Amazonian forest degradation must be incorporated into the COP26 agenda

Nations will reaffirm their commitment to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions during the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26; www.ukcop26.org), in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021. Revision of the national commitments will play a key role in defining the future of Earth’s climate. In past conferences, the main target of Amazonian nations was to reduce emissions resulting from land-use change and land management by committing to decrease deforestation rates, a well-known and efficient strategy1,2. However, human-induced forest degradation caused by fires, selective logging, and edge effects can also result in large carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions1,2,3,4,5, which are not yet explicitly reported by Amazonian countries. Despite its considerable impact, forest degradation has been largely overlooked in previous policy discussions5. It is vital that forest degradation is considered in the upcoming COP26 discussions and incorporated into future commitments to reduce GHG emissions

Pervasive gaps in Amazonian ecological research

Biodiversity loss is one of the main challenges of our time, and attempts to address it require a clear understanding of how ecological communities respond to environmental change across time and space. While the increasing availability of global databases on ecological communities has advanced our knowledge of biodiversity sensitivity to environmental changes, vast areas of the tropics remain understudied. In the American tropics, Amazonia stands out as the world's most diverse rainforest and the primary source of Neotropical biodiversity, but it remains among the least known forests in America and is often underrepresented in biodiversity databases. To worsen this situation, human-induced modifications may eliminate pieces of the Amazon's biodiversity puzzle before we can use them to understand how ecological communities are responding. To increase generalization and applicability of biodiversity knowledge, it is thus crucial to reduce biases in ecological research, particularly in regions projected to face the most pronounced environmental changes. We integrate ecological community metadata of 7,694 sampling sites for multiple organism groups in a machine learning model framework to map the research probability across the Brazilian Amazonia, while identifying the region's vulnerability to environmental change. 15%–18% of the most neglected areas in ecological research are expected to experience severe climate or land use changes by 2050. This means that unless we take immediate action, we will not be able to establish their current status, much less monitor how it is changing and what is being lost

Management of glyphosate-resistant hairy fleabane and contribution of the physiological potential of seeds to resistance. [Manejo de buva resistente ao glyphosate e consequências do potencial fisiológico de sementes à resistência].

ABSTRACT - Hairy fleabane (Conyza bonariensis L.) is a major weed of the conventional crop systems. Therefore, the objectives of the present study were to assess the responses of glyphosate-susceptible (S) and -resistant (R) C. bonariensis at various developmental stages and evaluate the physiological potential of seeds to propose alternative herbicides for the control of this weed. Two experiments were performed in replicates. The first experiment was performed in a greenhouse, arranged in a 2 × 3 × 10 factorial design. Specifically, two hairy fleabane biotypes (S and R) at different developmental stages (I, II, and III) were subjected to various treatments (glyphosate, chlorimuron-ethyl, metsulfuron-methyl, diclosulam, ammonium glufosinate, paraquat, paraquat+diuron, diquat, 2,4-D, and control). Percentage control was evaluated at 7, 14, 21, and 28 days after the application of the treatments (DAT), and shoot dry mass (SDM) was measured at 28 DAT. The second experiment was performed in a laboratory to evaluate the physiological potential of seeds based on the weight of 1000 seeds (TSW); shoot length (SL), radicle length (RL), total length (TL), fresh seedling mass (FSM), dry seedling mass (DSM), accelerated aging (AA) and cold test (CT), and germination (G) in response to cold and accelerated aging. The alternative herbicides tested effectively controlled biotype R up to the stage-I. Seeds of biotype R showed higher physiological potential in terms of all analyzed variables and exhibited greater tolerance to adverse conditions during seedling establishment. Therefore, strategies for the management of glyphosate-resistant hairy fleabane should aim at preventing new seed production.RESUMO - A buva (Conyza bonariensis L.) é umas das principais plantas daninhas dos sistemas de cultivos conservacionistas, especialmente por sua evolução à resistência ao herbicida glyphosate. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram verificar a resposta de Conyza bonariensis suscetível (S) e resistente (R) ao glyphosate em diferentes estádios a herbicidas alternativos e avaliar o potencial fisiológico de sementes destes biótipos. Dois estudos foram realizados e repetidos, sendo o primeiro em casa de vegetação em esquema fatorial 2x3x10, sendo A: biótipos de buva (S e R); B: estádios de desenvolvimento (I (1-2 folhas), II (5-6 folhas) e III (30-35 folhas)) e C: herbicidas (glyphosate, chlorimuron-etílico, metsulfuron-methyl, diclosulam, amônio-glufosinato, paraquat, paraquat+diuron, diquat, 2,4-D além de testemunha não aplicada).O segundo estudo foi desenvolvido em laboratório, realizando-se avaliações do potencial fisiológico das sementes, a partir do por peso de mil sementes (PMS), germinação (G), primeira contagem da germinação (PG), índice de velocidade de germinação (IVG) e emergência (IVE), comprimento da parte aérea (CPA), raiz (CR) e total (CT), matéria seca da parte aérea (MSPA), raízes (MSR) e total (MST), testes de frio e envelhecimento acelerado. O biótipo CR foi eficientemente controlado pelos herbicidas alternativos ao glyphosate, utilizados até o estádio de 6 folhas. As sementes do biótipo CR apresentaram desempenho fisiológico superior em todas as variáveis analisadas, com maior tolerância a condições adversas em seu estabelecimento. O manejo de buva resistente a glyphosate demanda a utilização de estratégias que visem evitar a produção de novas sementes

Non-destructive analysis of photosynthetic pigments in Avena strigosa and Avena sative.

Abstract:Chlorophylls and carotenoids are the main photosynthetic pigments in plants. The photosynthetic potential of crop plants is used to determine the correct rate of nitrogen fertilization. To date, no studies have been conducted to understand the relationship between different methods of measurement of photosynthetic pigments in oats. The objective of this study was to quantify and compare the levels of photosynthetic pigments in Avena strigosa and A. sativa using two different methods, the extraction method and portable chlorophyll meter, and to determine whether the results of these two methods showed a significant correlation. Photosynthetic pigments were measured using both methods in a greenhouse and the laboratory at four developmental stages: tillering [28 days after sowing (DAS)], vegetative stage I (55 DAS), vegetative stage II (75 DAS), and reproductive stage (120 DAS). The same leaves were used to measure the relative chlorophyll content using a portable chlorophyll meter and extractable chlorophyll using the laboratory extraction method. The readings of the chlorophyll index differed for each developmental stage of both A. sativa and A. strigosa. The contents of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and carotenoids determined using the extraction method showed high coefficients of correlation with the total chlorophyll index determined using the portable chlorophyll meter. Thus, the measurement of chlorophyll using the portable chlorophyll meter can be used for the accurate evaluation of the photosynthetic potential of oats, thus saving time and reagents