Plant trait and vegetation data along a 1314 m elevation gradient with fire history in Puna grasslands, Per\ufa

\ua9 2024. The Author(s). Alpine grassland vegetation supports globally important biodiversity and ecosystems that are increasingly threatened by climate warming and other environmental changes. Trait-based approaches can support understanding of vegetation responses to global change drivers and consequences for ecosystem functioning. In six sites along a 1314 m elevational gradient in Puna grasslands in the Peruvian Andes, we collected datasets on vascular plant composition, plant functional traits, biomass, ecosystem fluxes, and climate data over three years. The data were collected in the wet and dry season and from plots with different fire histories. We selected traits associated with plant resource use, growth, and life history strategies (leaf area, leaf dry/wet mass, leaf thickness, specific leaf area, leaf dry matter content, leaf C, N, P content, C and N isotopes). The trait dataset contains 3,665 plant records from 145 taxa, 54,036 trait measurements (increasing the trait data coverage of the regional flora by 420%) covering 14 traits and 121 plant taxa (ca. 40% of which have no previous publicly available trait data) across 33 families

Efficacy of <i>Aedes aegypti</i> control by indoor Ultra Low Volume (ULV) insecticide spraying in Iquitos, Peru

<div><p>Background</p><p><i>Aedes aegypti</i> is a primary vector of dengue, chikungunya, Zika, and urban yellow fever viruses. Indoor, ultra low volume (ULV) space spraying with pyrethroid insecticides is the main approach used for <i>Ae</i>. <i>aegypti</i> emergency control in many countries. Given the widespread use of this method, the lack of large-scale experiments or detailed evaluations of municipal spray programs is problematic.</p><p>Methodology/Principal findings</p><p>Two experimental evaluations of non-residual, indoor ULV pyrethroid spraying were conducted in Iquitos, Peru. In each, a central sprayed sector was surrounded by an unsprayed buffer sector. In 2013, spray and buffer sectors included 398 and 765 houses, respectively. Spraying reduced the mean number of adults captured per house by ~83 percent relative to the pre-spray baseline survey. In the 2014 experiment, sprayed and buffer sectors included 1,117 and 1,049 houses, respectively. Here, the sprayed sector’s number of adults per house was reduced ~64 percent relative to baseline. Parity surveys in the sprayed sector during the 2014 spray period indicated an increase in the proportion of very young females. We also evaluated impacts of a 2014 citywide spray program by the local Ministry of Health, which reduced adult populations by ~60 percent. In all cases, adult densities returned to near-baseline levels within one month.</p><p>Conclusions/Significance</p><p>Our results demonstrate that densities of adult <i>Ae</i>. <i>aegypti</i> can be reduced by experimental and municipal spraying programs. The finding that adult densities return to approximately pre-spray densities in less than a month is similar to results from previous, smaller scale experiments. Our results demonstrate that ULV spraying is best viewed as having a short-term entomological effect. The epidemiological impact of ULV spraying will need evaluation in future trials that measure capacity of insecticide spraying to reduce human infection or disease.</p></div

More than 10,000 pre-Columbian earthworks are still hidden throughout Amazonia.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the American Association for the Advancement of Science via the DOI in this recordData and materials availability: Data from publicly available sources are cited in the supplementary materials. Other data and computer codes used in the analysis are publicly available at Zenodo repositoryIndigenous societies are known to have occupied the Amazon basin for more than 12,000 years, but the scale of their influence on Amazonian forests remains uncertain. We report the discovery, using LIDAR (light detection and ranging) information from across the basin, of 24 previously undetected pre-Columbian earthworks beneath the forest canopy. Modeled distribution and abundance of large-scale archaeological sites across Amazonia suggest that between 10,272 and 23,648 sites remain to be discovered and that most will be found in the southwest. We also identified 53 domesticated tree species significantly associated with earthwork occurrence probability, likely suggesting past management practices. Closed-canopy forests across Amazonia are likely to contain thousands of undiscovered archaeological sites around which pre-Columbian societies actively modified forests, a discovery that opens opportunities for better understanding the magnitude of ancient human influence on Amazonia and its current state.Coordination of Superior Level Staff Improvement under the Academic Excellence Program (CAPES/PROEX)Coordination of Superior Level Staff Improvement under the Academic Excellence Program (CAPES/PROEX)Coordination of Superior Level Staff Improvement under the Academic Excellence Program (CAPES/PROEX)National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPQ)National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPQ)National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPQ)European Research CouncilSão Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)Amazon FundSão Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP)PVEMEC/MCTI/CAPES/CNPq/FAPEuropean Union’s Horizon 2020European Union’s Horizon 2020CAPESANRMCT/CNPq/CT-INFRA/GEOMAMCT/CNPq/CT-INFRA/GEOMACAPES/PDSECAPES/FapespaCNPqFAPESPCNPq/CAPES/FAPS/BC-NewtonFAPEMATRoyal Society GCRF International Collaboration AwardNSF/DEBCNPQ/PQNatural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)Gordon and Betty Moore Foundatio