Environmental and anthropogenic drivers affect the abundance of anchovy and mysids in the Guadalquivir Estuary (SW Spain)

Natural drivers, acting at various spatio-temporal scales firstly determine the distribution and abundance of species. On top of this natural forcing we usually find anthropogenic effects. Disentangling the relative influence of these two sources of variability has always been a challenge in ecology, and particularly in fisheries science. The Guadalquivir Estuary (SW Spain) serves as nursery ground for several commercial species in the Gulf of Cadiz. This study aims at quantifying the relative influence of biological (predator-prey effects), environmental (e.g. temperature, winds) and anthropogenic (dam discharges) effects on this nursery function with the focus on an important species, anchovy. We used data from a monitoring programme consisting of monthly records since 1997 at two sites: Tarfia (32 km) and Bonanza (8 km) (distance from the river mouth). Nonparametric models (GAM) were fit to the data to estimate the partial effects of the various covariates. We found positive and linear effects of temperature and mysids on anchovy abundance in both stations, while turbidity, winds and freshwater input had a negative effect, reducing fish abundance. A dam, 110 km upstream from the Guadalquivir mouth regulates freshwater discharges, directly influencing the estuarine habitat quality and extent, as captured by our models. In order to separate the anthropogenic effects from natural variability we further ran the models on a number of scenarios combining a range of dam discharges and environmental conditions. Water management stands out as a key node where potentially conflicting interests (irrigators, electric power, shipping, aquaculture, fisheries) converge. By focussing on the consequences that the effects of these activities ultimately have on the anchovy fishery, through this nursery function, our study aims to contribute to the process of making the ecosystem approach operational in the Gulf of Cadiz

Water erosion in a Yellow-Red Ultisol under different patterns of simulated rain

Visou-se, neste trabalho, determinar as perdas de solo, água e nutrientes em um Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo submetido a quatro diferentes padrões de chuva simulada. O estudo foi conduzido no Campo Experimental da Embrapa-Agrobiologia, localizado no município de Seropédica, RJ, e consistiu na aplicação de chuvas simuladas com diferentes padrões caracterizados como avançado (AV), intermediário (IN), atrasado (AT) e constante (CT), em uma área amostral de 0,80 m de largura por 1,0 m de comprimento. As chuvas tiveram duração de 60 min com uma lâmina total aplicada de 30 mm e um pico de 110 mm h-1, para os padrões de intensidade variável. Os resultados obtidos possibilitaram concluir que após 60 min de chuva simulada as perdas de solo e água observadas para o padrão atrasado foram, em média, superiores em 61,6, 46,4 e 13,6%, respectivamente, para o CT, AV e IN (solo), e de 42,0, 19,0 e 19,0%, respectivamente, para o AV, IN e CT (água) e as perdas de nutrientes não diferiram entre os padrões de precipitação, sendo mais influenciadas pelas perdas de água escoada superficialmente que pelo material sólido em suspensão.This study was carried out in order to determine the soil, water and nutrient losses in a Yellow-Red Ultisol, under four different patterns of simulated rainfall. The experiment was conducted at the Embrapa Agrobiologia experimental field, located in the municipality of Seropédica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The study consisted in the application of simulated rains using variable rainfall intensity classified in different patterns as: advanced (AD), intermediate (IN), delayed (DE), and constant (CT), in plots 0.8 m wide and 1.0 m long. The rain had a duration of 60 min, with a total applied depth of 30 mm, and a peak of 110 mm h-1, for the variable intensity patterns. With the results obtained it was possible to verify that after 60 min of simulated DE pattern provided losses higher than CT, AD and IN, in 61.6, 46.4 and 13.6%, respectively (soil), and 42.0, 19.0 and 19.0% (run-off), respectively, for the AD, IN and CT patterns; and the nutrients losses did not differ among the rainfall patterns, being more affected by water run-off than solid material in suspension

The mosaic of habitats in the high-altitude Brazilian rupestrian fields is a hotspot for arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

The high diversity in rupestrian field vegetation has been attributed to the mosaic of environments formed by several soil classes, rugged relief and microclimatic variation. Although advances in the knowledge of some biological areas in rupestrian fields have been made, little is known about the relevance of soil microorganisms and their relationships with the vegetation. Symbiosis with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) is one of the most studied interactions between microorganisms and plants, because they are ubiquitous and contribute to the sustainability of ecosystems. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence and diversity of AMF species and to evaluate their relationship with soil physicochemical attributes and plant diversity in different habitats of the rupestrian fields from the Cadeia do Espinhaço, Serra do Cipó, Brazil. These rupestrian fields were delimited into five distinct habitats: rock outcrop, quartz gravel fields, sandy bogs, peat bogs and the Cerrado. Forty-nine AMF species were identified as belonging to nine families and twelve genera. Among them, Acaulospora colossica and Pacispora dominikii were found for the first time in Brazil. The results of this study suggest that the diversity of AMF is related to the heterogeneity of habitats and that the soil texture (coarse sand, gravel and silt) is better related to the structure of these fungi communities than to the soil chemical attributes. Plant species richness was related to AMF richness only in the quartz gravel field, rocky outcrop, and sandy bog habitats. Considering these habitats constitute one of the most menaced ecosystems on the planet, our survey provides information to improve knowledge about rupestrian field biodiversity, thus supporting policy actions for its conservation and preservation

Efeito da sincronização do estro com d-cloprostenol e eCG sobre o desempenho reprodutivo de cabras ½ Boer/SRD exploradas na região semi-árida do Nordeste do Brasil.

O objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar o efeito da dupla aplicação de d-cloprostenol, associada ou não à gonadotrofina coriônica eqüina (eCG), sobre o desempenho reprodutivo de cabras ½ Boer/SRD exploradas no semi-árido do Nordeste do Brasil. Para tanto, quarenta cabras foram distribuídas em dois protocolos de sincronização do estro, como a seguir: T1 (n = 20) duas aplicações de 75 mg de d-cloprostenol intervaladas de sete dias; T2 (n = 20), semelhante ao T1, diferindo pela adição de 300 UI de eCG na última aplicação de d-cloprostenol. A porcentagem de animais em estro (65% vs. 85%), bem como, o intervalo entre o fim do tratamento e o início do estro (22,8 ± 13,4 h vs. 17,2 ± 7,6 h) não diferiram (P>0,05) entre T1 e T2, respectivamente. Todavia, o T2 apresentou maior duração do estro que o T1 (P0,05) entre os tratamentos. As aplicações de d-closprotenol em duas doses, intercaladas de sete dias, mostraram-se tecnicamente viáveis. Nas condições desse experimento, a adição de 300 UI de eCG não melhorou as taxas de fertilidade nem de prolificidade

Correlation between thermal comfort indices and physiological parameters of crossbred dairy heifers.

The effect of environmental climate on physiological responses of dairy cattle has been studied due to its impact on performance herd. This word studied the relationship of three environmental thermal indices with internal temperature (IT) and respiratory frequency (RF) of dairy heifers in Porto Velho, Rondônia