RCAAP Repository

The largest feline in the Americas and the third largest in the world, the jaguar is an apex predator in the food chain and a key species in the ecosystems where it occurs, developing important ecological functions in maintaining ecosystem balance. In Brazil, the Pantanal is considered an important refuge for the species, and protected areas such as the Taiamã Ecological Station (TES) are relevant for conservation of pristine ecosystem where the species persist. Thus, considering that this area is located in one of the regions with the highest concentration of this large cat in the Pantanal, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the protection given by the TES for the jaguar population. The station is a flooded island in the middle of the Paraguay river and surrounded by extensive wetlands. We monitored ten jaguars using GPS collar at the TES and its surroundings. The samples were separated into high-water season (January to June) and low-water season (July to December), and the estimated home ranges were grouped as: 1) residents only and 2) all monitored individuals. The stabilization of the home ranges of eight jaguars, considered residents, was determined through variograms. When all jaguars were analysed together there was 55% overlap between the clustered areas of the two analysed seasons. In the analysis excluding non-resident individuals there was 72% overlap between the clustered areas. The type of land cover inside these areas was very similar between these periods. The range of this protected area is not sufficient to effectively protect these jaguar populations, since the grouped home ranges of the resident animals studied are 3.5(wet)/2.5(dry) times larger than the area of the TES. However, the surroundings of the TES have low human impact and no deforestation and, in this way, the landscape context of the station may have a significant effect on the persistence of a large carnivore like the jaguar. However, it is necessary to create more protected areas in order to prevent possible future environmental changes in the areas surrounding TES.

In the present study, we inventoried gall-inducing arthropod species and evaluated the effects of habitat anthropization, vegetation structure and seasonality on this group in areas of deciduous seasonal forest of Parque da Sapucaia, Montes Claros, MG, Brazil. The gall-inducing fauna was sampled between April 2017 and February 2018 from 20 plots distributed in anthropized and preserved habitats. A total of 29 morphospecies of gall-inducing arthropods and 21 species of host plants were recorded. The Fabaceae plant family had the highest number of gall morphospecies (n = 10), while the Cecidomyiidae (Diptera) insect family induced the most galls (41.3%). Mean gall richness did not differ between preserved and anthropized plots, but was negatively affected by mean vegetation height and density. The total number of gall morphospecies recorded during each sampling did not differ between dry and rainy seasons, but the mean richness of galls per plot was higher in the rainy season. In conclusion, natural factors, such as vegetation structure and seasonality, were more important for the distribution of gall-inducing species than anthropic factors, such as vegetation anthropization level.

The Volta Grande region in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais is classified as of “High Biological Importance” for the conservation of birds in the state. Despite this, the avifauna of the region has yet to be adequately sampled, as evidenced by the few papers on the region in ornithological literature. The results of an avifaunal inventory conducted between March 2013 and January 2014 in five sites located throughout the region of the Volta Grande Hydroelectric Power Plant in Southeast Brazil are presented. Point-counts, ad libitum observations and mist-nets recorded 224 species for the region, with insectivorous and omnivorous being the predominant feeding habits. Species that are “independent” of forest habitats comprised 52% of the recorded species. Three species are endemics of the Cerrado, 83 are migratory and 32 are under some degree of threat of extinction. These findings demonstrate that the region of the Volta Grande Hydroelectric Power Plant is important for bird conservation. Additional inventories, adequate management plans and public policies aimed the preserving species are needed for more effective conservation of the biodiversity of the studied region.

The Belem Curassow (Crax fasciolata pinima) is one of the most endangered birds in South America, without sightings of birds in the wild for 40 years. This subspecies is nationally and internationally classified as critically endangered and close to extinction, suffering from poaching and deforestation in its range. Here we present new records of free-living individuals made on three indigenous lands in Pará and Maranhão states: in part of Terra Indígena Mãe Maria, Bom Jesus do Tocantins, Pará; in locations within the Reserva Biológica do Gurupi/Terra Indígena Alto Turiaçu, Centro Novo do Maranhão, Maranhão; and around the Terra Indígena Rio Pindaré, Alto Alegre do Pindaré, Maranhão. We also provide recommendations to protect this bird via a dedicated conservation program which includes finding new individuals in non-sampled areas (north of BR-222), estimating population size, enhancing taxonomic and natural history knowledge, capturing wild animals in order to start urgent ex situ conservation programs, and developing environmental awareness programs with the local and indigenous populations.

Landscapes composed of small rural properties may support highly heterogeneous habitat, because they often support distinct types of land uses adjacent to surrounding forest fragments. Many butterfly species may benefit from this kind of landscape, as very distinct microhabitats can be found in a very restricted spatial scale. To better understand how different microhabitats are related to fragmentation in rural landscapes the present study collected the butterfly fauna in 18 sampling point sites, representing distinct types of forest edges and forest interiors. Although closely located, these sites showed no spatial autocorrelation. Instead, a major distinction in species richness and composition was found among forest interior and edge habitats while no significant difference was found in species composition among distinct edge habitats. Therefore, the high segregation of butterfly assemblages found in a very restricted geographic scale suggests the presence of two different groups of butterflies that respond independently to forest fragmentation, the forest interior assemblages and forest edge assemblages. This distinction of butterfly assemblages related to forest interior and forest edges were already reported, but our results highlights that these differences are found mostly due to species turnover between those habitats. In other words, both microhabitat types present a high number of specialized species compared to a smaller fraction of generalist species that may occurs in both microhabitats. Althoug, in the case of Atlantic Forest the species of special conservation concern are those true specialized in forest interior habitats and not those specialized in forest edges, the present study corroborates the importance of sampling different microhabitats when studying fragmentation processes, both inside and outside of fragments. Although forest edges may present different kinds of habitat types, species present along border tend to be as heterogeneous as species present in different locations inside the forest. This information should be considered in sampling designs of biodiversity essays that focus on a more consistent representation of local diversity.

The depository institution of the types of five species described by Linnaeus (1758), which is currently recorded as “unknown”, is reported to be at the Naturhistoriska Riksmuseet, Stockholm, Sweden: Cerambyx auratus; C. festivus; C. glaucus; C. stigma; and Leptura necydalea. The synonymy between Acyphoderes odyneroides White, 1855 (currently, Acutiphoderes odyneroides) and Leptura necydalea Linnaeus, 1758 is proposed, resulting in a new combination: Acutiphoderes necydalea.

Two new species of earthworms (Oligochaeta: Annelida) Tumakidae family; Tumak amari sp. nov. and Tumak congorum sp. nov. are described and illustrated. They were collected in relict forest fragments adjacent to wetlands in the southerm region of Cesar department of Cesar, in the Colombian Caribbean. Tumakidae family is characterized mainly by of the calciferous gland before the gizzard, and the presence of dorsal pores. Tumak amari sp. nov. and Tumak congorum sp. nov. are close to Tumak hammeni (Righi, 1995), but they differ by the clitelum extension, the puberal zone, the testicular sacs, the position of the male pores, and by the number, shape and position of spermathecae. The new species are the first records of the genus after the original description.

This paper provides a record of the type specimens of Heteroptera (Insecta: Hemiptera) housed in the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil (MZUSP), with information on 65 primary types and 316 secondary types. These type specimens represent 116 nominal species, currently classified in five infraorders and 14 families. The taxa are presented alphabetically, followed by bibliographic citation, type status, preservation method, collection data, and taxonomic remarks when appropriate.

We describe herein a new species of the abundant polychaete family Syllidae, Exogone brasiliensis sp. nov. The new species is characterized by a peculiar morphology of anterior body falcigers, with shafts and blades modified specially in chaetigers 1 and 2; falcigers until chaetiger 5 different from those of the rest of the body; and dorsal simple chaetae from midbody onwards unique in the genus, nearly straight, subdistally swollen in one side only, distally rounded. Exogone brasiliensis sp. nov. is described based on detailed morphological analyses under optical and scanning electron microscopes, and compared to its most similar congeners.

Diptera is a megadiverse order, reaching its peak of diversity in Neotropics, although our knowledge of dipteran fauna from this region is grossly lacking. This applies even to the most studied families, such as Drosophilidae. Despite its prominence, most aspects of the biology of these insects are still poorly understood, especially those linked to natural communities. Field studies on drosophilids are highly biased towards fruit-breeding species. Flower-breeding drosophilids, however, are worldwide distributed, especially in tropical regions, although being mostly neglected. The present paper shows the results of a biodiversity inventory of flower-breeding drosophilids carried out in several localities in Brazil, based on samples of 125 plant species, from 47 families. Drosophilids were found in flowers of 56 plant species, from 18 families. The fauna discovered turned out to be mostly unknown, comprising 28 species, with 12 of them (> 40%) still undescribed. Not taking into account opportunistic species, two-thirds of the flower-exclusive diversity was undescribed. The Drosophila bromeliae species group was the most representative taxon, with eight species (six undescribed), including four polyphagous and four Solanum-specialized species. This specialization on Solanum is reported for the first time for Drosophilidae. Other taxa of restricted flower-breeding drosophilids were the Drosophila lutzii species group and two species of the genus Zygothrica Wiedemann. Some specimens of the genera Cladochaeta Coquillett, Rhinoleucophenga Hendel and Scaptomyza Hardy were found, but their relations to flowers are unclear. Additionally, ten species of broad niche were found using flowers opportunistically. Localities and host plants were recorded for all species collected.

Here we provide descriptions of gynandromorphs of two species oil-collecting bees: Lophopedia nigrispinis and Epicharis iheringii, both with partial bilateral phenotypic asymmetry. The bees have a female phenotype predominantly on mesosoma and metasoma. The specimen of L. nigrispinis has distinct characteristics on legs, suggesting a mosaic pattern of gynandromorphism. The pollen and oil loads on legs suggest that the bee was foraging normally. The gynander specimen of E. iheringii has mostly a female phenotype, except for head, with right half female type and left half male type. The specimen of L. nigrispinis was collected foraging on flowers of Bidens sp. at Parque Nacional Iguazú, Argentina with loads of pollen on legs suggesting it was reproductive and was provisioning a nest. The specimen of Epicharis iheriingi has no evidence of any oil or pollen collection, despite its mostly female phenotype.

The aim of this paper is to shed light on the boundaries of two sympatric species of Cuernavaca, C. inexacta and C. longula, to enable further ecological studies. Species in this genus are associated with water hyacinths in wetlands of Northeastern Argentina (Paraná-Paraguay waterway system) and the Peruvian Amazon. This work lists new host records for Cuernavaca, which include Pontederia crassipes, P. cordata, P. subovata and P. rotundifolia (Pontederiaceae). A redescription for C. inexacta with new diagnostic genitalic features is also provided, as well as an updated identification key and a distribution map. The genus is distributed throughout Central and South America, reaching north and central Argentina in its southernmost distribution.

A Área de Protenção Ambiental de Tambaba localiza-se na costa sul do Estado da Paraíba, no bioma Mata Atlântica da região Nordeste do Brasil. A Área de Protenção Ambiental de Tambaba é composta por uma série de drenagens independentes: microbacias do Rio Graú, Mucatú e do Rio Bucatú, e sub-bacia do rio Caboclo, pertencente à microbacia do rio Gurugi. Amostras da ictiofauna foram coletadas em cinco expedições científicas entre os meses de junho e julho de 2015. Vinte e nove locais ​​de diferentes habitats (por exemplo, abrangendo tributários, córregos, rios e estuários) foram acessados ​​para amostragem. Um total de 44 espécies distribuídas em 38 gêneros, 25 famílias e 17 ordens foram distribuídas na região hidrográfica de Tambaba. Espécies de água doce compreendem 36% (n = 16) e espécies marinhas-estuarinas 64% (n = 28) do total de espécimes coletados. Duas espécies invasoras ocorrem nos locais de água doce: Cichla monoculus e Poecilia reticulata. Cheirodon jaguaribensis, Cichlasoma orientale e Crenicichla brasiliensis são endêmicos da região Nordeste do Brasil, com as primeiras espécies restritas à ecorregião hidrográfica Nordeste Caatinga e Drenagens Costeiras.

The genera Ameropterus Esben-Petersen, 1922 and Fillus Navás, 1919 are recorded from Colombia for the first time. New distributional records for two Cordulecerus Rambur, 1842 species are also presented. Ameropterus dissimilis (McLachlan, 1871) and Ameropterus scutellaris (Gerstaecker, 1894) are redescribed and illustrated, and Ameropterus mexicanus (Van der Weele, 1909) is here proposed as a junior synonym of the latter. The taxonomic status of Nephelasca crocea Navás, 1914 is discussed. Keys to the Colombian species of Ameropterus and Cordulecerus and a list of the split-eyed Ascalaphinae species of the New World are also given.

The genus Alterosa Blahnik (2005), with 39 extant species, is endemic to Atlantic Forest areas of southern and southeastern Brazil. Herein, we describe and illustrate two new species from Rio de Janeiro state, southeastern Brazil: Alterosa cornuta sp. nov., easily diagnosed by the horn-like intermediate appendages crossing each other, and A. araras sp. nov., recognized mainly by the extremely developed basodorsal protuberance on tergum X and by the rod-like, mesally curved preanal appendages, with at least 2 stout spine-like setae positioned at mid length and with the apex cupped. Additionally, a new distributional record for Espírito Santo state, southeastern Brazil, is provided for Alterosa falcata Blahnik (2005).

We present the first record for Loxosceles gaucho Gertsch, 1967 in the Amazonian region of Brazil. Four males, fifteen females and forty-nine immatures were collected in different places in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. This is the third species of Loxosceles reported in the Amazon region along with L. amazonica Gertsch, 1967, and L. similis Moenkhaus, 1898. This is the first record of an invasive species of a venomous animal in the state of Amazonas, Brazil, which is noteworthy due to its synanthropic habit, which increases the risk to the local population.

A new species of Gnomidolon from Colombia is described and illustrated: Gnomidolon franciscoi sp. nov.; and the previous key for the genus is modified to include the new species. The male of Gnomidolon hamatum Linsley, 1935 is described and illustrated for the first time. Additionally, a chromatic variation in some species of Hexoplonini from Colombia is reported and the geographical distribution of four species is expanded.

In Colombia, the taxonomical understanding of ectoparasites (Diptera: Streblidae and Nycteribiidae) of bats is scarce, despite the high diversity of hosts. This fact reflects the lack of important information on the group and poses the need for studies that expand the knowledge on bat ectoparasites in different regions of the country. The aim of this study was to contribute pioneer knowledge on bat ectoparasitic insects in the department of Caldas, located in the Central Andes Mountain range of Colombia. We assessed 318 bats from four eco parks in the city of Manizales, and collected 234 ectoparasitic insects. We provide the first report of the family Streblidae for Caldas, with seven genera and eight species: Anastrebla caudiferae Wenzel, 1976, Anatrichobius scorzai Wenzel, 1966, Exastinion oculatum Wenzel, 1976, Megistopoda proxima (Séguy‚ 1926), Paratrichobius longicrus Ribeiro, 1907, Paraeuctenodes similis Wenzel, 1976, Trichobius longipes Rudow, 1871, and Trichobius tiptoni Wenzel, 1976. In addition, we report the species Basilia ferrisi Schuurmans Stekhoven, 1931 and Basilia sp. for the family Nycteribiidae.

Two species of bopyrid isopods from the subfamily Athelginae are recorded from new localities in northeastern Brazil. Parathelges foliatus Markham, 1972 was recorded for the first time from Brazil, in the state of Ceará, parasitising the hermit crab Clibanarius symmetricus (Randall, 1840). Pseudostegias atlantica Lemos de Castro, 1965 is recorded from the state of Ceará, parasitising Clibanarius antillensis Stimpson, 1859. Illustrations, species diagnosis and an updated distribution map are given for each species.

This study aimed to verify variations in the form of the sagitta otolith of Menticirrhus americanus as to their ontogeny, sex and stage of such structure. Ontogenetically were found significant differences (p < 0.05) for all shape indices (aspect ratios, shape factor, rectangularity, ellipticity, relative surface of sulcus acusticus) and also in the wavelet of the otolith. The CVA presented a 98.6% correct reclassification of the otolith between interval class. Sexual variations were found in the wavelet and in the relative surface of sulcus acusticus index. Between adult females and young females, differences were not detected in the wavelet and rectangularity, but significant differences were found in all other shape indices. The CVA presented a 79.6% correct reclassification of the otolith of the sexes and stages of life sampled. Young females and adults females showed highest correct percentage of classification. The results of this study demonstrate for the first time the influence of the ontogenetic variation and sexual in the form of the otoliths.