Birds of the Pantanal floodplains, Brazil: historical data, diversity, and conservation

The Pantanal floodplains of Brazil are a region of rich biodiversity. To date, the true richness of the Pantanal avifauna has not been explored satisfactorily caused by a lack of studies in the region and, especially, by the divergence of opinion among the works published by various authors on the many species found in the region. This is due to the lack of criteria in examining records, both with regard to the reliability of the identifications and in the precise geographical allocation. Therefore, in the study, we collage findings from various studies and records created by us in the last few decades from 199 distinct locations to produce a list of birds in the Pantanal floodplains. We grouped the results into three lists: primary, secondary, and tertiary. We found that the avifauna of the Pantanal floodplain is composed of a total of 617 species, of which 571 (92%) have supporting records of occurrence (primary list) and 46 still lack documentation (secondary list). The number of species listed here for the Pantanal floodplain represents 32% of all avifauna known to the Brazilian territory. This reflects the importance of the biome, as part of the national territory, for the maintenance of a meaningful avifaunistic richness. Migratory birds (n = 183), notably northern ones (n = 43), are among the main players involved in ecological processes of nutrient cycling and dispersion of important pathogens between the two continents. With regard to conservation, 25 species are included in some category of threat in the lists of threatened species with global extinction. We hope that our list will help future researchers a more definitive approach when researching the avian fauna in this bountiful region

Efeitos bióticos e abióticos de ambientes alagáveis nas assembléias de aves aquáticas e piscívoras no Pantanal, Brasil

Waterfowl and fish-eating assemblies were studied for four years in Pantanal . Population censuses were conducted in line transects in 1999 and 2000 along the Transpantaneira Park Road in Poconé -MT , and 2002 and 2003 census birds were performed in 20 therealong lakes highway. They determined the species composition and abundance variation of the throughout the year and in subsequent years. It was found the role of abiotic factors ( rainfall , air temperature , heat stroke , size and depth of the lake, temperature , transparency and water pH ) and biotic ( cover and species richness aquatic weeds , and biomass and richness of fish species ) to predict the variation wealth and abundance and species composition of aquatic birds and piscivorous the Pantanal.Assembléias de aves aquáticas e piscívoras foram estudadas durante quatro anos no Pantanal Matogrossense. Foram realizados censos populacionais em transectos lineares em 1999 e 2000 ao longo da Estrada Parque Transpantaneira em Poconé-MT, e em 2002 e 2003 foram realizados censos das aves em 20 lagos ao longo da mesma rodovia. Foram determinadas a composição de espécies e a variação da abundância ao longo do ano e em anos subseqüentes. Foi verificado o papel de fatores abióticos (pluviosidade, temperatura do ar, insolação, tamanho e profundidade do lago, temperatura, transparência e pH da água) e bióticos (cobertura e riqueza de espécies de macrófitas aquáticas, e biomassa e riqueza de espécies de peixes) em prever a variação na riqueza e abundância e na composição de espécies de aves aquáticas e piscivoras no Pantanal