Warning signals of biodiversity collapse across gradients of tropical forest loss

We evaluate potential warning signals that may aid in identifying the proximity of ecological communities to biodiversity thresholds from habitat loss—often termed “tipping points”—in tropical forests. We used datasets from studies of Neotropical mammal, frog, bird, and insect communities. Our findings provide only limited evidence that an increase in the variance (heteroskedasticity) of biodiversity-related parameters can provide a general warning signal of impending threshold changes in communities, as forest loss increases. However, such an apparent effect was evident for amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and Amazonian mammal and bird communities, suggesting that impending changes in some species assemblages might be predictable. We consider the potential of such warning signs to help forecast drastic changes in biodiversity

Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca)

Miranda, Everton B.P., de Menezes, Jorge F.S., Rheingantz, Marcelo L. (2016): Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca). Journal of Natural History 50: 2021-2035, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2016.1180717, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2016.118071

Figure 2 in Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca)

Figure 2. Percentage of Jaguar (Panthera onca) diet composed by peccaries or armadillos compared with cougars (Puma concolor). Jaguar prey more extensively over armoured and dangerous prey. Data were pooled from reviewed literature where faeces of cougars and jaguars were collected at the same site. Bars represents means while whiskers represent standard errors for each prey group.Published as part of Miranda, Everton B.P., de Menezes, Jorge F.S. & Rheingantz, Marcelo L., 2016, Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca), pp. 2021-2035 in Journal of Natural History 50 on page 2028, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2016.1180717, http://zenodo.org/record/399336

Figure 1 in Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca)

Figure 1. Jaguar (Panthera onca) preference for different prey species. Preference was measured with a Jacob index based on the number of individuals of a given species consumed compared to abundance data in number of individuals. Data was pooled from reviewed literature on the subject. Each datum is an average of each study. A value of 0 indicates that jaguars consume this resource with a frequency proportional to its relative abundance in the environment. A positive value indicates that it consumes more than expected by chance. A negative value indicates consumption occurred at a value less than expected by random (avoidance).Published as part of Miranda, Everton B.P., de Menezes, Jorge F.S. & Rheingantz, Marcelo L., 2016, Reptiles as principal prey? Adaptations for durophagy and prey selection by jaguar (Panthera onca), pp. 2021-2035 in Journal of Natural History 50 on page 2027, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2016.1180717, http://zenodo.org/record/399336

Warning signals of biodiversity collapse across gradients of tropical forest loss

We evaluate potential warning signals that may aid in identifying the proximity of ecological communities to biodiversity thresholds from habitat loss—often termed “tipping points”—in tropical forests. We used datasets from studies of Neotropical mammal, frog, bird, and insect communities. Our findings provide only limited evidence that an increase in the variance (heteroskedasticity) of biodiversity-related parameters can provide a general warning signal of impending threshold changes in communities, as forest loss increases. However, such an apparent effect was evident for amphibians in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and Amazonian mammal and bird communities, suggesting that impending changes in some species assemblages might be predictable. We consider the potential of such warning signs to help forecast drastic changes in biodiversity

Grande epidemia de dengue com casos hemorrágicos no Estado do Ceará, Brasil, 1994

Ministério da Saúde. Fundação Nacional de Saúde. Instituto Evandro Chagas. Belém, PA, Brasil.Universidade Federal do Ceará. CCS. DPML. Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.Laboratório Central de Saúde Pública do Ceará. Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.Secretaria da Saúde do Estado do Ceará. Departamento de Epidemiologia. Fortaleza, CE, BrazilMinistério da Saúde. Fundação Nacional de Saúde. Instituto Evandro Chagas. Belém, PA, Brasil.Ministério da Saúde. Fundação Nacional de Saúde. Instituto Evandro Chagas. Belém, PA, Brasil.Ministério da Saúde. Fundo Nacional de Saúde. Fortaleza, CE, Brasil.Universidade Federal do Ceará. CCS. DPML. Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.Laboratório Central de Saúde Pública do Ceará. Fortaleza, CE, Brazil.Ministério da Saúde. Fundação Nacional de Saúde. Instituto Evandro Chagas. Belém, PA, Brasil.Secretaria da Saúde do Estado do Ceará. Departamento de Epidemiologia. Fortaleza, CE, BrazilMinistério da Saúde. Fundação Nacional de Saúde. Instituto Evandro Chagas. Belém, PA, Brasil

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