COVID-19, Afastamento social, Pesca artesanal e Segurança alimentar: Como esses temas estão relacionados e quão importante é a soberania dos trabalhadores da pesca diante do cenário distópico

In a word widely connected in which the sanitary barriers are scanty to prevent the dissemination of biological agents dangerous to human health, knowing how epidemics and their effects affect the humanity is an important theme. In this study, it is analyzed how the Coronavirus propagation in Brazilian territory, making arise the social isolation (SI) among several sectors of society have increased the hard situation of small-scale fishery sector and its self-sustainability. The debate is focused at the social-fishery environment occurring in great urban centers, for example Salvador city, Bahia where exist a demand for fishery resources from small-scale fishery activity. The SI recommended by Brazilian government has led to decrease at the search of products from small-scale fishers. Thus, interviews were applied to fishers and shell-collectors acting in coastal zone of Salvador so that allows known the ongoing worrying scenario that affect the fishers. The consumer sector of fishery products (e.g., composed by single persons to small markets and sale centers) do not presents the former dynamic of trade, directly impacting the fish supply and fishing efforts. On the other hand, the fishers need keep their activities to provide protein sources to their family cores and community, underscoring issues of food security. As the actions to stop the advance of the Coronavirus epidemic are adopted by Brazilian government, measures to safe the livelihood of these fishery communities must be thought and applied. Applies the United Nation Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) guidelines in order to guarantee a sustainable small-scale fishery within assumption of food security and poverty eradication can be the first steps to deal with the new scenario imposed over the fishery societies.Em um mundo amplamente conectado onde as barreiras sanitárias são insuficientes para conter a disseminação de agentes biológicos prejudiciais à saúde humana, entender como se propagam efeitos de epidemias é um tema de interesse para toda sociedade. Nesse artigo é discutido como a disseminação do Coronavírus no território brasileiro, provocando o afastamento social (AS) entre diversos segmentos da sociedade têm amplificado a precariedade do setor pesqueiro de pequena escala e subsistência e impactado a sua sustentabilidade. O debate é especialmente focado no cenário pesqueiro existente às margens de grandes centros urbanos, como a cidade do Salvador, Bahia onde existe um apelo pelos recursos pesqueiros obtidos pela pesca de pequena escala mercantil. O afastamento social imposto ou recomendado pelo governo têm provocado uma diminuição na procura por pescados oriundos da atividade pesqueira artesanal. Entrevistas semi estruturadas e o livre diálogo com pescadores e marisqueiras atuantes na zona costeira de Salvador permitiu entender o avanço do cenário caótico que já se debruça sobre essa tessitura social. O mercado consumidor, também de pequena escala, desde o âmbito familiar até pequenos comércios como restaurantes e centros de revenda não apresentam mais a dinâmica de busca pelos recursos pesqueiros, interferindo diretamente na oferta devido a concomitante redução no esforço laboral para alimentar essa teia mercadológica. Por outro lado, esses trabalhadores das águas necessitam manter suas atividades a fim de prover fonte de proteína para o seio familiar e comunitário, transitando diretamente pela questão de segurança alimentar da classe pesqueira. Assim como ações para conter o avanço da epidemia do Coronavírus são adotadas pelo governo, contra medidas para salvaguardar o modo de vida dessas comunidades pesqueiras devem ser também pensadas e aplicadas. Seguir as diretrizes da Organização das Nações Unidas para a Alimentação e a Agricultura (FAO) a fim de garantir a pesca de pequena escala sustentável no contexto da segurança alimentar e erradicação da pobreza podem ser os primeiros instrumentos acordados a nível regional para lidar com esse novo cenário de pressão imposto sobre esses comunidades pesqueiras

Intertidal Biogeographic Subprovinces: Local and Regional Factors Shaping Fish Assemblages

Intertidal zones shelter a wealth of species and natural resources, provide important ecological services, and sustain several economic activities in coastal communities. However, the tidepool fish species that inhabit the intertidal zone are subject to a wide array of impacts due to the human presence and their accessibility, creating a challenge for the mitigation of habitat loss, in particular in tropical regions where the ecology and distribution of species are poorly known. In this study, we investigated tidepool fish species distribution patterns systematically across ca. 4,900 km of tropical Brazilian coastline (00–21° latitude) in order to verify the latitudinal trends and environmental variables influencing tidepool communities. A total of 5,113 fish specimens belonging to 67 taxa were collected at the 19 sites, revealing four distinct biogeographic subprovinces: Amazon Estuary (AE), Northern Mangrove (NM), Northeastern Semiarid (NS), and Tropical Warm (TW). Distance-based linear modeling evidenced in sequence water salinity, tidal range, shape of rocky shore formation, algae cover, distance to subtidal zone, latitude and rainfall as the most important environmental variables to shape biogeographic subprovinces. Fish species such as Bathygobius soporator, Bathygobiusgeminatus, Labrisomus nuchipinnis, and Scartella cristata presented wide distribution, occupying more than one subprovince. The trophic structure of the tidepool fishes also varied among subprovinces, with carnivores being associated with the AE subprovince, omnivores with the NM, and herbivores dominating the NS and TW. These findings reinforce the determining role of local and regional factors in the geographic distribution of fish and, in particular, highlight a new arrangement for the intertidal subprovinces of the tropical Brazilian shoreline, which may provide a valuable tool for the more effective management and conservation of this vulnerable ecosystem at the land-ocean interface

Community structure of shallow rocky shore fish in a tropical bay of the southwestern Atlantic

Os costões rochosos do Atlântico Sul Ocidental sustentam ricas comunidades de peixes recifais. Apesar disso, o conhecimento sobre essas comunidades em zonas tropicais continua escasso, especialmente no Brasil. No presente trabalho avaliamos parâmetros das comunidades de peixes recifais, tais como composição e estrutura trófica, além de sua interação com variáveis físicas e bióticas, em quatro costões rochosos tropicais na Baía de Todos os Santos, costa leste do Brasil. Durante seis meses 80 censos visuais foram realizados, nos quais 3.582 peixes pertencentes a 76 espécies foram registrados. Os peixes herbívoros territoriais e as algas filamentosas dominaram em todos os costões. A variação espacial na estrutura da comunidade de peixes esteve relacionada com a composição bêntica e profundidade. A elevada abundância observada de peixes herbívoros territoriais e invertívoros móveis pode ser devido à alta cobertura de algas filamentosas e à baixa profundidade e exposição às ondas. Além disso, esse padrão também pode ser explicado pela baixa densidade de herbívoros errantes e grandes carnívoros, provavelmente devido à intensa pressão da atividade pesqueira. Assim, novos estudos são necessários para avaliar o real estado de conservação destes ambientes, uma vez que estão localizados em posição singular na Baía de Todos os Santos, conectando recifes internos e externos da área.Southwestern Atlantic Ocean rocky shores sustain important reef fish communities. However, those communities in tropical regions are not well understood, especially in Brazil. In this present article we assess community parameters of reef fishes such as composition, trophic organization and their relationships with physical and biological factors on four tropical rocky shores in Todos os Santos Bay, southwestern Atlantic. During six months, a total of 80 visual censuses were performed, in which 3,582 fish belonging to 76 species were recorded. Territorial herbivorous fish and turf algae were dominant at all the sites. The spatial variability of fish community structure was related to the benthic cover composition and depth. The high abundance of territorial herbivores and mobile invertebrate feeders could be associated with high levels of turf cover, low wave exposure and shallow waters. Moreover, this fact could be a consequence of the low density of roving herbivores and large carnivores probably due to the pressure of intense fishing activity. Thus complementary studies are needed to evaluate the actual conservation status of these rocky shore reefs, singularly located habitats connecting inner and outer reefs in Todos os Santos Bay

Simulated Acidic Weathering of “Black Granites”: an Assessment using Regression Analysis

A number of “black granites” were tested using simulated acidic weathering (H2SO4, HNO3, H2SO4/HNO3 and HCl, at pH = 3,00), freeze resistance and relative loss of brightness. The same plates of these granites remained immersed in each acidic solution over eight weekly cycles. The pH data from residual acid solutions were plotted versus timing of the experimental cycles in XY diagrams for interpretation as log-linear regressions. The global set of data, transcribed in a ternary diagram, shows a distinctive area highlighting the best commercial granites. In addition to these granite coatings, the proposed methodology allows easy and accurate identification of their best performances

Niche-Relationships Within and Among Intertidal Reef Fish Species

Niche-related processes (e.g., density or niche-breadth compensation and competition) are fundamental to a broad understanding of community ecology and ecosystem functioning. Most evidences of competition are from controlled indoor trials with few species, and it remains a challenge to estimate competition among multiple species in the field. Here, we analyze stable isotopes and distributional data from 51 fish taxa in six locations in the southwestern Atlantic to predict intraspecific trophic pressure (ITP) and the potential competitive strength among species in a trophic-based framework. We used two proxies built upon 2-dimensional isotopic space (δ13C vs. δ15N), its predicted overlap, and fish density to calculate winner and loser taxa in potential paired interspecific competitive interactions. The intraspecific proxy indicated that cryptobenthic fishes are under high among-individual trophic pressure (high densities and small niche sizes). Also, cryptobenthic behavior together with feeding specialization and extremely small-sizes were the most important traits related to low success in interspecific simulations. Although cryptobenthic fishes face strong competitive pressures, there are some known inherent trade-offs to cryptobenthic life such as trophic and habitat use specializations. These seem to compensate and ensure coexistence among cryptobenthic fishes and non-cryptobenthic species. Habitat loss/degradation via urbanization, invasive species and climate-change-driven sea-level rise can reduce the suitability of habitat and increase competition on cryptobenthic species, especially in shallow reefs and intertidal shores