RCAAP Repository

This catalogue lists the type specimens of Crabronidae and Sphecidae (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) deposited in the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil (MZUSP). The collection includes a total of 83 type specimens (17 holotypes, 66 paratypes), 82 of which belong to nine genera and 35 species of Crabronidae and only one of Sphecidae. All labels contents and additional information obtained from other available sources are presented. High resolution photographs of the primary types are also provided.

Many species are declining due to environmental and physical changes in their habitats. Such disturbs alter the availability of micro-habitats and influences the presence of lizards, being even worse for threatened and endemic species. Glaucomastix littoralis is a teiid species restricted to four restingas areas of Brazil. The understanding about the use and preferences of micro-habitats by the species and the consequents effects of substrate loss is important to prevent local extinctions. This study took place in restingas of Maricá, Jurubatiba and Grussaí, in Rio de Janeiro State. We sampled the vegetation of all areas, to access differences between the physical structures, and recorded the individuals sighted and the micro-habitat they were in, to investigate the relation of individuals and habitat structure. We calculated the frequency utilization of each micro-habitat and made a presence estimation of individuals (occupancy and detection probability) to assess which structural parameters of vegetation guide the settlement of the studied populations. Our data showed structural vegetation particularities among the areas and a trend concerning the use of micro-habitat by Glaucomastix littoralis, with a general preference for leaf litter inside bushes, guriri and bare sand and a low utilization of cactus and herbaceous. We also found positives (bare sand and cactus) and negatives (bushes) influences of micro-habitats in relation to the occupation of the areas by the individuals. Since vegetation is fundamental to lizards, due to their use as a refuge, site for thermoregulation and feeding, the understanding about the effects habitat degradation/fragmentation can cause is essential to create appropriate management plans and develop public policies to conserve the species.

With a big territory and variety of biomes, Brazil is one of the most diverse countries in the World, with insects massively contributing to this diversity. Although presenting impressive numbers, many groups are poorly known concerning their diversity and distribution. Also, the knowledge of the species diversity is very heterogeneous when comparing Brazilian states and regions. With a recent review of part of Lawrence Quate’s collection deposited at Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, more than 70 new geographical records for Psychodidae species were found on the Neotropics, including one genus (Eurygarka) and seven species first recorded to Brazil. The complete known distribution of these species was compiled and is presented along with new records for other 11 countries of the Neotropical region. On the Brazilian territory, most of the new records are for the state of Rondônia, on the northern region, followed by Minas Gerais, on the southeastern region.

In the state of Rio Grande do Sul, there are few records of geographical distribution and host plants to species of Tomoplagia Coquillett, as well as other genera of Tephritidae, especially those associated with plants of the family Asteraceae. Here, we report the first occurrence of Tomoplagia rudolphi (Lutz & Lima, 1918) in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, inducing stem galls in Vernonanthura tweediana (Baker) H. Rob. (Asteraceae, Vernonieae), whose plant becomes a new host record for this species. In this way, is increased to nine species of Tomoplagia recorded for Rio Grande do Sul. Biological and morphological data and photos of gall, larvae, pupae at new host and distribution map of the species in Brazil are provided.

Previously known only from Argentina and Uruguay, Anacalliax argentinensis is herein reported for the first time from Rio de Janeiro, representing the first occurrence of genus Anacalliax in the Brazilian coast and the northernmost record of the species in the Atlantic Ocean. Morphological variations on the third maxilliped and first pereopods are discussed based in our material.

The rio da Dona is an important water body in the Recôncavo Sul basin used as a water supply for the neighboring towns and for agriculture, recreation and subsistence fishing. The knowledge about the ichthyofauna of this river is scarce. In this paper, an inventory of the fish fauna from rio da Dona basin and an identification key for the species recorded are presented. Additionally, taxonomic and conservationist issues are discussed. The specimens were collected in different sites along the upper, middle and lower courses of the rio da Dona. The fishes were anesthetized, fixed in formalin, conserved in ethanol, and identified. In addition to the material collected, specimens previously deposited in the ichthyological collection of the Museu de História Natural da Bahia were also analyzed. Twenty species, distributed into 16 genera, ten families, and four orders were recorded. One of these species, Aspidoras kiriri, is endemic to the rio da Dona. Four species, Cichla pinima, Coptodon rendalli, Poecilia reticulata and Serrasalmus brandtii, have been introduced into the river. Higher richness of native species has been recorded in the upper course of the rio da Dona, while in the middle and lower parts non-native species were also representative. Along the river, a series of anthropic impacts were observed, such as deforestation of native forest including the riparian vegetation, silting and dams, which can probably compromised the resident ichthyofauna.

The malacofauna bycatch of sea-bob shrimp Xiphopenaeus kroyeri (Heller, 1862) trawl fisheries on the coast of Sergipe was studied for 5 years. The malacofauna bycatch considered was obtained in nine oceanographic sampling campaigns carried out between May 1999 and June 2003 in 18 stations distributed in six transects along depths of 10, 20 and 30 m. A total of 2,669 individuals of mollusk belonging to 54 species were captured on the 18 sea-bob shrimp trawl stations carried out along the coast of Sergipe. The considerable richness of mollusks was composed by 19 families and 31 species of gastropods, 12 families and 19 species of bivalves and 2 families and 4 species of cephalopods. The highest abundance were observed at stations 13 (373 individuals) and 16 (685 individuals) that represents the lowest depth (10 m) and the richness was higher at stations 15 and 12 (17 and 11 species, respectively) both located at the highest depth (30 m). Cephalopods had high frequency of occurrence being collected in all the stations and by far the most abundant group with a total of 2,488 individuals captured. On the other hand, gastropods (with 142 individuals found in 83.3% of stations) and bivalves (about 1% of the individuals collected) contribute with a much smaller percentage of individuals captured. Lolliguncula brevis (Blainville, 1823) was most representative cephalopod in number and frequency of occurrence. Arcidae, Conidae, Muricidae and Strombidae were the families with the higher number of species in the trawl-fishery. Among bivalves, Pitar arestus (Dall & Simpson, 1901) and Spathochlamys benedicti (Verrill & Bush [in Verrill], 1897) were the species with higher frequency of occurrence. Although the considerable sample effort and a number of mollusks captured as bycath, the richness estimators indicated that the species richness could increase with additional sampling effort in the study area. The present study expands the taxonomic alpha knowledge on the mollusk bycatch of sea-bob shrimp trawl fisheries on the northeastern coast of Brazil. However, it is of crucial importance to assess urgently the negative impacts of the sea-bob shrimp trawl fisheries on the benthic community of the entire coast of Brazil.

Understanding how different environmental factors influence species occurrence is a key issue to address the study of natural populations. However, there is a lack of knowledge on how local traits influence the microhabitat use of tropical arboreal lizards. Here, we investigated the microhabitat selection of the poorly known lizard Tropidurus lagunablanca (Squamata: Tropiduridae) and evaluated how environmental microhabitat features influence animal’s presence. We used a Resource Selection Function approach, in a case/control design where we analyzed the effect of substrate temperature and tree’s diameter at breast height (DBH) in the probability of presence of lizards using mixed Conditional Logistic Regression. We found that T. lagunablanca uses trees with DBH from 0.40 m to 4 m and substrate temperatures ranging from 25.9℃ to 42℃. Moreover, we showed that thickness of the trees and substrate temperatures significantly increased the probability of presence of T. lagunablanca individuals, being the probability of presence higher than 50% for trees up to 1.5 m DBH and temperature of substrate up to 37.5℃. Our study probed that T. lagunablanca individuals choose trees non-randomly, selecting thicker and warmer tree trunks. This information advances the knowledge of the spatial ecology of Neotropical arboreal lizards and is relevant for conservation, putting an emphasis on preserving native vegetation in the Pantanal.

Parque Estadual do Tainhas – PET (Tainhas State Park) is a protected area with significant extensions of natural grasslands located in highland grasslands of northeastern Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil, and recognized as an Important Bird Area. Our aim was to record the bird species richness of PET with a greater sampling effort than previous studies at the site, including unpublished data such as occurrence status of most species and evidence of breeding of some of them in the park. We surveyed birds between 2012 and 2018 performing aleatory trails covering mainly the central portion of PET (1,500 ha). We also added records from published studies. We listed 208 species, of which 203 were recorded during our fieldwork (including 18 species of conservation concern). The estimated richness was 222.22 (SD = 10.91) species, according to Jackknife 1 method. This result represents a 58% increase in the species richness of the park and shows that long-term monitoring of the bird community allows to access more accurate richness and to identify the regular species (core avifauna) of the park. The presence of 55 breeders and threatened species shows the importance of this protected area for breeding and conservation of grassland birds, such as Urubitinga coronata, Cinclodes pabsti, Xolmis dominicanus, Anthus nattereri, Xanthopsar flavus, and Sporophila melanogaster.

The Little Chachalaca (Ortalis motmot) is a widely distributed species in the Amazon basin, typically found in riverine habitats. There are two disjunct populations: the northern O. m. motmot and the southern O. m. ruficeps (known as Chestnut-headed Chachalaca). Here we performed a vocal, morphological and plumage comparison between these two taxa. Birds present differences in tail coloration but are otherwise undiagnosable in terms of plumage. Ortalis m. ruficeps is, however, markedly smaller and lighter than O. m. motmot, with no overlap in size or weight. We also found vocal differences between O. m. motmot and O. m. ruficeps, no overlap in geographic distributions and no signs of hybridization across its range. Based on the available data, Ortalis m. ruficeps thus must be considered a valid species, endemic to Brazil.

Eight species of macaw (Psittacidae: Anodorhynchus, Ara, Primolius) have previously been reported from Paraguay. We discuss all verifiable reports of the species from Paraguay and provide comment on their statuses. Ara chloropterus and Primolius auricollis are both widespread species known from multiple reports across a wide geographic area. We report minor range extensions within Paraguay for both species. Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus is documented as a breeding resident with a restricted distribution in the Upper Paraguay River basin. The first modern records of Ara ararauna and the first record of Diopsittaca nobilis for the country are documented with photographs. We are unable to find any confirmed records of Anodorhynchus glaucus from Paraguay and thus consider it of possible occurrence. Two species are rejected as erroneously cited, Ara militaris and Ara glaucogularis. Consequently six species in four genera are now confirmed to occur in Paraguay.

The new species Oiovelia shepardi is described based on macropterous specimens from the departments of La Guajira and Antioquia in northwestern Colombia, and is compared to its presumed closest relative. The female of Paravelia cunhai Rodrigues & Moreira, 2016 and the male of P. polhemusi Rodrigues, Moreira, Nieser, Chen & Melo, 2014 are described for the first time. The specimens of the two species of Paravelia Breddin were collected in waters inside caves in the State of Pará, northern Brazil. Further, the micropterous form of Steinovelia vinnula (Drake, 1951) is described, compared with S. virgata (White, 1879), and new distributional records are provided. Illustrations and a geographic distribution map of all species treated here are presented.

A catalogue of type specimens of Psocoptera (Insecta: Psocodea) deposited in the collection of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil, is presented and updated to February, 2019. 45 holotypes and 47 paratypes of 52 species were found, included in the suborders Psocomorpha and Trogiomorpha, and listed in the families Amphipsocidae, Asiopsocidae, Caeciliusidae (infraorder Caeciliusetae); Lachesillidae and Pseudocaeciliidae (infraorder Homilopsocidea); Philotarsidae (infraorder Philotarsetaea) Hemipsocidae, Myopsocidae and Psocidae (infraorder Psocetae); Ptiloneuridae (infraorder Epipsocetae), and Lepidopsocidae (infraorder Atropetae). The taxa are presented alphabetically by suborders, infraorders, families, subfamilies, tribes and genera, followed by species (updated to the valid name), bibliographic citation, type category, description of the type condition with collection number and method of preservation. When necessary, comments are added.

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.