Effect of fertilization with fluid swine slurry on production and nutritive value of Tifton 85 Efeito da fertilização com esterco líquido de suínos sobre a produção e o valor nutritivo do capim-tifton 85

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different doses of liquid swine slurry on dry matter accumulation rate and nutritive values (crude proten and neutral detergent fiber) of Tifton 85 grass pasture cultivated in southwestern Paraná from October 2005 to March 2006. It was used a complete random experimental design in a 4 x 4 factorial scheme composed of four doses of swine slurry in the plots (0, 80, 160 and 320 m³/ha) and four consecutive cuts in the subplots of the pasture. It was carried out two applications, one in the beginning of the experiment and other after 80 days. Cuts were performed every time pasture height was 40 cm. There was a dose versus cut interaction for all variables. Swine slurry promoted increase on dry matter accumulation rate only on the first cut after its application (cuts 1 and 3). Dry matter maximal yield (24.2 t/ha) was obtained at 249 m³/ha of swine slurry manure (143 and 106 m³/ha, respectively for applications 1 and 2), corresponding to 450 kg of N/ha. Percentage of crude protein increases and neutral detergent fiber of Tifton 85 grass decreases as dose of swine slurry increases, improving forage nutritive value. Use efficiency and nitrogen recovery rate decrease with addition of swine slurry doses.<br>Objetivou-se avaliar o efeito de diferentes doses de dejeto líquido de suínos sobre a taxa de acúmulo de matéria seca e o valor nutritivo (proteína bruta e fibra em detergente neutro) de uma pastagem de capim-tifton 85 cultivada na região sudoeste do Paraná no período de outubro de 2005 a março de 2006. Utilizou-se delineamento experimental de blocos ao acaso em esquema fatorial de 4 x 4, composto por quatro doses de dejetos líquidos de suínos nas parcelas (0, 80, 160 e 320 m³/ha) e quatro cortes consecutivos nas subparcelas da pastagem. Foram realizadas duas aplicações, uma no início do experimento e outra 80 dias após. Os cortes foram realizados sempre que a altura da pastagem atingisse 40 cm. Houve interação dose versus corte para todas as variáveis. Os dejetos promoveram aumento na taxa de acúmulo de matéria seca somente no primeiro corte após sua aplicação (cortes 1 e 3). O rendimento máximo de matéria seca (24,2 t/ha) foi obtido na dose de 249 m³/ha de dejetos (143 e 106 m³/ha, respectivamente, para as aplicações 1 e 2), correspondentes a 450 kg/ha de nitrogênio. O percentual de proteína bruta aumenta e o de fibra em detergente neutro do capim-tifton 85 diminui com o aumento da dose de dejetos, melhorando o valor nutritivo da forragem. A eficiência de utilização e a taxa de recuperação do nitrogênio diminuem com o incremento da dose de dejetos líquido de suínos

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora

Data-driven estimation of the invisible energy of cosmic ray showers with the Pierre Auger Observatory

The determination of the primary energy of extensive air showers using the fluorescence detection technique requires an estimation of the energy carried away by particles that do not deposit all their energy in the atmosphere. This estimation is typically made using Monte Carlo simulations and thus depends on the assumed primary particle mass and on model predictions for neutrino and muon production. In this work we present a new method to obtain the invisible energy from events detected by the Pierre Auger Observatory. The method uses measurements of the muon number at ground level, and it allows us to reduce significantly the systematic uncertainties related to the mass composition and the high energy hadronic interaction models, and consequently to improve the estimation of the energy scale of the Observatory.Comment: Published version, 18 pages, 10 figures, 4 table

A 3-Year Sample of Almost 1,600 Elves Recorded Above South America by the Pierre Auger Cosmic-Ray Observatory

Elves are a class of transient luminous events, with a radial extent typically greater than 250 km, that occur in the lower ionosphere above strong electrical storms. We report the observation of 1,598 elves, from 2014 to 2016, recorded with unprecedented time resolution (100 ns) using the fluorescence detector (FD) of the Pierre Auger Cosmic-Ray Observatory. The Auger Observatory is located in the Mendoza province of Argentina with a viewing footprint for elve observations of 3.106 km2, reaching areas above the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, as well as the Córdoba region, which is known for severe convective thunderstorms. Primarily designed for ultrahigh energy cosmic-ray observations, the Auger FD turns out to be very sensitive to the ultraviolet emission in elves. The detector features modified Schmidt optics with large apertures resulting in a field of view that spans the horizon, and year-round operation on dark nights with low moonlight background, when the local weather is favorable. The measured light profiles of 18% of the elve events have more than one peak, compatible with intracloud activity. Within the 3-year sample, 72% of the elves correlate with the far-field radiation measurements of the World Wide Lightning Location Network. The Auger Observatory plans to continue operations until at least 2025, including elve observations and analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this observatory is the only facility on Earth that measures elves with year-round operation and full horizon coverage. ©2020. The Authors

Growing knowledge: an overview of Seed Plant diversity in Brazil

Abstract An updated inventory of Brazilian seed plants is presented and offers important insights into the country's biodiversity. This work started in 2010, with the publication of the Plants and Fungi Catalogue, and has been updated since by more than 430 specialists working online. Brazil is home to 32,086 native Angiosperms and 23 native Gymnosperms, showing an increase of 3% in its species richness in relation to 2010. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest Brazilian biome for Gymnosperms, while the Atlantic Rainforest is the richest one for Angiosperms. There was a considerable increment in the number of species and endemism rates for biomes, except for the Amazon that showed a decrease of 2.5% of recorded endemics. However, well over half of Brazillian seed plant species (57.4%) is endemic to this territory. The proportion of life-forms varies among different biomes: trees are more expressive in the Amazon and Atlantic Rainforest biomes while herbs predominate in the Pampa, and lianas are more expressive in the Amazon, Atlantic Rainforest, and Pantanal. This compilation serves not only to quantify Brazilian biodiversity, but also to highlight areas where there information is lacking and to provide a framework for the challenge faced in conserving Brazil's unique and diverse flora