Ecology and ethnoecology of dusky grouper [garoupa, Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834)] along the coast of Brazil

Dusky grouper (garoupa, Epinephelus marginatus) is an important catch for several artisanal small-scale fisheries along the Brazilian coast. It is a sedentary, monandric, and late maturing protogynous species, which makes it vulnerable to overharvesting even though it is mainly caught through hook and line or spear fishing through free diving. Lack of information on the ecology and biology of this species in Brazil is astonishing. Much of the information found in the literature concerns Mediterranean dusky groupers. Studies compiling local knowledge (ethnoecology) about fish species complement biological data, and have been fundamental for effective fisheries management. In this study, our objectives are to obtain data about dusky grouper through fish catches and analysis of stomach contents and gonad maturation (macroscopic analyses), along with interviews from fishermen from six small-scales communities from the southern (Pântano do Sul, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina State) to the northern Brazilian coast (Porto Sauípe, Bahia State). We conclude that precautionary approaches and 'data-less' management approaches are needed in the coast of Brazil. Research on this species and on the potential of aquaculture for its cultivation, are urgent, due to the apparent vulnerability and decrease of dusky grouper along the coast of Brazil

Participatory research with fishers to improve knowledge on small-scale fisheries in tropical rivers

Freshwater small-scale fisheries sustain millions of livelihoods worldwide, but a lack of monitoring makes it difficult to check the sustainability of these fisheries. We aim to compare and describe participatory research methods used in studies with fishers in the Tapajos River, a poorly known tropical river in the Brazilian Amazon. We address three interview approaches, two ways to do fisheries monitoring and two approaches for georeferenced mapping based on fishers’ knowledge, which can provide data about at least 16 topics related to fisheries. We highlight major advantages and shortcomings of these methods and illustrate their potential with examples of results on fisheries and fish biology of Peacock bass (Cichla spp. tucunaré in Brazil), an important commercial fish in the Brazilian Amazon. The interviews, participatory monitoring and mapping revealed which fish are more valued by local communities, how fish abundance and sizes varied over time, when fish are more often caught and show reproductive activity, and which sites or habitats fish need to reproduce. In addition to providing useful data from many sites in a cost-effective way, participatory methods can bring the additional benefit of including local stakeholders in the monitoring, management, and research activitie

Fishers' knowledge indicates extensive socioecological impacts downstream of proposed dams in a tropical river

Brazil’s hydroelectricity sector is rapidly expanding, and several dams are planned in Amazonian rivers. The impacts on the fisheries downstream of the dams have largely been overlooked by official impact assessments. Here, we gather fishery baseline data from interviews with 171 fishers in 16 communities along a 275-km stretch of the Tapajos River, located downstream of a proposed dam. The results indicate that fishing constitutes a key source of food and income for fishers and their communities and that the impact of the dam on the fisheries will potentially extend much further than the officially recognized affected area. By ignoring the effects of the dams on downstream communities, impact assessments have severely underestimated the number of people who would be affected by the dams. Therefore, a thorough evaluation of downstream fishers needs to be conducted prior to river impoundment and be considered by development plans

A Segurança Alimentar De Comunidades Pesqueiras Do Sudeste Do Brasil: Dimensões Complementares E Um Exemplo Com O Robalo

Este estudo inclui aspectos complementares da segurança alimentar através da ênfase na importância da trajetória do recurso, dentre outros. Os locais de estudo são Copacabana (Rio de Janeiro) e Paraty (RJ), bem como Bertioga (SP). Três exemplos (casos) ilustram esse estudo: 1) a escolha alimentar de populações da costa; 2) a extração de recursos marinhos considerados vulneráveis; e 3) a compreensão da biologia/ecologia dos recursos, ilustrada aqui através de dados primários sobre o robalo (Centropomus undecimalis). A escolha alimentar inclui a importância do tempo de manipulação no alimento (espécies de peixe, nesse caso). Peixes com menos espinhas são preferidos para consumo e venda; esses possuem também alta demanda no mercado. A extração de recursos vulneráveis é ilustrada através da pesca da garoupa (Epinephelus marginatus). Indivíduos imaturos de garoupa compõem a maioria da pesca de pequenas comunidades pesqueiras e demandas do mercado influenciam as decisões dos pescadores. O último caso, a extração de peixes que utilizam ambientes diversos, para reproduzir e para completar os seus ciclos de vida, é exemplificado através do peixe estuarino robalo (C. undecimalis), com base em dados primários. A importância do conhecimento sobre a reprodução de peixes no sentido de manter as comunidades pesqueiras e trabalhar na direção da segurança alimentar é uma conclusão desse estudo.211404-416Segurança Alimenta

A eutanásia no exercício da medicina veterinária: aspectos psicológicos

A eutanásia é o ato de promover o óbito do paciente sem dor e sofrimento. O veterinário inevitavelmente se defrontará com este procedimento em sua rotina. A indicação é relacionada à sobrevida, prognóstico da doença e qualidade de vida do paciente, como nas doenças graves, degenerativas, com prognóstico desfavorável. Os efeitos psicológicos causados pela prática nos profissionais envolvidos devem ser discutidos. Atualmente existe uma nova relação homem-animal e o médico veterinário é um elo e poderá ser submetido a uma carga emocional para a qual não se preparou. O objetivo deste artigo é alertar que a prática laboral da eutanásia em animais domésticos pode estar associada a distúrbios emocionais em veterinários e estudantes. Ao revisar o assunto e observar os relatos das pessoas envolvidas percebe-se que estudos específicos poderão auxiliar na identificação e prevenção de possíveis distúrbios emocionais e físicos causados pela prática da eutanásia em pacientes veterinários

Professor Mediador em Metodologias Ativas no Ensino Superior:: Aprendizagem Baseada em Problemas (ABP) e Trabalho Discente Efetivo (TDE)

Este artigo é resultado de um estudo planejado e executado a partir das leituras e compreensões realizadas por um participante do Curso MBA em Educação Híbrida, Metodologias Ativas e Gestão da Aprendizagem – UNISC, proposto e executado pelo Centro Universitário União das Américas, UniAmérica, edição 2019-2020. A partir da proposta do Curso foi realizada uma intervenção com um grupo de estudantes de um programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação – PPGEdu, com o objetivo de verificar as condições de aplicabilidade do Trabalho Discente Efetivo (TDE) e da metodologia da Aprendizagem Baseada em Problemas (ABP), considerando tais situações como parte do processo para a melhoria do desempenho acadêmico e profissional em uma universidade comunitária no Sul do Brasil. É objeto deste artigo, também, o reconhecimento do lugar do professor nos processos de ensino e de aprendizagem e dos tipos de melhorias que poderá proporcionar ao desempenho acadêmico dos estudantes do ensino superior com a utilização da metodologia da Aprendizagem Baseada em Problemas. Para tanto, será realizada uma breve fundamentação teórica a propósito dos termos capitais deste estudo e, na sequência, serão apresentados os problemas e as respostas elaboradas pelos estudantes. Como resultados, ressalta-se que a metodologia da ABP favorece a realização de atividades extraclasse que podem ser consideradas como TDE

Estructura genética poblacional de dos especies piscícolas, una de estuario y una de arrecife, explotados por la pesca artesanal brasilera

In this study, we used microsatellite markers to examine the genetic structures of Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch, 1792) and Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834) populations collected from artisanal fishing sites along a stretch of coastline in southeastern Brazil. Based on F-statistics, there was no significant genetic differentiation evident in any C. undecimalis samples (FST=0.012). However, Bayesian clustering, principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) results suggested that there were most likely two clusters, with no relation to geographic areas. The bottleneck results showed no significant values and the effective population sizes (Ne) for the two genetically differentiated groups were large and similar. In contrast, for E. marginatus populations, the microsatellite loci showed no population subdivisions. The FST value was low and non-significant (FST=0.008), a Bayesian analysis indicated one cluster, and a PCA showed that all samples from different geographical sites shared the same genetic structure. The bottleneck results exhibited significant differences, and a low Ne was observed. The results of the genetic study of these two species along the southeastern Brazilian coast suggest that the distinct genetic structure of each species should be taken into account as management units for the conservation of their genetic diversities.En este estudio se han utilizado marcadores microsatélites para examinar la estructura genética de Centropomus undecimalis (Bloch, 1792) y Epinephelus marginatus (Lowe, 1834) en localidades de pesca artesanal localizadas a lo largo de la costa del sudeste de Brasil. Los estadísticos de diferenciación poblacional (F-statisctics) no presentaron diferenciación genética entre las muestras de C. undecimalis (FST=0.012). Sin embargo, los resultados de los análisis basados en clústeres bayesianos, componentes principales (PCA) y análisis discriminante de componentes principales (DAPC) sugieren la posible presencia de dos clústeres diferenciados genéticamente, pero sin ninguna relación con las áreas geográficas. Los resultados del análisis de cuello de botella poblacional no son significativos con valores de tamaño efectivo poblacional (Ne) elevados y similares entre los dos clústeres. Por el contrario, en E. marginatus, los análisis basados en microsatélites no muestran ningún patrón de subdivisión genética. El valor de FST es bajo y no significativo (FST=0.008), el análisis Bayesiano indicia un solo clúster y el PCA determina que todas las muestras de las diferentes localidades geográficas comparten la misma estructura genética. El análisis de cuello de botella muestra diferencias significativas con la observación de una baja Ne. Los resultados de los análisis genéticos en estas dos especies a lo largo de la costa sudeste de Brasil sugieren diferentes estructuras genéticas para cada especie y estos resultados deben tenerse en consideración para la estipulación de las medidas de conservación de la diversidad genética

Which fish is this? Fishers know more than 100 fish species in megadiverse tropical rivers

Ethnobiological studies on folk, common, or popular names that fishers use to identify fish can help improve fisheries monitoring and collaborations between fishers and researchers. This study investigates fishers’ knowledge (recognition, naming, and habitat use) on 115 and 119 fish species, respectively, in the Negro and Tapajos Rivers, two megadiverse rivers in the Brazilian Amazon, and investigates the relationship between such knowledge and fish importance to fisheries, fish abundance, and fish size. We also compared fishers’ perceptions on fisheries and fish abundance with literature data on fish harvests and fish sampling. We interviewed 16 fishers in 16 communities (one fisher per community, 8 communities along each river). These fishers recognized an average of 91 ± 10.4 species in the Negro River and 115 ± 7.2 species in the Tapajos River, but all fishers recognized 114 species in Negro and all species in Tapajos. The fishers’ knowledge of fish species was positively related to fishers’ perceptions on fish abundance, size, and importance to fisheries in the Negro, but only positively related to fish size in the Tapajos. Our results highlight the usefulness of fishers’ knowledge to providing data on use and cultural relevance of fish species in high diversity aquatic ecosystems

‘Taking Fishers’ knowledge to the lab’: an interdisciplinary approach to understand fish trophic relationships in the Brazilian Amazon

Trophic levels can be applied to describe the ecological role of organisms in food webs and assess changes in ecosystems. Stable isotopes analysis can assist in the understanding of trophic interactions and use of food resources by aquatic organisms. The local ecological knowledge (LEK) of fishers can be an alternative to advance understanding about fish trophic interactions and to construct aquatic food webs, especially in regions lacking research capacity. The objectives of this study are: to calculate the trophic levels of six fish species important to fishing by combining data from stable isotopes analysis and fishers’ LEK in two clear water rivers (Tapajós and Tocantins) in the Brazilian Amazon; to compare the trophic levels of these fish between the two methods (stable isotopes analysis and LEK) and the two rivers; and to develop diagrams representing the trophic webs of the main fish prey and predators based on fisher’s LEK. The fish species studied were Pescada (Plagioscion squamosissimus), Tucunaré (Cichla pinima), Piranha (Serrasalmus rhombeus), Aracu (Leporinus fasciatus), Charuto (Hemiodus unimaculatus), and Jaraqui (Semaprochilodus spp.). A total of 98 interviews and 63 samples for stable isotopes analysis were carried out in both rivers. The average fish trophic levels did not differ between the stable isotopes analysis and the LEK in the Tapajós, nor in the Tocantins Rivers. The overall trophic level of the studied fish species obtained through the LEK did not differ from data obtained through the stable isotopes analysis in both rivers, except for the Aracu in the Tapajós River. The main food items consumed by the fish according to fishers’ LEK did agree with fish diets as described in the biological literature. Fishers provided useful information on fish predators and feeding habits of endangered species, such as river dolphin and river otter. Collaboration with fishers through LEK studies can be a viable approach to produce reliable data on fish trophic ecology to improve fisheries management and species conservation in tropical freshwater environments and other regions with data limitations

Fishers’ knowledge about fish trophic interactions in the southeastern Brazilian coast

Data derived from studies of fishers' local ecological knowledge (LEK) can be invaluable to the proposal of new studies and more appropriate management strategies. This study analyzed the fisher's LEK about trophic relationships of fishes in the southeastern Brazilian coast, comparing fishers' LEK with scientific knowledge to provide new hypotheses. The initial contacts with fishers were made through informal visits in their residences, to explain the research goals, meet fishers and their families, check the number of resident fishers and ask for fishers' consent to participate in the research. After this initial contact, fishers were selected to be included in the interviews through the technique of snowball sampling. The fishers indicated by others who attended the criteria to be included in the research were interviewed by using a semi-structured standard questionnaire. There were interviewed 26 artisanal fishers from three communities of the Ilhabela: Jabaquara, Fome and Serraria. The interviewed fishers showed a detailed knowledge about the trophic interactions of the studied coastal fishes, as fishers mentioned 17 food items for these fishes and six fish and three mammals as fish predators. The most mentioned food items were small fish, shrimps and crabs, while the most mentioned predators were large reef fishes. Fishers also mentioned some predators, such as sea otters, that have not been reported by the biological literature and are poorly known. The LEK of the studied fishers showed a high degree of concordance with the scientific literature regarding fish diet. This study evidenced the value of fishers' LEK to improve fisheries research and management, as well as the needy to increase the collaboration among managers, biologists and fishers