NEOTROPICAL XENARTHRANS: a data set of occurrence of xenarthran species in the Neotropics

Xenarthrans – anteaters, sloths, and armadillos – have essential functions for ecosystem maintenance, such as insect control and nutrient cycling, playing key roles as ecosystem engineers. Because of habitat loss and fragmentation, hunting pressure, and conflicts with 24 domestic dogs, these species have been threatened locally, regionally, or even across their full distribution ranges. The Neotropics harbor 21 species of armadillos, ten anteaters, and six sloths. Our dataset includes the families Chlamyphoridae (13), Dasypodidae (7), Myrmecophagidae (3), Bradypodidae (4), and Megalonychidae (2). We have no occurrence data on Dasypus pilosus (Dasypodidae). Regarding Cyclopedidae, until recently, only one species was recognized, but new genetic studies have revealed that the group is represented by seven species. In this data-paper, we compiled a total of 42,528 records of 31 species, represented by occurrence and quantitative data, totaling 24,847 unique georeferenced records. The geographic range is from the south of the USA, Mexico, and Caribbean countries at the northern portion of the Neotropics, to its austral distribution in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. Regarding anteaters, Myrmecophaga tridactyla has the most records (n=5,941), and Cyclopes sp. has the fewest (n=240). The armadillo species with the most data is Dasypus novemcinctus (n=11,588), and the least recorded for Calyptophractus retusus (n=33). With regards to sloth species, Bradypus variegatus has the most records (n=962), and Bradypus pygmaeus has the fewest (n=12). Our main objective with Neotropical Xenarthrans is to make occurrence and quantitative data available to facilitate more ecological research, particularly if we integrate the xenarthran data with other datasets of Neotropical Series which will become available very soon (i.e. Neotropical Carnivores, Neotropical Invasive Mammals, and Neotropical Hunters and Dogs). Therefore, studies on trophic cascades, hunting pressure, habitat loss, fragmentation effects, species invasion, and climate change effects will be possible with the Neotropical Xenarthrans dataset

Frugivory By Sturnira Lilium Bats (phyllostomidae) On Solanum Mauritianum (solanaceae) In Southeastern Brazil

Phyllostomid bats constitute one key seed disperser group in the Neotropical forests and coadaptation between solanacean plants and phyllostomid bats might have occurred. The main goals of this study were: (1) to identify the potential disperser of S. mauritianum and to determine fruit removal rate; (2) to determine the effect of seed passage through the digestive system of S. lilium on germination; and (3) to describe the main fruit characteristics and architectural pattern of fruit display, to assess whether S. mauritianum fruits are exposed above the crown facilitating their removal by bats. Sturnira lilium was the most frequent and reliable fruit consumer of S. mauritianum and Rusty-margined Guan (Cracidae: Penelope superciliaris) and russet rice rat (Muridae: Euryoryzomys russatus) were potential secondary seed dispersers. Sturnira lilium defecated intact seeds that had a higher germination rate than non-ingested seeds. The greenish fruits emit a strong odor of night-ripening fruit. These characteristics, added to high fruit exposition index (2.4) indicating infructescences entirely exposed on the crowns, agree with the chiropterochory syndrome. Our results show that S. lilium is an effective seed disperser of S. mauritianum. Still, further studies are needed to understand the actual contribution of the non-bat fauna to seed dispersal. © 2014 Taylor & Francis.483183189Aguiar, L.M.S., Marinho-Filho, J., Bat frugivory in a remnant of Southeastern Brazilian Atlantic Forest (2007) Acta Chiropterol, 9, pp. 251-260Albuquerque, L.B., Velásquez, A., Vasconcellos Neto, J., Composição florística de Solanaceae e suas síndromes de polinização e dispersão de sementes em florestas mesófilas neotropicais (2006) Interciência, 31, pp. 807-816Andrade, T.Y., Thies, W., Rogeri, P.K., Kalko, E.K.V., Mello, M.A.R., Hierarchical fruit selection by Neotropical leaf-nosed bats (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) (2013) J Mammal, 94, pp. 1094-1101Barbosa, D.M., Marques, M.C.M., Pedrosa-Macedo, J.H., Olckers, T., Plant population structure and insect herbivory on Solanum mauritianum Scopoli (Solanaceae) in southern Brazil: a support to biological control (2009) Braz Arch Biol Technol, 52, pp. 413-420Bernard, E., Fenton, M.B., Bat mobility and roosts in a fragmented landscape in central Amazonia, Brazil (2003) Biotropica, 35, pp. 262-277Cáceres, N.C., Moura, M.O., Fruit removal of a wild tomato, Solanum granulosoleprosum Dunal (Solanaceae), by birds, bats and non-flying mammals in an urban Brazilian environment (2003) Rev Bras Zool, 20, pp. 519-522Connell, J.H., (1971) On the role of natural enemies in preventing competitive exclusion in some marine animals and in rain forest trees, pp. 298-312. , In: Den Boer PJ, Gradwell G, editors: Dynamics of populations. Wageningen (the Netherlands), PudocDenslow, J.S., Moermond, T.C., Levey, D.J., Spatial components of fruit display in understory trees and shrubs (1986) Frugivores and seed dispersal in the tropics. The Hague, pp. 37-44. , In: Estrada A, Fleming TH, editors: (The Netherlands), Junk PublishersFleming, T.H., Heithaus, E.R., Frugivorous bats, seed shadows, and the structure of tropical forests (1981) Biotropica, 13 (SUPPL.), pp. 45-53Fleming, T.H., Heithaus, E.R., Sawer, W.B., An experimental analysis of the food location behavior of frugivorous bats (1977) Ecology, 58, pp. 619-627Fleming, T.H., Kress, W.J., A brief history of fruits and frugivores (2011) Acta Oecol, 37, pp. 521-530Fleming, T.H., Sosa, V.J., Effects of nectarivorous and frugivorous mammals on reproductive success of plants (1994) J Mammal, 75, pp. 845-851Gautier-Hion, A., Duplantier, J.M., Quris, R., Feer, F., Sourd, C., Decoux, J.P., Dubost, G., Heckestsweiler, P., Fruit characters as a basis of fruit choice and seed dispersal in a tropical forest vertebrate community (1985) Oecologia, 65, pp. 324-337Howe, H.F., Vande Kerckhove, G.A., Removal of wild nutmeg (Virola surinamensis) crops by birds (1981) Ecology, 62, pp. 1093-1106Hyatt, L.A., Rosenberg, M.S., Howard, T.G., Bole, G., Fang, W., Anastasia, J., Brown, K., Gurevitch, J., The distance dependence prediction of the Janzen-Connell hypothesis: a meta-analysis (2003) Oikos, 103, pp. 590-602(1990) Geografia do Brasil: Região Sul, 2, p. 419. , Rio de Janeiro (Brazil): IBGEIudica, C.A., Bonaccorso, F.J., Feeding of the bat, Sturnira lilium, on fruits of Solanum riparium influences dispersal of this pioneer tree in forests of Northwestern Argentina (1997) Stud Neotrop Fauna Environm, 32, pp. 4-6Janzen, D.H., Herbivores and the number of tree species in tropical forests (1970) Am Nat, 104, pp. 501-528Kalko, E.K.V., Condon, M.A., Echolocation, olfaction and fruit display: how bats find fruit of flagellichorous cucurbits (1998) Funct Ecol, 12, pp. 364-372Kalko, E.K.V., Herre, E.A., Handley, C.O., The relation of fig fruit syndromes to fruit-eating bats in the New and Old World tropics (1996) J Biogeogr, 23, pp. 565-576Kissmann, K.G., Groth, D., (1995) Plantas infestantes e nocivas, p. 825. , São Paulo (Brazil): BASF S.AKunz, T.H., Braun de Torrez, E., Bauer, D., Lobova, T., Fleming, T.H., Ecosystem services provided by bats (2011) Ann N Y Acad Sci, 1223, pp. 1-38Leitão-Filho, H.F., História natural da Serra do Japi - Ecologia e preservação de uma área florestal no sudeste do Brasil (1992) A flora arbórea da Serra do Japi, pp. 40-63. , In: Morellato LPC, editors Campinas (Brazil),: Editora da UnicampLieberman, M., Lieberman, D., An experimental study of seed ingestion and germination in a plant-animal assemblage in Ghana (1986) J Trop Ecol, 2, pp. 113-126Loayza, A.P., Loiselle, B.A., Preliminary information on the home range and movement patterns of Sturnira lilium (Phyllostomidae) in a naturally fragmented landscape in Bolivia (2008) Biotropica, 40, pp. 630-635Lobova, T.A., Geiselman, C.K., Mori, S.A., (2009) Seed dispersal by bats in the Neotropics, p. 465. , New York,: New York Botanical Garden PressMarinho-Filho, J.S., The coexistence of two frugivorous bat species and the phenology of their food plants in Brazil (1991) J Trop Ecol, 7, pp. 59-67Marinho-Filho, J.S., História natural da Serra do Japi - Ecologia e preservação de uma área florestal no sudeste do Brasil (1992) Os mamíferos da Serra do Japi, pp. 264-286. , In: Morellato LPC, editors Campinas (Brazil),: Editora da UnicampMarinho-Filho, J.S., Sazima, I., Activity patterns of six phyllostomid bat species in southeastern Brazil (1989) Rev Bras Biol, 49, pp. 777-782Mello, M.A.R., Kalko, E.K.V., Silva, W.R., Movements of the bat Sturnira lilium and its role as a seed disperser of Solanaceae in the Brazilian Atlantic forest (2008) J Trop Ecol, 24, pp. 225-228Mello, M.A.R., Kalko, E.K.V., Silva, W.R., Diet and abundance of the bat Sturnira lilium (Chiroptera) in a Brazilian Montane Atlantic Forest (2008) J Mammal, 89, pp. 485-492Morellato, L.P.C., Leitão-Filho, H.F., História natural da Serra do Japi - Ecologia e preservação de uma área florestal no sudeste do Brasil (1992) Padrões de frutificação e dispersão na Serra do Japi, pp. 112-141. , In: Morellato LPC, editors Campinas (Brazil),: Editora da UnicampMunin, R.L., Fischer, E., Gonçalves, F., Food habits and dietary overlap in a phyllostomid bat assemblage in the Pantanal of Brazil (2012) Acta Chiropterol. 14:, pp. 195-204Muscarella, R., Fleming, T.H., The role of frugivorous bats in tropical forest succession (2007) Biol Rev, 82, pp. 573-590Pinto, H.S., História natural da Serra do Japi - Ecologia e preservação de uma área florestal no sudeste do Brasil (1992) Clima da Serra do Japi, pp. 30-38. , In: Morellato LPC, editors Campinas (Brazil),: Editora da UnicampSilveira, M., Trevelin, L., Port-Carvalho, M., Godoi, S., Mandetta, E.M., Cruz-Neto, A.P., Frugivory by phyllostomid bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) in a restored area in southeast Brazil (2011) Acta Oecol, 37, pp. 31-36Swaine, M.D., Whitmore, T.C., On the definition of ecological species groups in tropical rainforests (1988) Vegetatio, 75, pp. 81-86Teixeira, R.C., Corrêa, C.E., Fischer, E., Frugivory by Artibeus jamaicensis (Phyllostomidae) bats in the Pantanal, Brazil (2009) Stud Neotrop Fauna Environm, 44, pp. 7-15Thiede, D.A., Augspurger, C.K., Intraspecifi{ligature}c variation in seed dispersion of Lepidium campestre (Brassicaceae) (1996) Am J Bot, 83, pp. 856-866Uieda, W., Vasconcellos-Neto, J., Dispersão de Solanum spp. (Solanaceae) por morcegos, na região de Manaus-AM (1985) Rev Bras Zool, 2, pp. 449-458Utzurrum, R.C.B., Heideman, P.D., (1991) Differential ingestion of viable vs. no viable Ficus seeds by fruits bats. Biotropica., 23, pp. 311-312Vasconcellos-Neto, J., Albuquerque, L.B., Silva, W.R., Seed dispersal of Solanum thomasiifolium Sendtner (Solanaceae) in the Linhares Forest, Espirito Santo state, Brazil (2009) Acta Bot Bras, 24, pp. 1171-1179Wenny, D., Seed dispersal, seed predation, and seedling recruitment of a neotropical montane tree (2000) Ecol Monogr, 70, pp. 331-351Whittaker, R.J., Jones, S.H., The role of frugivorous bats and birds in the rebuilding of a tropical forest ecosystem, Krakatau, Indonesia (1994) J Biogeogr, 21, pp. 245-258Zar, J.H., (1996) Biostatistical Analysis, p. 662. , Upper Saddle River (NJ),: Prentice-Hal

The Study Of Cardiovascular Risk In Adolescents - Erica: Rationale, Design And Sample Characteristics Of A National Survey Examining Cardiovascular Risk Factor Profile In Brazilian Adolescents

Background: The Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents (Portuguese acronym, "ERICA") is a multicenter, school-based country-wide cross-sectional study funded by the Brazilian Ministry of Health, which aims at estimating the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors, including those included in the definition of the metabolic syndrome, in a random sample of adolescents aged 12 to 17 years in Brazilian cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. Approximately 85,000 students were assessed in public and private schools. Brazil is a continental country with a heterogeneous population of 190 million living in its five main geographic regions (North, Northeast, Midwest, South and Southeast). ERICA is a pioneering study that will assess the prevalence rates of cardiovascular risk factors in Brazilian adolescents using a sample with national and regional representativeness. This paper describes the rationale, design and procedures of ERICA. Methods/Design: Participants answered a self-administered questionnaire using an electronic device, in order to obtain information on demographic and lifestyle characteristics, including physical activity, smoking, alcohol intake, sleeping hours, common mental disorders and reproductive and oral health. Dietary intake was assessed using a 24-hour dietary recall. Anthropometric measures (weight, height and waist circumference) and blood pressure were also be measured. Blood was collected from a subsample of approximately 44,000 adolescents for measurements of fasting glucose, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, glycated hemoglobin and fasting insulin. Discussion: The study findings will be instrumental to the development of public policies aiming at the prevention of obesity, atherosclerotic diseases and diabetes in an adolescent population.151Schmidt, M.I., Duncan, B.B., Silva, G.A., Menezes, A.M., Monteiro, C.A., Barreto, S.M., Chronic non-communicable diseases in brazil: Burden and current challenges (2011) Lancet, 377 (9781), pp. 1949-1961Juonala, M., Viikari, J.S., Kahonen, M., Taittonen, L., Laitinen, T., Hutri-Kahonen, N., Life-time risk factors and progression of carotid atherosclerosis in young adults: The cardiovascular risk in young finns study (2010) Eur Heart J., 31 (14), pp. 1745-1751WHO, Obesity - Preventing and managing the global epidemic (2004) Geneva: Report of a WHO Consultation on Obesity, , World Health OrganizationJuonala, M., Magnussen, C.G., Berenson, G.S., Venn, A., Burns, T.L., Sabin, M.A., Childhood adiposity, adult adiposity, and cardiovascular risk factors (2011) N Engl J Med., 365 (20), pp. 1876-1885Williams, D.E., Cadwell, B.L., Cheng, Y.J., Cowie, C.C., Gregg, E.W., Geiss, L.S., Prevalence of impaired fasting glucose and its relationship with cardiovascular disease risk factors in us adolescents, 1999-2000 (2005) Pediatrics, 116 (5), pp. 1122-1126IBGE, (2010) Antropometria E Estado Nutricional de Crianças, Adolescentes E Adultos No Brasil2008-2009, p. 130. , Pesquisa de Orçamentos Familiares (POF). 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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