Taxonomic status of Pseudopaludicola riopiedadensis Mercadal de Barrio and Barrio, 1994 (Anura, Leptodactylidae, Leiuperinae)

Pseudopaludicola riopiedadensiswas described by Mercadal de Barrio and Barrio (1994) based on two adult females collected by Luiz Dino Vizotto in 1963 from Rio Piedade, São José do Rio Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. This taxon was differentiated from P. ternetzi based on a series of qualitative and morphometric characters. Nevertheless, the original description and the type material of P. ternetzi were not considered by Mercadal de Barrio and Barrio, and the morphological variation of P. ternetzi was not documented. This work reviews the sample collected by Vizotto in P. riopiedadensis type locality, evaluates the advertisement calls obtained from such population, the two vouchers assigned to P. riopiedadensis, and a large data set, including type specimens of P. ternetzito document the morphological variation along its known distribution. Results indicate that P. riopiedadensis was described on the basis of highly variable characters applied to a small sample and share the unique P. ternetzi autapomorphy, a robust body structure with immaculate belly. The lack of differentiation in both advertisement call and morphology rejects the status of P. riopiedadensis as distinct species, and we therefore suggest to formally consider P. riopiedadensis as junior synonym of P. ternetziFil: Cardozo, Dario Elbio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Instituto de Biología Subtropical - Nodo Posadas; ArgentinaFil: Toledo, Luís Felipe. Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Instituto de Biologia. Museu de Zoologia "Prof. Adão José Cardoso"; Brasi

Potential worldwide impacts of sea level rise on coastal-lowland anurans

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Amphibians are the most severely threatened terrestrial vertebrates and we are witnessing a global decline phenomenon, which is even suggested to be of the same level as the historical mass extinctions. Albeit the myriad of causative stressors identified in the last decades, future sea level rise (SLR) and its impact on coastal terrestrial fauna remains essentially unreported. Even if there is no consensus on the magnitude of the future SLR, several studies suggest that it is likely to be greater than previously reported by the Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Therefore, it is reasonable to expect severe impacts on the coastal terrestrial fauna at a worldwide scale. Here, we assembled a worldwide data set of coastal-lowland anuran species in an attempt to quantify the potential habitat loss caused by flooding according to different SLR scenarios. We also assessed potential habitat suitability under climate change (CC) in order to evaluate its expected effects on species' climatic niches, by building species distribution models for three future scenarios (A2a, A1b and B2a). Our results revealed that SLR has the potential to produce negative impacts on similar to 86% of the selected coastal-lowland species in different magnitudes, whereas CC is expected to produce a greater impact on the same taxa. Thus, species predicted to persist under the new climatic conditions may be exposed to effects associated with SLR. Breaking our results down to biogeographic realms, we found that Australasia harboured most amphibian species suffering the dual impacts of SLR and CC. Based on our results, we advocate for the inclusion of potential future impacts of SLR in conservation action plans, anticipating and preventing biodiversity loss.Amphibians are the most severely threatened terrestrial vertebrates and we are witnessing a global decline phenomenon, which is even suggested to be of the same level as the historical mass extinctions. Albeit the myriad of causative stressors identified12191101CNQP - CONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICOCAPES - COORDENAÇÃO DE APERFEIÇOAMENTO DE PESSOAL DE NÍVEL SUPERIORFAPESP - FUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULOConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)161812/2011-23855/2013- 92011/51694-7405285/2013-2302589/2013-9We thank Rafael Loyola, Jean Vitule, Faraham Ahmadzadeh, Adriele Oliveira, and Guilherme Becker for their suggestions and contributions. ISO is grateful to Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq: 161812/2011-2) and Coordenaçã

Amphibia, Anura, Bufonidae, Melanophryniscus moreirae: distribution extension

Non

Drift fences in traps: theoretical evidence of effectiveness of the two most common arrays applied to terrestrial tetrapods

AbstractBiodiversity inventories are well acknowledged as key to conservation planning. One widely used method for sampling terrestrial fauna is traps with drift fences. Such drift fences, however, may be configured in several arrays, varying the height, length of the fence, space between conjugated traps (e.g., buckets or funnels), and it can be arranged in linear (I) or radial (Y) formats. Consequently, some criticism arose questioning which drift fence arrangement should be employed. Therefore, we made use of geometrical models to test the probability of capturing terrestrial tetrapods (as model organisms) using traps associated along with both I and Y drift fence arrays. With distances varying from 8 to 100m from the fence, the capturing rate of the I format was in average 1.16 times higher than the Y format. Besides this, we also present data that may enable field ecologists to better decide the minimum distance between two traps with drift fences, ensuring accurate statistics. Correct decisions in ecological and management studies may prevent wastes and fundament efficient conservation policies

Cristãos e judeus

Relations between Christians and Jews in the first centuries CE attract many researchers and scholars of Early Christianity. Studies on the development of an identity boundary between these socioreligious groups are fundamental, even for researchers dedicated to other questions and problems, since they frequently need to outline the groups and people they are researching. This article hopes to be an input for these researchers having a general framework of how such relations are articulated and what are the fundamental theoretical and methodological questions brought up both by historiography and a brief analysis of some keysources.As relações entre cristãos e judeus nos primeiros séculos d.C. encontram-se entre os temas que mais movem pesquisadores e estudiosos de cristianismo antigo. Nesse sentido, os estudos de como se desenvolve a fronteira de identidade que separa ambos os grupos sociorreligiosos são fundamentais mesmo para pesquisadores que se voltam para outros temas e problemas, uma vez que necessitam delinear com qual grupo e quais pessoas estão trabalhando. O presente artigo pretende ser um insumo para que esses pesquisadores possam ter diante de si um quadro geral de como se dão tais relações e quais são os questionamentos teórico-metodológicos fundamentais postos pela historiografia e por uma breve análise de fontes-chave

Tratamento térmico de fosfatos aluminosos do grupo da crandallita e seu efeito na solubilidade do fósforo

Optimization in the use of phosphate rocks is important and the residues of fertilizer production in the form of crandallite may be suitable for agronomic use after calcination. With the objective of evaluating the effect of thermal treatment of the aluminous phosphates of the crandallite group as related to solubility, crystalline structure and morphology, samples from the mine residues of three Brazilian phosphate deposits (Tapira-MG, Catalão-GO, and Juquiá-SP) were collected, air-dried, and screened to 100 mesh. Sub samples were thermally treated at 300, 500, 700, and 900°C for 2 hours. Treated and untreated materials were analyzed by X-ray diffraction, scanning electronic microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, and for the total and soluble P contents. The treatment of samples: (i) raised P solubility in neutral ammonium citrate solution, (ii) caused the disorganization of the crystalline structure of crandallite at 500°C and above, and (iii) altered their morphology (cracking and rounding). The increase in P solubility of samples after calcination indicates that the agronomic utilization of these marginal P sources may be of interest since plant growth may be favored due to higher P availability. New studies to evaluate these materials in order to determine their agronomic effectiveness must be carried out to establish adequate conditions that favor their use by plants.A otimização do uso de rochas fosfáticas é importante e resíduos da indústria de fertilizantes fosfatados na forma de crandallita poderão ser agronomicamente eficientes após calcinação. Com o objetivo de avaliar o efeito do tratamento térmico em fosfatos aluminosos do tipo crandallita quanto à solubilidade, estrutura cristalina, e morfologia, amostras do rejeito de mineração de três depósitos fosfáticos brasileiros (Tapira-MG, Catalão-GO e Juquiá-SP) foram coletadas, secas ao ar e separadas por peneiramento 100 mesh. Sub-amostras foram submetidas ao tratamento térmico a 300, 500, 700 e 900°C durante 2 horas. Os materiais tratados e não-tratados foram analisados por difratometria de raios X, observados por microscopia eletrônica de varredura e espectrometria por energia dispersiva, e seus teores de fósforo total e solúvel determinados. O tratamento térmico das amostras: (i) elevou, consideravelmente, a solubilidade em CNA dos materiais; (ii) promoveu a desorganização da estrutura cristalina da crandallita a temperaturas de 500°C e superiores; e (iii) causou alterações morfológicas (fraturamento e arredondamento) nas amostras. O aumento na solubilidade das amostras após o tratamento térmico indica que a utilização agronômica destas fontes marginais de P pode ser de interesse, uma vez que o crescimento das plantas pode ser favorecido pela maior disponibilidade de P. Estudos de avaliação desses materiais a fim de determinar sua eficiência agronômica devem ser conduzidos para o conhecimento de condições adequadas para sua aplicação que favoreçam o aproveitamento pela planta

Quantitative determination of the minimum body size for photo-identification of Melanophryniscus montevidensis (Bufonidae)

Toads of the genus Melanophryniscus possess unique color patterns on the belly, which allows for individual recognition. Photo-identification has proven to be an efficient non-invasive technique to identify individuals for this genus. However, such color patterns are absent in newly metamorphosed individuals. We studied the development of the ventral coloration pattern and evaluated its persistence in Melanophryniscus montevidensis to determine the minimum size and age at which use of the color pattern is a trustworthy (i.e., as stable as in adults) identification method for this species. From spawns raised in the field, we obtained eight metamorphs and maintained them in semi-natural conditions to photograph their bellies. We visually analyzed the images to establish the stabilization point of the color pattern. Using the software Wild-ID, we calculated the similarity score between the images from the stabilization point with sets of images before and after stabilization. Similarity scores of adults from previous studies did not differ significantly from the scores of juveniles after the pattern stabilized, but they did differ significantly from the scores of juveniles compared to themselves at least 70 d before stabilization. The color pattern developed progressively and stabilized at a median of 220 d after metamorphosis, with a maximum snout-vent length of 13.2 mm, which we considered the minimum size for photo-identification purposes. Although we observed ontogenetic and individual variation, the pattern remained unchanged since just before the first year of age. Taking into account the threshold size we determined, photo-identification is a suitable method for ecological studies of this species

Índice de qualidade de água em microbacia sob uso agrícola e urbano

An assessment of water quality in a watershed of 9600 ha in Guaíra, SP - Brazil, submitted to different occupations (rural and urban), was carried out during the period Jun/95 to Jun/96, using multivariate statistical techniques. Water samples were collected every 21 days at five sampling sites to evaluate ten water quality parameters (total and dissolved P, pH, dissolved O2, NH4, nitrate, electrical conductivity, turbidity, total suspended solids, and chlorophyll). A water quality index (WQI) was determined by the factorial analysis and the Bartlett method. The results point out a significant difference of WQI between the three upstream and the two downstream (in relation to Guaíra) sampling sites (mean values of - 1.76 and 2.35 respectively). The factorial analysis indicated that dissolved O2, total P, NH4, and electric conductivity were the most important parameters in determining the value of the WQI. The first three factors explained 71% of the variance of the data, whereas the first factor alone explained 47%. The influence of climate parameters was of little significance for the WQI, causing a minor water quality deterioration during the rainy season. The paper discusses the applicability of the factorial analysis as a means of assessing water quality alterations, as well as for the selection of appropriate indicators for the assessment of environmental impact in watersheds.A avaliação da qualidade da água em microbacias sob diferentes usos pode ser feita pelo uso de técnicas estatísticas multivariadas. Em Guaíra (SP), foi realizado o monitoramento da qualidade da água em uma microbacia de uso agrícola e urbano com 9600 ha, no período de jun/95 a jun/96. Coletaram-se amostras de água a cada 21 dias em 5 pontos, sendo determinadas 10 variáveis (fósforo total e dissolvido, pH, oxigênio dissolvido, amônia, nitrato, condutividade elétrica, turbidez, sólidos totais em suspensão e clorofila). Calculou-se um índice de qualidade de água (IQA) através do uso da técnica de análise fatorial e do método de Bartlett. Os resultados obtidos indicaram uma diferença entre os valores de IQA para as três estações a montante da cidade de Guaira e as duas estações a jusante, com valores médios de --1,757 e 2,35, respectivamente. Pela análise fatorial, oxigênio dissolvido, fósforo total, amônia e condutividade elétrica foram as variáveis que mais contribuíram na determinação do IQA. Os três primeiros fatores explicaram 71% da variância dos dados. O primeiro fator explicou 47% da variância dos dados e foi utilizado na construção do IQA. A influência climática foi pouco significativa no IQA, apresentando uma pequena deterioração na qualidade da água durante o período chuvoso. Discute-se a aplicação da técnica de análise fatorial como forma de avaliar as alterações na qualidade da água e na seleção de melhores indicadores de impacto ambiental em microbacias