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Amazonian indigenous peoples are threatened by Brazil's Highway BR-319
No full textThe Amazon rainforest in Brazil is under the greatest human pressure in its history. This pressure is increasing under the current presidential administration, with proposed retraction of environmental and humanitarian protections. Among these pressures are new hydroelectric dams, railways and highways. An infrastructure project with especially far-reaching consequences is the reopening of Highway BR-319 right through the heart of the Amazon Forest. The highway connects Manaus in central Amazonia to Porto Velho in the “arc of deforestation” on the southern edge of the forest. The highway crosses one of the most conserved parts of the Amazon with a large concentration of Indigenous Lands (“Terras Indígenas”). Although Brazil is a signatory to ILO Convention 169, which establishes the need for consultation with indigenous peoples and traditional communities, consultations have so far not been held. Here we argue for the need for consultation of all indigenous peoples within 150 km of any part of the highway, comprising 63 Indigenous lands and five other areas containing indigenous communities that are directly threatened by the project. © 2020 Elsevier Lt
Pauximyia, a new genus of Odiniidae (Diptera: Acalyptratae) with description of two new species from Brazil
No full textA new genus of odiniids (Odiniidae: Traginopinae) is described from Brazil, Pauximyia gen. nov., with two species, P. oliveirai sp. nov. (type species) and P. vidali sp. nov. A modified key to the Neotropical genera of the family and for the two Pauximyia gen. nov. species is provided. Copyright © 2020 Magnolia Pres
Compositional and diversity comparisons between the palynological records of the Neogene (Solimões Formation) and Holocene sediments of Western Amazonia
No full textWestern Amazonia underwent dramatic changes in its landscape and environments during the Neogene, which led to its extant, hyperdiverse, tropical rainforest. Although the palynological fossil record has been the most useful proxy for understanding the history of the Amazonian biome, the floristic composition and diversity of the Neogene and the present Amazonian environments have never been thoroughly compared. In this work, we present preliminary comparisons of the pollen content of a Miocene core from the Solimões Formation in western Amazonia (Brazil) with the pollen content of Holocene sediments from flooded environments (várzeas and lake margins) near the Miocene site. We found a total of 463 pollen and spore types (Miocene, n = 284; Holocene, n = 231), only 52 of which were shared. The Holocene flooding environments displayed distinct palynological signals; both the Holocene and Miocene palynofloras have pollen primarily sourced from the local, flooded environments, with no significant differences in within-sample pollen diversity. The Holocene palynoflora was more heterogeneous in composition than the Miocene palynoflora, probably because the Miocene wetlands (the Pebas System) were highly homogeneous at a continental scale, far more than modern western Amazonia, thus implying that the spatial vegetation turnover was much lower than in modern ecosystems. © 2019, © 2019 AASP–The Palynological Society
O distanciamento geográfico influencia na diversidade de metabólitos secundários presentes em extratos de pele da rã Lithodytes lineatus (Anura: Leptodactylidae)?
No full textDermaptera (Insecta): A guide for hind wing stretching and hind wing preservation
No full textThe Dermaptera (earwigs) have the most complex folding system of the posterior wing among insects. We provide an illustrated guide describing how to stretch a dermapteran hind wing and mount it on slides in Hoyer’s medium. Copyright © 2020 Magnolia Press
The ecological importance of crocodylians: towards evidence-based justification for their conservation
No full textLarge-bodied predators are well represented among the world's threatened and endangered species. A significant body of literature shows that in terrestrial and marine ecosystems large predators can play important roles in ecosystem structure and functioning. By contrast, the ecological roles and importance of large predators within freshwater ecosystems are poorly understood, constraining the design and implementation of optimal conservation strategies for freshwater ecosystems. Conservationists and environmentalists frequently promulgate ecological roles that crocodylians are assumed to fulfil, but often with limited evidence supporting those claims. Here, we review the available information on the ecological importance of crocodylians, a widely distributed group of predominantly freshwater-dwelling, large-bodied predators. We synthesise information regarding the role of crocodylians under five criteria within the context of modern ecological concepts: as indicators of ecological health, as ecosystem engineers, apex predators, keystone species, and as contributors to nutrient and energy translocation across ecosystems. Some crocodylians play a role as indicators of ecosystem health, but this is largely untested across the order Crocodylia. By contrast, the role of crocodylian activities in ecosystem engineering is largely anecdotal, and information supporting their assumed role as apex predators is currently limited to only a few species. Whether crocodylians contribute significantly to nutrient and energy translocation through cross-ecosystem movements is unknown. We conclude that most claims regarding the importance of crocodylians as apex predators, keystone species, ecosystem engineers, and as contributors to nutrient and energy translocation across ecosystems are mostly unsubstantiated speculation, drawn from anecdotal observations made during research carried out primarily for other purposes. There is a paucity of biological research targeted directly at: understanding population dynamics; trophic interactions within their ecological communities; and quantifying the short- and long-term ecological impacts of crocodylian population declines, extirpations, and recoveries. Conservation practices ideally need evidence-based planning, decision making and justification. Addressing the knowledge gaps identified here will be important for achieving effective conservation of crocodylians. © 2020 Cambridge Philosophical Societ
Hydrodessus ducke sp. n. And new records of other species of the genus (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae, Bidessini)
No full textHydrodessus ducke sp. n. is described and illustrated based on specimens collected in Amazonas State (northern Brazil), bringing the total number of Hydrodessus species to 33. The new species can be distinguished from other species in the genus by body size and shape, coloration, and characteristics of the elytral carina, prosternal process, metaventral carina, and male genitalia. The male of H. latotibialis Miller, 2016 is described and illustrated for the first time from specimens collected in Pará State, northern Brazil. New records for 17 species from Brazil, French Guiana and Suriname are provided, and the newest existing key to species is updated to accommodate the new taxon. © 2020 Magnolia Press
Suphisellus grossoi sp. n., a new burrowing water beetle from South America, and notes on S. flavolineatus (Régimbart, 1889) and S. grammicus (Sharp, 1882) (Coleoptera: Noteridae)
No full textSuphisellus grossoi sp. n. is described from the Reserva Natural del Bosque de Mbaracayú, Canindeyú department, Paraguay. Diagnostic characters are described and illustrated in detail. New records are provided for S. flavolineatus (Régimbart, 1889) and S. grammicus (Sharp, 1882), which are also briefly diagnosed. Suphisellus melzeri Zimmermann, 1925 is proposed as a junior subjective synonym of S. flavolineatus (syn. n.), and lectotypes are designated for both taxa. © 2020 Magnolia Press