Characteristics and potential impact of bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus (SHAW,1802)

O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido a partir de dois experimentos: avaliação de parâmetros alimentares de rã- touro, Lithobates catesbeianus (SHAW, 1802), coletadas em ambientes naturais e avaliação da capacidade gástrica, de predação e tempo de passagem de presas (girino e imago) no aparelho digestório da rã-touro Lithobates catesbeianus (SHAW, 1802) criadas em cativeiro em diferentes faixas de peso. O primeiro experimento visou conhecer o hábito alimentar da rã-touro em alguns Municípios do Estado de Minas Gerais e São Paulo. Em que foram coletados 49 animais, congelados individualmente e levados ao laboratório do Ranário Experimental da Universidade Federal de Viçosa, sendo posteriormente dissecados e averiguados os conteúdos gástricos dos animais, e cada presa identificada até seu menor nível taxonômico. O segundo experimento foi executado com objetivo de avaliar a capacidade gástrica, de predação e o tempo de passagem da presa (girino e imago de rã-touro) pelo aparelho gástrico de rã-touro. Foram utilizados 876 girinos em diferentes estágios de desenvolvimento (GOSNER, 1960) e 420 imagos de rã-touro, na alimentação induzida de 710 exemplares de rã-touro, com cinco classes de peso: classe 1, imagos de 10,00 a 39.99 gramas; classe 2, imagos de 40,00 a 69,99; classe 3, rãs de 70,00 a 99,99 gramas; classe 4, rãs de 100,00 a 149,99 gramas; e classe 5, rãs de 150,00 a 199,99 gramas. Os animais que submetidos à alimentação induzida foram mantidos em jejum por 48 horas antes da alimentação. E suas presas, os girinos e imagos em jejum, foram insensibilizados para verificar seu peso corpóreo e volume. Nos imagos também foi feita a medida do comprimento rosto cloacal (CRC). Verificou-se que a rã-touro quando jovem se alimenta principalmente de insetos, e quando adultos são mais generalistas, tendo uma dieta bem variada desde: insetos, crustáceos, anfíbios anuros e até ofídios. A rã-touro possui grande capacidade de se desenvolver nos ambientes onde foi introduzida e com alta chance de se disseminar na região; O tempo de passagem independe da classe de tamanho da rã-touro; A capacidade gástrica diminui com o aumento do peso corpóreo dos animais; O tempo de passagem do alimento no aparelho gástrico da rã-touro é menor, quando alimentadas com girino, e maior quando alimentadas com imagos; A rã-touro é um animal altamente impactante para a herpetofauna.This work was development in two experiments: evaluation of feed parameters of bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus (SHAW, 1802), sampled in natural environments and evaluation of gastric capacity, predation and time of passage of preys (tadpole and imago) in digestive system of bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus (SHAW, 1802) maintained in captivity in different weights. The first experiment aimed to know the feed behavior of bullfogs in municipalities of Minas Gerais and São Paulo state (Brazil). There were sample 49 animals, they were frozen and taken to the Laboratory of Bullfrog Culture of Federal University of Viçosa. Subsequently, they were dissected and its gastric content was then studied. Each prey was indentified until its higher taxonomic level. The second experiment aimed evaluate gastric and predation capacity and the total time of passage of the prey (tadpole and imago of bullfrog) in digestive system. There were used 876 tadpoles in different stages of development (GOSNER, 1960) and 420 imagoes, using 710 bullfrogs feeding induced, with 5 weight imago classes: class 1, imagoes from 10.00 to 39.99 g; class 2, imagoes from 40.00 to 69.99 g; class 3, imagoes from 70.00 to 99.99 g; class 4, imagoes from 100.00 to 149.99 g; and class 5, from 150.00 to 199.99 g. Those animal in induced feeding past through a 48 h fasting before feeding and their prey, both tadpoles and imagoes, were case-hardened to determinate its weights and volume. In the imagoes, also it was verified the length between face and cloaca. It was verified that bullfrogs, when young, feed mainly insects and that they are more generalist when adult, with wild variety diet: insects, crustacean, anuran amphibian and snakes. Bullfrogs have a great development capacity in environment which they are introduced and it has a high chance of dissemination. The total feed passage time in digestive system is independent of the classes studied. The gastric capacity decreases as the total corporal weight increases. The total passage time of tadpole is slower than the imagoes. The bullfrog is an animal with a high impact on herpetofauna

Inverse Functionalism and the Individuation of Powers

In the pure powers ontology (PPO), basic physical properties have wholly dispositional essences. PPO has clear advantages over categoricalist ontologies, which suffer from familiar epistemological and metaphysical problems. However, opponents argue that because it contains no qualitative properties, PPO lacks the resources to individuate powers, and generates a regress. The challenge for those who take such arguments seriously is to introduce qualitative properties without reintroducing the problems that PPO was meant to solve. In this paper, I distinguish the core claim of PPO: (i) basic physical properties have dispositional essences, from a hitherto unnoticed assumption: (ii) the dispositional essences of basic physical properties exclusively involve type-causal relations to other basic physical properties. I reject (ii), making room for a structuralist ontology in which all basic physical properties are pure powers, individuated by their places in a causal structure that includes not only other powers, but also physically realized qualitative properties such as shapes, patterns and structures. Such qualities individuate pure powers in the way that non-mental input and output properties individuate realized mental properties in functionalist theories of mind, except that here it is basic physical powers that are individuated by relations to realized non-powers. I distinguish one Platonic and two Aristotelian version of this theory, and argue that the Aristotelian versions require that grounding is not always a relative fundamentality relation, because the powers ground the qualities that individuate them. I argue that symmetric grounding is the best way to make sense of the relational individuation common to all structuralist ontologies, and is therefore no additional commitment of the one proposed here

Eficiência de diferentes substratos na desova de lambari Tambiú (Astyanax bimaculatus Linnaeus, 1758)

Diversos fatores podem afetar a produção de alevinos do lambari-tambiú, e o sucesso depende tanto da qualidade físico-química da água, do fornecimento de alimento vivo em quantidade e qualidade adequadas, além da taxa predação das larvas e pós-larvas. Conduziu-se um experimento com o objetivo de estudar a influência de diferentes substratos utilizados na desova, em relação à taxa de sobrevivência dos alevinos, com duração de 34 dias e temperatura média 26,234,6ºC. Os alevinos contados na ocasião da despesca, proporcionaram aos tratamentos T1, T2 e T3 médias correspondentes a 104, 53 e 4 alevinos/caixa, respectivamente. A utilização do aguapé como substrato para desova de lambari-tambiú proporciona uma maior taxa de sobrevivência das pós-larvas em relação aos demais substratos testados, possivelmente por apresentar maior superfície de raízes, possibilitando maior aderência dos ovos e proteção para as pós-larvas e alevinos contra a predação pelas matrizes.Different factors can affect the production of lambari-tambiú fingerlings, its success depending on the physical-chemical quality of the water, adequate amount and quality of live food supply as well as larvae and post-larvae predation rate. This experiment was carried out to study the influence of different substrata used during spawning on the survival rate of the fingerlings for 34 days and average temperature of 26.214.6ºC. The fingerlings were counted presenting averages of 104, 53 and 4 fingerlings/box per treatments T1 , T2 and T 3, ,respectively. The use of pond lily as substratum for lambari- tambiú spawning provides a higher post- larvae survival rate than the other substrata tested, possibly due to its greater root surface, leading to a greater adherence of the eggs and protection of the after-larvae and fingerlings against predation

GIS-Based Approach Applied to Study of Seasonal Rainfall Influence over Flood Vulnerability

Flooding occurrence is one of the most common phenomena that impact urban areas, and this intensifies during heavy rainfall periods. Knowing the areas with the greatest vulnerability is of paramount importance as it allows mitigating actions to be implemented in order to minimize the generated impacts. In this context, this study aimed to use Geographic Information System (GIS) tools to identify the areas with greater flooding vulnerability in Espírito Santo state, Brazil. The study was based on the following methodological steps: (1) a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) acquisition and watersheds delimitation; (2) maximum and accumulated rainfall intensity calculations for the three studied periods using meteorological data; (3) a land use and occupation map reclassification regarding flood vulnerability and fuzzy logic application; (4) an application of Euclidean distance and fuzzy logic in hydrography and water mass vector variables; (5) a flood vulnerability model generation. Based on the found results, it was observed that the metropolitan and coastal regions presented as greater flood vulnerability areas during the dry season, as in these regions, almost all of the 9.18% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable, while during rainy season, the most vulnerable areas were concentrated in Caparaó and in the coastal and immigration and metropolitan regions, as in these regions, almost all of the 12.72% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable. In general, by annually distributing the rainfall rates, a greater flood vulnerability was observed in the metropolitan and coastal and immigration regions, as in these areas, almost all of the 7.72% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable. According to the study, Espírito Santo state was mostly classified as a low (29.15%) and medium (28.06%) flood vulnerability area considering the annual period, while its metropolitan region has a very high flood vulnerability risk. Finally, GIS modeling is important to assist in decision making regarding public management and the employed methodology presents worldwide application potential

GIS-Based Approach Applied to Study of Seasonal Rainfall Influence over Flood Vulnerability

Flooding occurrence is one of the most common phenomena that impact urban areas, and this intensifies during heavy rainfall periods. Knowing the areas with the greatest vulnerability is of paramount importance as it allows mitigating actions to be implemented in order to minimize the generated impacts. In this context, this study aimed to use Geographic Information System (GIS) tools to identify the areas with greater flooding vulnerability in Espírito Santo state, Brazil. The study was based on the following methodological steps: (1) a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) acquisition and watersheds delimitation; (2) maximum and accumulated rainfall intensity calculations for the three studied periods using meteorological data; (3) a land use and occupation map reclassification regarding flood vulnerability and fuzzy logic application; (4) an application of Euclidean distance and fuzzy logic in hydrography and water mass vector variables; (5) a flood vulnerability model generation. Based on the found results, it was observed that the metropolitan and coastal regions presented as greater flood vulnerability areas during the dry season, as in these regions, almost all of the 9.18% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable, while during rainy season, the most vulnerable areas were concentrated in Caparaó and in the coastal and immigration and metropolitan regions, as in these regions, almost all of the 12.72% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable. In general, by annually distributing the rainfall rates, a greater flood vulnerability was observed in the metropolitan and coastal and immigration regions, as in these areas, almost all of the 7.72% of the state’s area was classified as highly vulnerable. According to the study, Espírito Santo state was mostly classified as a low (29.15%) and medium (28.06%) flood vulnerability area considering the annual period, while its metropolitan region has a very high flood vulnerability risk. Finally, GIS modeling is important to assist in decision making regarding public management and the employed methodology presents worldwide application potential