its inferred gene flow patterns in the southwestern region of South America exhibited signatures inconsistent with a single incursion hypothesis. Simulations on spatial distribution patterns show that the detection of rare and/or the absence of dominant mtDNA haplotypes in southern H. armigera populations are inconsistent with genetic signatures observed in northern and central Brazil. Incursions of H. armigera into the New World are therefore likely to have involved independent events in northern/central Brazil, and southern Brazil/Uruguay-Argentina-Paraguay. This study demonstrates the significant biosecurity challenges facing the South American continent, and highlights alternate pathways for introductions of alien species into the New World

Monitoring and modeling of household air quality related to use of different Cookfuels in Paraguay.

In Paraguay, 49% of the population depends on biomass (wood and charcoal) for cooking. Residential biomass burning is a major source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5 ) and carbon monoxide (CO) in and around the household environment. In July 2016, cross-sectional household air pollution sampling was conducted in 80 households in rural Paraguay. Time-integrated samples (24 hours) of PM2.5 and continuous CO concentrations were measured in kitchens that used wood, charcoal, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), or electricity to cook. Qualitative and quantitative household-level variables were captured using questionnaires. The average PM2.5 concentration (μg/m3 ) was higher in kitchens that burned wood (741.7 ± 546.4) and charcoal (107.0 ± 68.6) than in kitchens where LPG (52.3 ± 18.9) or electricity (52.0 ± 14.8) was used. Likewise, the average CO concentration (ppm) was higher in kitchens that used wood (19.4 ± 12.6) and charcoal (7.6 ± 6.5) than in those that used LPG (0.5 ± 0.6) or electricity (0.4 ± 0.6). Multivariable linear regression was conducted to generate predictive models for indoor PM2.5 and CO concentrations (predicted R2  = 0.837 and 0.822, respectively). This study provides baseline indoor air quality data for Paraguay and presents a multivariate statistical approach that could be used in future research and intervention programs