Population structure and activity pattern of one species of Adenoma Steindachner, 1867 (Anura: Leptodactylidae) in northeastern Brazil

We analyzed the population structure and sexual size dimorphism of an Adenomera species occurring in the municipality of São Gonçalo do Amarante, from September 2010 to August 2011, using pitfall traps and active searches. We captured 116 individuals; 36 males, 23 females and 57 juveniles. Sexual size dimorphism was not observed. The smallest individuals were found in the middle of the rainy season, and the higher abundance of juveniles during this period may be related to recruitment. Females were captured in pitfall traps more often than males, while males were captured during active searches more often than females due to their calling behavior. We provide basic information regarding this Adenomera population, located in a region of severe environmental degradation, which may serve as a source of information for future studies of the area aiming to evaluate how the construction of industrial complexes affects anuran populations

Geographical ecology and evolution of continental turtles

Submitted by Marlene Santos ([email protected]) on 2018-07-12T20:09:09Z No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - João Fabrício Mota Rodrigues - 2017.pdf: 7026938 bytes, checksum: bb5eb1fc81f363b414aa3c9e80fb3429 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by Luciana Ferreira ([email protected]) on 2018-07-13T10:42:29Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - João Fabrício Mota Rodrigues - 2017.pdf: 7026938 bytes, checksum: bb5eb1fc81f363b414aa3c9e80fb3429 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-13T10:42:30Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 Tese - João Fabrício Mota Rodrigues - 2017.pdf: 7026938 bytes, checksum: bb5eb1fc81f363b414aa3c9e80fb3429 (MD5) license_rdf: 0 bytes, checksum: d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-05-03Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPESUnderstanding the processes that shape the current distribution patterns of species is one of the main goals of Ecology. In this thesis, we aimed to understand which factors are related to the distribution of the turtle diversity, a group of ectothermic animals whose diversity patterns are still little known, over time and space. To that end, we used distribution data from continental chelonian species, as well as life history information (habitat type and body size), and reconstructed a phylogenetic hypothesis for the group using molecular data. Turtles had a burst of lineage diversification during the irradiation of the Emydidae family, which is probably linked to an event of ecological opportunity. In addition, aquatic animals had higher rates of diversification than terrestrial animals, which helps to explain the current greater diversity of aquatic animals. Turtle richness distribution along the continents is mainly influenced by climatic variables such as temperature and precipitation, but the time when lineages first colonized the continental regions also influences this pattern. Beta diversity among chelonian communities is mainly influenced by the geographical distance between communities, and communities from different biogeographic realms are structured by different drivers. Finally, body size diversity of turtles is also influenced by temperature, and small animals are more common in cold areas.Compreender os processos responsáveis pelos padrões de distribuição atuais das espécies é um dos principais objetivos da Ecologia. Nesta tese, visamos entender quais fatores estão relacionados à distribuição da diversidade de quelônios, grupo de animais ectotérmicos cujos padrões de diversidade ainda são pouco conhecidos, ao longo do tempo e do espaço. Para esse fim, usamos dados de mapas de distribuição das espécies de quelônios continentais, além de informações de história de vida (tipo de hábitat e tamanho corporal), e reconstruímos uma hipótese filogenética para o grupo usando dados moleculares. O grupo dos quelônios apresentou uma explosão de diversificação durante a irradiação da família Emydidae, o que está provavelmente ligado a um evento de oportunidade ecológica. Além disso, animais aquáticos apresentaram taxas de diversificação mais elevadas que os animais terrestres, o que ajuda a explicar a maior diversidade de animais aquáticos atuais. A distribuição da riqueza de quelônios ao longo dos continentes é influenciada principalmente por variáveis climáticas tais como temperatura e precipitação, porém o intervalo de tempo desde o qual as áreas foram colonizadas também influencia nesse padrão. A diversidade beta entre as comunidades de quelônios é influenciada principalmente pela distância geográfica entre as comunidades, e comunidades de diferentes de domínios biogeográficos são estruturadas de modo diferenciado. Finalmente, a diversidade de tamanhos corporais dos quelônios também é influenciada pela temperatura, de modo que animais menores são mais comuns em áreas mais frias

Can tortoises facilitate the germination of plants with dry fruits? A simulation of the effects of Chelonoidis carbonarius (Testudines: Testudinidae) on the germination of Leucaena leucocephala (Fabaceae)

Abstract Ingestion of seeds by vertebrates may influence seed germination and dispersion. However the mechanisms responsible by these effects and the importance of turtles in these interactions are still poorly understood. This study aims to evaluate how Chelonoidis carbonarius influences the germination process of Leucaena leucocephala using an experiment conducted at the Federal University of Ceará, Fortaleza-CE, Brazil, that simulates the passage of the seeds of this plant through the digestive tract of C. carbonarius: stomach acidic condition and seeds sown in feces. We demonstrated that sowing the seeds in feces of Chelonoidis carbonarius has a negative effect on the germination of Leucaena leucocephala, decreasing the germination speed index of the seeds, while the acidic conditions have a neutral one. This study is a first attempt to understand how turtles and tortoises may influence the seed germination, and the implications of these findings in natural environments deserve further investigations

The influence of differences in movement pattern and detectability between males and females on sampling method efficiency in estimating a population’s sex ratio.

<p>Sex ratio distributions (left) and number of times sex ratio was recorded as equal (right) in 100 simulations when changing a) differences in movement pattern between males and females; b) differences in detectability between males and females. The number of times sex ratio was recorded as equal was determined by the number of times that the chi-square test performed on the sex ratio sampled in each simulation found a non-significant result. Red circles represent passive capture methods, and blue squares are active search.</p

Model sensitivity to each parameter.

<p>Parameters were individually modified in order to test their effect on the number of times sex ratio was correctly estimated. A negative effect means that an increase in the parameter caused a reduction in the number of times sex ratio was properly estimated. Movement probability and detectability were the only parameters that caused biased estimations of sex ratios.</p

<b>Single large or several small? The influence of prey size on feeding performance of <i>Philodryas nattereri</i> (Squamata: Serpentes)

This study aimed at evaluating the energetic return and feeding time on Philodryas nattereri kept in captivity. Snakes were fed biweekly for 60 days (four feeding trials), in two different feeding treatments (single and multiple prey items). The energetic return revealed no significant difference between the feeding treatments; however, we found a negative relationship between snake size and prey handling time during a feed using multiple prey items. In P. nattereri, when large preys are as easy to find as small ones, there seems to be no difference in energetic return

Population structure and activity pattern of one species of <em>Adenoma</em> Steindachner, 1867 (Anura: Leptodactylidae) in northeastern Brazil

<p>We analyzed the population structure and sexual size dimorphism of an <em>Adenomera </em>species occurring in the municipality of São Gonçalo do Amarante, from September 2010 to August 2011, using pitfall traps and active searches. We captured 116 individuals; 36 males, 23 females and 57 juveniles. Sexual size dimorphism was not observed. The smallest individuals were found in the middle of the rainy season, and the higher abundance of juveniles during this period may be related to recruitment. Females were captured in pitfall traps more often than males, while males were captured during active searches more often than females due to their calling behavior. We provide basic information regarding this <em>Adenomera</em> population, located in a region of severe environmental degradation, which may serve as a source of information for future studies of the area aiming to evaluate how the construction of industrial complexes affects anuran populations.</p

Global expansion of COVID-19 pandemic is driven by population size and airport connections

The pandemic state of COVID-19 caused by the SARS CoV-2 put the world in quarantine, led to hundreds of thousands of deaths and is causing an unprecedented economic crisis. However, COVID-19 is spreading in different rates at different countries. Here, we tested the effect of three classes of predictors, i.e., socioeconomic, climatic and transport, on the rate of daily increase of COVID-19 on its exponential phase. We found that population size and global connections, represented by countries’ importance in the global air transportation network, are the main explanations for the early growth rate of COVID-19 in different countries. Climate and socioeconomics had no significant effect in this big picture analysis. Our results indicate that the current claims that the growth rate of COVID-19 may be lower in warmer and humid countries should be taken very carefully, risking to disturb well-established and effective policy of social isolation that may help to avoid higher mortality rates due to the collapse of national health systems