Historical and current range of the Near Threatened maned wolf <i>Chrysocyon brachyurus</i> in South America

AbstractThe Near Threatened maned wolf Chrysocyon brachyurus is a South American endemic canid occurring mainly in grassland-dominated regions. We compiled and mapped recent and historical data to compare the species' present and historical distributions and propose hypotheses for range shifts. There has been recent range expansion in eastern Brazil associated with the deforestation of the Atlantic Forest and conversion of habitat to grasslands for cattle range. The northern, north-eastern and eastern sectors of the species' range have not yet experienced significant modifications, and the species persists in central Brazil, northern and eastern Bolivia, and south-eastern Peru. The largest range contractions have occurred at the species' southern limits but maned wolves are still present in north-eastern, central and eastern Argentina, and there are a few records of the species' occurence from Uruguay and north-eastern and southern Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. Historically the species occupied nearly all of Rio Grande do Sul, Uruguay and south to at least the 38th parallel in Argentina. The probable causes of the southern range loss are intense anthropogenic pressure combined with limiting abiotic factors such as temperature and humidity. We highlight the need to revise the view of how habitat modifications are influencing the range of C. brachyurus so as to improve and coordinate range-wide conservation strategies

Partial albinism in the pampas deer and a critical analysis about albino Mammals

A case of partial albinism in the pampas deer, recorded at the Emas National Park, Goiás, Brazil is described. The coat color and behaviour of the albino are compared with normal pampas deer.1229123

Produção e valor nutritivo da forragem de capim-elefante em dois sistemas de produção.

Esta pesquisa foi realizada com o objetivo de avaliar a produção e o valor nutritivo da forragem de capimelefante cultivado em sistemas convencional e agroecológico. No sistema convencional, o capim-elefante foi estabelecido em cultivo exclusivo, em linhas com espaçamento de 1,4 m e, no sistema agroecológico, em linhas afastadas 3 m. Nas entrelinhas, estabeleceu-se azevém no período hibernal para desenvolvimento de espécies de crescimento espontâneo no período estival. Avaliaram-se a massa, a produção e a composição botânica e estrutural da forragem e a carga animal. Amostras de simulação de pastejo foram coletadas para determinação dos teores de proteína bruta e fibra em detergente neutro e da digestibilidade in vitro da matéria seca e matéria orgânica. O delineamento experimental foi o inteiramente casualizado com dois tratamentos (sistemas convencional e agroecológico) e duas repetições (piquetes). Valores mais elevados para massa de forragem, produção de forragem, taxa de acúmulo diário e carga animal foram observados no sistema convencional. A relação folha:colmo foi similar entre os sistemas. Valor mais elevado de proteína bruta foi observado no sistema agroecológico. O capim-elefante sob manejo convencional apresenta maior produção de forragem, com menores teores de proteína bruta. O sistema agroecológico apresenta melhor distribuição da produção de forragem no decorrer do ano

Production of vegetable oil blends and structured lipids and their effect on wound healing

Two oil blends (sunflower/canola oils 85/15 (BL1) and canola/linseed oils 70/30 (BL2)), were prepared and enzymatically interesterified to be applied to surgically-induced wounds in rats. Following surgery, the animals were submitted to the Treatment with Physiological Saline (TPS) (control group), Blends (TBL), and Structured Lipids (TSL). The control group (TPS) received physiological saline solution for 15 days. In TBL, BL1 was administered during the inflammation phase (days 0-3) and BL2 in the tissue formation and remodeling phase (days 4-15). In TSL, Structured Lipid 1 (SL1) and Structured Lipid 2 (SL2) were used instead of BL1 and BL2, respectively. The aim of this study was to compare wound closure evolution among rats treated with the blends or structured lipids versus control rats treated with physiological saline. The wound healing process was evaluated by measuring the wound areas along the treatments and the concentrations of cytokines. An increase in the areas of wounds treated with the blends and structured lipids in the inflammatory phase was observed, followed by a steeper closure curve compared to wounds treated with physiological saline. The changes observed during the inflammatory phase suggest a potential therapeutic application in cutaneous wound healing which should be further investigated.</p