Do roads alter the trophic behavior of the mesocarnivore community living close to them?

Roads have impacts on the fauna arising from habitat fragmentation, roadkill and the barrier effect. Furthermore, roads lead species to change their activity with repercussions on predator– prey interactions and trigger indirect effects that are currently unknown. This study analyzes the effect of a motorway on the trophic behavior of the terrestrial carnivore community of its surroundings. Monthly scat sampling was conducted over a year at three distances from a motorway (0–50 m, 500–550 m and 1000–1050 m). We collected 498 scats, these originating from red fox (39.16%), cat (24.50%), stone marten (24.09%) and badger (12.25%). The relative abundance of the trophic resources in them was estimated together with the trophic diversity and niche overlap of the carnivore species. The results showed a distinct effect of distance from the road on trophic behavior of carnivores, as well as differences between species and seasons. The scats nearest the road had 10–20% more biomass of small mammals, equivalent in relative terms to a 21–48% increase in small mammals’ biomass when compared with scats collected further from the road. This finding indicates changes in predator–prey interactions near the road and shows that the human-generated structural and functional changes to ecosystems spread throughout trophic networks.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Degenerescência aneurismática na doença de Von Recklinghausen

ResumoA doença de Von Recklinghausen é uma facomatose de transmissão autossómica dominante. Apesar da heterogeneidade da expressão clínica, os estigmas cutâneos clássicos como manchas café au lait são frequentes. A arteriopatia é incomum, sendo a degenerescência aneurismática extremamente rara.Os autores apresentam o caso clínico de um homem de 63 anos com doença de Von Recklinghausen e degenerescência multianeurismática aorto‐ilíaca, femoral e poplítea, submetido com sucesso a tratamento cirúrgico convencional.A degenerescência aneurismática na doença de Von Recklinghausen encontra‐se associada a displasia muscular lisa e a invasão neurofibromatosa da parede vascular. Esta fragilidade arterial implica dissecção laboriosa e técnica cirúrgica meticulosa para limitar a hemorragia e a deiscência anastomótica.AbstractThe Von Recklinghausen's disease is a facomatosis with autosomal dominant transmission. Despite the heterogeneity of clinical expression, the classic cutaneous stigmata such as café au lait spots are common. The arteriopathy is unusual, with rare aneurysmal degeneration.The authors disclose the clinical case of a 63 years old man with Von Recklinghausen's disease and multi‐aneurysmal degeneration of the aorto‐iliac, femoral and popliteal sectors, who successfully underwent open surgery.The aneurysmal degeneration in Von Recklinghausen's disease is associated with smooth muscle dysplasia and neurofibromatosis invasion of the vascular wall. This arterial fragility implies laborious and meticulous surgical dissection to limit the bleeding and anastomotic dehiscence

Nutritive value of meadows in the Northeast of Portugal

Meadows continue to be the most important source of pasture and hay for beef cattle production in the hill and upland areas in the NE region of Portugal. The aim of this study was to evaluate CP contents and IVOMD values during the year, in three harvests (spring, hay cut and autumn) under the effect of three rates of N fertilisation in seven mountain meadows. The results showed that the highest CP and IVOMD occurred in the beginning of spring when meadows are in active vegetative growth. Effects of N fertilisation on CP and IVOMD occurred only in oligotrophic meadows, but in an irregular way, and mainly on IVOMD

Grazing regimes and fertilisation rates: effects on dry matter yields, crude protein content and digestibility of meadows in the Northeast of Portugal

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two grazing regimes: the usual for the area and late spring grazing, and three rates of N fertilisation, on dry-matter (DM) yields and nutritive value in three mountain meadows (Anthemido-Cynosuretum cristati, Gaudinio-Agrostietum cristati and Bromo-Cynosuretum cristati). The results showed that the lowest DM yield was obtained on Bromo-Cynosuretum cristati meadow. Dry matter yields increased significantly with N fertilisation in all meadows, independent of grazing regimes. The highest nutritive values occurred at the beginning of spring, and decreased during the year as a result of maturation. This effect was favoured by N fertilisation and it was independent of grazing regimes. Nutritive values were sufficient to meet the daily requirements of beef cattle during the study

Variabilidade vs.homogeneidade no tecno-complexo Acheulense e a importância do suporte : uma abordagem baseada nos Large Cutting Tools do território português (entre os rios Lis e Tejo)

Os Large Cutting Tools – LCTs – são considerados como os principais marcadores tecno tipológicos das indústrias do tecno-complexo Acheulense. Estando implícitos na sua elaboração alguns dos principais traços que o caracterizam, a análise das cadeias operatórias destes elementos permite reunir um conjunto relevante de observações para a discussão das dinâmicas comportamentais dos nossos antepassados durante o Plistocénico Inferior e o Plistocénico Médio. Após o seu aparecimento no registo arqueológico na África Oriental há, pelo menos, ca. 1,76 milhões de anos, estes artefactos são identificados numa ampla geografia, ainda que a cronologia das suas primeiras manifestações e características (ao nível das estratégias de obtenção e exploração dos suportes) possam variar. Relativamente ao território peninsular, os dados disponíveis sugerem a presença extensiva de conjuntos típicos de um Large Flake Acheulean – LFA, maioritariamente datados da segunda metade do Plistocénico Médio, que exibem especificidades tecnológicas no panorama europeu. Tendo em conta o potencial informativo dos LCTs para abordar várias problemáticas subjacentes ao estudo deste tecno-complexo, e uma certa assimetria no conhecimento destes conjuntos entre Portugal e Espanha, procedeu-se à análise de mais de 500 LCTs provenientes de sítios de ar livre, associados a depósitos sedimentares das bacias hidrográficas dos rios Lis e Tejo. Especificamente, os exemplares de Capuchos 1 e do Casal do Azemel (bacia hidrográfica do rio Lis), do Cabeço da Mina, do Vale do Forno 1 e do Vale do Forno 3 (bacia hidrográfica do rio Tejo), foram caracterizados com base numa abordagem tecno-tipológica, tecno-funcional e num estudo de Morfometria Geométrica (2D). O estudo realizado permitiu confirmar que sob a designação ampla de LCTs coexistem artefactos com esquemas conceptuais e operativos distintos, de elevado valor informativo, recorrentemente identificados em associação em diferentes contextos. Além disso, foi possível verificar que as coleções analisadas partilham um conjunto de princípios no âmbito das cadeias operatórias destinadas à elaboração de grandes utensílios, nomeadamente: um comportamento recorrente associado à gestão de grandes volumes de matéria-prima; a seleção cuidada do suporte que servia de base à elaboração dos LCTs; a correlação entre o grau de transformação do respetivo suporte com a adequação do mesmo ao projeto idealizado; a coexistência de sequências de produção rotinadas paralelas, subjacentes a produtos conceptual e operativamente distintos, o que se manifestava numa intencionalidade distinta no processo de tomada de decisão da obtenção do suporte e da sua modificação secundária; a flexibilidade cognitiva e tecnológica dos hominínios responsáveis pela sua elaboração; e uma estandardização conceptual, estrutural e morfológica dos LCTs, derivada da existência de um conceito de utensílio bem definido e generalizado, consubstanciado na presença recorrente de morfo-tipos idênticos em períodos e regiões distintas, independentemente das especificidades que se possam documentar ao nível das estratégias tecnológicas de seleção e de exploração dos suportes. Neste sentido, os dados recolhidos e a reflexão produzida contribuem para aprofundar o conhecimento das características do tecno-complexo Acheulense no território atualmente português, e podem ser relevantes para a discussão mais alargada em torno da complexidade cognitiva do comportamento tecnológico dos nossos antepassados.Acheulean Large Cutting Tools – LCTs – are considered to be the main techno-typological markers of this techno-complex. In their production are implicit some characteristic features of these assemblages, allowing the analysis of their manufacture schemes to gather important insights for the understanding of human behaviour during the Lower and Middle Pleistocene. After their appearance in East Africa, at least around 1,76 million years ago, these tools have been identified in a wide geography, although the chronology of their appearance and features may vary. Current data suggest the extensive presence of Large Flake Acheulean assemblages – LFA – on the Iberian Peninsula. These sites are mainly dated to the second half of the Middle Pleistocene and display specific technological traits within the European framework. Taking into account the informative potential of LCTs and considering a certain degree of asymmetry in the knowledge of this technocomplex between Portugal and Spain, more than 500 LCTs from Portuguese sites, linked to sedimentary deposits in the Lis and Tagus River basins, were analysed. Specifically, the LCTs from the sites of Capuchos 1 and Casal do Azemel (Lis River), Cabeço da Mina, Vale do Forno 1, and Vale do Forno 3 (Tagus River) were studied based on techno-typological, techno-functional and 2D Geometric Morphometric approaches. From this assessment, it is clear that the LCTs group includes products with distinct conceptual and operative schemes, of high informative value, repeatedly identified in association in different sites. Moreover, it was found that the LCTs productions in the collections studied share a common set of features, namely: a regular behaviour directed towards the management of large volumes of raw material; the careful selection of the blank; a correlation between the degree of secondary reshaping of the blank and its suitability to the envisioned tool; the coexistence of parallel standardized sequences, underlying conceptually and operatively distinct artefacts, which is reflected in a distinctive intentionality in the decision-making process of obtaining the blank and its transformation; the cognitive and technological flexibility of the hominins that produced them, and a conceptual, structural and morphological standardization of the LCTs, derived from a widespread well-defined tool concept, embodied in the recurrent presence of identical morphotypes in different periods and regions, regardless of the technological strategies of selection and exploitation of the blanks. These observations contribute to deepen the knowledge of the Acheulean technocomplex in Portugal and may be relevant for the broader discussion regarding the cognitive complexity of our ancestors’ technological skills