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SummaryThe semiarid Caatinga is the largest Seasonally Dry Tropical Forest and Woodland (SDTFW) in the Neotropics. Yet the vast majority of the Caatinga is unprotected, with severe chronic anthropogenic use, exotic species and global warming among its most immediate threats. Here, we contrast the current Caatinga protected areas (PAs) scenery with that of other SDTFWs in the Neotropics. We also analyse the growth process of the PAs in the Caatinga over time across Brazilian PA categories and jurisdictions. The percentage of Caatinga that is protected is average among the SDTFWs. Caatinga has more state than federal PAs; however, the size of the PAs is greater under a federal jurisdiction. Nonetheless, in both jurisdictions, Environmental Protected Areas, one of the least restrictive categories, are more representative in terms of total area, corresponding to nearly 80% of the Caatinga PA system. Our results are relevant for international conservation goals because they depict the current PA scenery and clarify the challenges for achieving the actual preservation of the unique Caatinga biome.

Made available in DSpace on 2019-10-06T17:08:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2019-04-01 Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) Instituto de Pesquisa Translacional em Saúde e Ambiente na Região Amazônica Changes in Earth's climatic conditions may affect the geographic distributions of species causing variations in diversity patterns through space and time. Projections of species distributions over time can measure how future climate scenarios will affect communities. We investigated how climate changes scenarios will influence primate biodiversity patterns in the Atlantic Forest. Specifically: (i) where are the largest changes in species richness expected? (ii) the spatial pattern of beta diversity will undergo homogenisation or heterogenisation? and (iii) where will occur the major changes in temporal beta diversity? We generated current and future species distribution models for Brazilian Atlantic Forest primates. We analysed the changes in the spatio-temporal patterns of alpha and beta diversity. Current high richness patterns will be maintained in future scenarios, with richer areas concentrated in the coastal zones. Regions closer to Cerrado will face a reduction in primate richness. Changes in richness will occur predominantly due to species loss. Communities will be more spatially heterogeneous in the future, with increased beta diversity. The heterogenisation may be driven by the reduction of species geographic distributions. The highest temporal changes will occur mainly in the midwest and the central region of the biome. Climate changes will cause primates diversity changes in both space and time. These changes will not be homogeneous through the Atlantic Forest. Our study is informative at a large spatial scale, providing an outlook on the impact of climate change on primate diversity, and indicating places of primates’ biodiversity maintenance, loss or gain due to climate change. Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia Centro de Biociências Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) Laboratório de Ecologia Espacial e Conservação (LEEC) Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Departamento de Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, PO Box 68020 Departamento de Ecologia Centro de Biociências Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) Laboratório de Ecologia Espacial e Conservação (LEEC) Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP)

Made available in DSpace on 2019-10-06T17:14:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2019-10-01 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) The human-induced introductions of marmoset species (Callithrix genus) threaten the native species persistence within Brazilian biodiversity hotspots. Invasive marmosets can hybridize with native congeners reducing the genetic integrity on native populations. However, no study quantified the spatial extent of these invasions and which species can be impacted by a hybridization process. Here, we predicted the range expansion and hence the potential geographic overlap between Callithrix species, particularly in Atlantic Forest and Cerrado, to discuss management strategies. We hypothesized that marmosets endemic to the Atlantic Forest are more threatened by invasive congeners than other marmosets. We generated species distribution models for six Callithrix species using four algorithms, six environmental layers and 445 georeferenced localities extracted from literature published since 2000. Suitability maps for each species were binarized using a 20-percentile threshold and overlapped to predict invasion and quantify hybridization potential risks. All Callithrix species had potential to expand their range within the Atlantic Forest although suitable habitats for C. flaviceps and C. kuhlii were more limited. C. jacchus and C. penicillata have already expanded their range to different biomes and our model shows that they can spread even further. The potential hybridization zones were identified within the distribution range of all species, and more markedly within Atlantic Forest species ranges. For assuring the ecosystem equilibriums, we urge to prevent the biological invasions and to control the human-induced Callithrix introductions and expansions within Neotropical hotspots. Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Laboratório de Ecologia Espacial e Conservação Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Laboratório de Análise e Síntese em Biodiversidade Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF) Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Programa de Pós Graduação em Ecologia Instituto Internacional para Sustentabilidade Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas Campus de Rio Claro Ecosystem Dynamics Observatory Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) Centro de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Laboratório de Primatologia Universidade Federal de Goiás ICB Laboratório de Genética & Biodiversidade Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso Departamento de Botânica e Ecologia Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Laboratório de Ecologia Espacial e Conservação Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Laboratório de Análise e Síntese em Biodiversidade Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas Campus de Rio Claro Ecosystem Dynamics Observatory Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) Instituto de Biociências Laboratório de Primatologia CNPq: # 312045/2013-1 CAPES: #2017/09676-8 FAPESP: # 2012/50260-6 CNPq: #310144/2015-9 FAPESP: #2013/50421-2 CNPq: #312292/2016-3

Made available in DSpace on 2019-10-06T16:55:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2019-01-01 Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) Primates play an important role in ecosystem functioning and offer critical insights into human evolution, biology, behavior, and emerging infectious diseases. There are 26 primate species in the Atlantic Forests of South America, 19 of them endemic. We compiled a dataset of 5,472 georeferenced locations of 26 native and 1 introduced primate species, as hybrids in the genera Callithrix and Alouatta. The dataset includes 700 primate communities, 8,121 single species occurrences and 714 estimates of primate population sizes, covering most natural forest types of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina and some other biomes. On average, primate communities of the Atlantic Forest harbor 2 ± 1 species (range = 1–6). However, about 40% of primate communities contain only one species. Alouatta guariba (N = 2,188 records) and Sapajus nigritus (N = 1,127) were the species with the most records. Callicebus barbarabrownae (N = 35), Leontopithecus caissara (N = 38), and Sapajus libidinosus (N = 41) were the species with the least records. Recorded primate densities varied from 0.004 individuals/km 2 (Alouatta guariba at Fragmento do Bugre, Paraná, Brazil) to 400 individuals/km 2 (Alouatta caraya in Santiago, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil). Our dataset reflects disparity between the numerous primate census conducted in the Atlantic Forest, in contrast to the scarcity of estimates of population sizes and densities. With these data, researchers can develop different macroecological and regional level studies, focusing on communities, populations, species co-occurrence and distribution patterns. Moreover, the data can also be used to assess the consequences of fragmentation, defaunation, and disease outbreaks on different ecological processes, such as trophic cascades, species invasion or extinction, and community dynamics. There are no copyright restrictions. Please cite this Data Paper when the data are used in publications. We also request that researchers and teachers inform us of how they are using the data. Departamento de Zoologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), CP. 199 Instituto de Biología Subtropical (IBS) Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), sede Iguazú, Bertoni 85 Asociación Civil Centro de Investigaciones del Bosque Atlántico (CeIBA) Secretaria da Saúde do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde Divisão de Vigilância Ambiental em Saúde. R., Domingos Crescêncio 132 Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Escola de Ciências, Av. Ipiranga, 6681 Pd. 12A Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), CP. 199 Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro Programa de Pós-Graduação em Botânica Escola Nacional de Botânica Tropical Centro Brasileiro de Estudos em Ecologia de Estradas (CBEE) Universidade Federal de Lavras Mammal Ecology and Behavior Lab Department of Animal Biology Institute of Biology University of Campinas (UNICAMP) Núcleo em Ecologia e Desenvolvimento Socioambiental de Macaé (NUPEM) Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Campus Macaé, Av. São José do Barreto 764 Núcleo de Ciências Ambientais (NCA) Laboratório de Mapeamento e Análise da Paisagem (LabMAP) Universidade de Mogi das Cruzes (UMC) Núcleo de Estudos da Biodiversidade da Amazônia Meridional Instituto de Ciências Naturais Humanas e Sociais Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso (UFMT), Av. Alexandre Ferronato, 1200 Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação Curso de Ciências Biológicas Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná (PUCPR), Rua Imaculada Conceição 1155 Casa da Floresta Ambiental SS, Av. Joaninha Morganti, Monte Alegre 289 Laboratório de Ecologia Aplicada à Conservação Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz (UESC), Km. 16 Rodovia Jorge Amado Caipora Cooperativa para a Conservação da Natureza Departamento de Biologia Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Av. Bandeirantes 3900 Universidade do Estado de Minas Gerais (UEMG), Praça dos Estudantes, 23 Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA), Av. André Araújo, 2936 Petrópolis Laboratório de Evolução e Genética Animal Universidade Federal do Amazonas (UFAM), Av. Gal. Rodrigo Otávio J. Ramos 3000, Setor Sul, ICB 02, Sala 09 Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação de Mamíferos Universidade Federal de Lavras Facultad de Ciencias Forestales Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM) Programa de Pós-Graduação em Genética Biodiversidade e Conservação Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia (UESB), Av. José Moreira Sobrinho, s/n Centro Nacional de Pesquisa e Conservação de Aves Silvestres (CEMAVE/ICMBIO), BR 230 - KM 10, Floresta Nacional da Restinga de Cabedelo Departamento de Zoologia Programa de Pós Graduação em Zoologia Instituto de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) Instituto Itapoty: Desenvolvimento Humano e Conservação Ambiental, 18.690-000 Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde Universidade Federal de São Carlos(UFSCar) Departamento de Ciências Biológicas Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Biológicas (Biologia Animal) Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo (UFES), Av. Fernando Ferrari, 514, Goiabeiras Departamento de Ecologia e Zoologia Centro de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio), EQSW 103/104, Bloco C, Complexo Administrativo Departamento de Recursos Ambientais (DPRA) Divisão de Meio Ambiente (DVMA) Instituto de Tecnologia para o Desenvolvimento - Institutos Lactec, Rodovia BR-116, km 98, 8813, Jardim das Américas Laboratório de Ecologia Universidade Federal do Amapá (Unifap), Rod. JK, Km 2, Jardim Marco Zero Departamento de Ciências Agrárias Universidade Federal de São João del Rei (UFSJ), Campus Sete Lagoas, Rod. MG-424, km 48 Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del Noroeste Argentino (IBIGEO) CONICET Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação de Biodiversidade Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia de Ecossistemas Universidade Vila Velha (UVV) R. Comissário José Dantas de Melo, 21, Boa Vista Centre for Virology Research Ribeirão Preto Medical School University of São Paulo (USP) Centro Universitário Norte do Espírito Santo (CEUNES) Programa de Pós-graduação em Biodiversidade Tropical Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo (UFES), Rodovia BR 101 Norte, km 60, Litorâneo R. Esmeralda, 43, CP142 Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas (IPÊ), CP 47 Centro de Biociências Departamento de Ecologia Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) Instituto de Pesquisa e Conservação de Tamanduás no Brasil Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biodiversidade e Uso de Recursos Naturais (PPG-BURN) Campus Universitário Darcy Ribeiro Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros (UNIMONTES), CP. 126, Vila Mauricéia Departamento de Engenharia Florestal Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Av. Purdue, s/n°, Campus Universitário, Edif. Reinaldo de Jesus Araújo Unidade Acadêmica Especial (UAE) de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal de Goiás (UFG) Regional Jataí, Br364, km 192, n. 3800, Parque Industrial Parque Nacional Iguazú Administracion de Parques Nacionales de Argentina Departamento de Zoologia Setor de Ciências Biológicas Universidade Federal do Paraná (UFPR), CP 19020, Jardim das Américas Laboratório de Biodiversidade de Mamíferos do Sul do Brasil Departamento de Biologia Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste do Paraná, Campus CEDETEG, R. Simeão Camargo Varela de Sá, 03, Vila Carli Department of Biological Sciences University of Alberta, 116 St. and 85 Ave Fundación de História Natural Félix de Azara Departamento de Ciências Faculdade de Formação de es Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) Bicho do Mato Instituto de Pesquisa Departamento de Biologia Geral Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG), Av. Antonio Carlos Centre for Ecology Evolution and Conservation School of Environmental Sciences University of East Anglia Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA) Núcleo de Pesquisas de Roraima (NPRR), 69.301-150 Instituto Florestal, Rua do Horto 931 Amazonian Mammals Research Group (AMRG) Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia (INPA) Laboratório de Ecologia Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia, Av. José Moreira Sobrinho, s/n Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia e Evolução Universidade Federal de Goiás Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ecologia (PNPD/CAPES) Universidade Estadual de Campinas Programa de Pós Graduação em Ciências Ambientais Universidade Estadual de Mato Grosso (UNEMAT), Av. Santos Dumont, s/n, Cidade Universitária (Bloco II) Instituto de Biociências Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS) Fundación Para La Tierra Centro IDEAL School of Biological Sciences University of Aberdeen Instituto SerraDiCal de Pesquisa e Conservação R. José Hemetério de Andrade, 570, 30.493-180 Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi Programa de Pós-graduação em Zoologia Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA) Faculdade Guairacá, R. XV de novembro, 7050, Centro, 85.010-000 Centro Nacional de Pesquisa e Conservação de Primatas Brasileiros (CPB), Praça Antenor Navarro, 5, Varadouro Centro Histórico Departamento de Ecologia Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Av. Marechal Rondon, s/n. Rosa Elze RUMO S.A Licenciamento Ambiental, Rua Emílio Bertolini, 100, Vila Oficinas Departamento de Zoologia Universidade Federal de Pernambuco Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências Biológicas João Pessoa Universidade Federal da Paraíba Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais Universidade Federal de Alfenas Institut universitaire et technologique d'Avignon Université d'Avignon et des Pays du Vaucluse, 337 chemin des Meinajaries, BP 1207 Departamento de Zoologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), CP. 199 Departamento de Ecologia Instituto de Biociências Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), CP. 199

Given the importance of fish movement to the dynamics and maintenance of stream dwelling fish communities from the Atlantic Forest, we analysed patterns of fish movement in a coastal stream from Southeastern Brazil, using mark-recapture technique. Displacement distance of each species were presented and discussed considering seasonal (rainy and dry) and body size patterns. We marked 10 species along the stream and recaptured 440 (34.6%) of the 1,270 marked fishes. The species with significant number of upstream moving individuals were Astyanax janeiroensis, Characidium interruptum, Astyanax hastatus, Parotocinclus maculicauda and Awaous tajasica. Only Pimelodella lateristriga presented significant differences between resident and moving individuals. Characidium interruptum and A. tajasica demonstrated greater downstream and upstream movement, respectively, moving up to 2,100 m. Even after controlling for species identity we found no significant correlation between fish length and individual displacement distance. Fishes moved longer distances during the rainy season, in accordance to the breeding season. Patterns of fish movement were in agreement to life-history traits of many of the studied species and can be reflecting specific behaviour and morphologies. RESUMO Considerando-se a importância do movimento de peixes para a dinâmica e manutenção das comunidades de peixes de riachos da mata Atlântica, nós analisamos os padrões de movimento de peixes de um riacho costeiro do sudeste do Brasil, usando a técnica da marcação e recaptura. Avaliamos a distância do deslocamento de cada espécie e também se os padrões de movimento apresentavam alguma relação com a estação do ano (chuva e seca) e o tamanho do corpo. Marcamos 10 espécies ao longo do riacho e recapturamos 400 (34.6%) dos 1.270 peixes marcados. As espécies com número significativo de indivíduos se movendo para cima foram Astyanax janeiroensis, Characidium interruptum, Astyanax hastatus, Parotocinclus maculicauda e Awaous tajasica. Apenas Pimelodella lateristriga apresentou diferenças significativas entre os indivíduos residentes e em movimento. Characidium interruptum e A. tajasica foram as espécies com maior movimento tanto para baixo como para cima, respectivamente, se movendo até mais de 2.100 m. Mesmo após controlar a identidade das espécies, não registramos correlação significativa entre o comprimento e a distância individual do deslocamento. Registramos maiores densidades de peixes se movendo para montante durante a época de chuvas, em coincidência com a estação reprodutiva. Os padrões de movimento registrados estão de acordo com os componentes da história de vida de várias das espécies estudadas, e podem estar refletindo componentes morfológicos e comportamentais específicos.

Interaction networks (IN) have been used in ecology to model different kinds of interactions in ecological communities. Historically there are two basic ways to construct an IN: binary networks (BN) that represent unweighted links among species in the web, and weighted networks (WN) that weight each interaction among species by its relative or absolute frequency in the web. We call binary reduction the transition from WN to BN which obviously entails loss of information. We performed an analysis with 69 WN on which we worked the binary reduction. For both WN and BN we computed: the coefficient of variation, skewness, kurtosis, Shannon entropy and the Gini coefficient on the population statistics. We also computed the dependence asymmetry, the pairwise Jaccard distance and two different measures of nestedness, (W)NODF and τ-temperature, for the WN and BN. From correlations between the values for WN and BN we concluded that, for most of the indices, the loss of information due to the binary reduction is not significant. Using a statistical evaluation, for most indices, BN give similar results to their corresponding WN.

Developmental disturbances in organisms may lead to subtle deviations from symmetry. Fluctuating asymmetry is the most commonly used measure of developmental instability, and it may be related to fitness. Knowledge of developmental instability in reptiles is incipient and with important gaps since there are few studies on asymmetry on this group. In this review, we quantified and analysed trends of reptiles’ asymmetry in the literature. We used keyword searches at Web of Science and Scopus to identify the available papers on asymmetry in reptiles published until 2012. After screening, 60 papers encompassing asymmetry investigations in reptiles were identified. The number of publications increased in the last two decades and lizards were the most studied group. There were no studies from South America and very few from Africa. Most studies involved the use of only meristic traits for asymmetry analysis and found evidence for fluctuating asymmetry. Some studies did not support the relationship between fluctuating asymmetry as the result of developmental instability and environmental and genetic stress, but most findings indicated that (a) females tend to select males with symmetrical sexual traits; (b) thermal instability during egg development produce individuals with a higher incidence of asymmetry; (c) occurrence of injuries is more frequent in asymmetrical individuals for a particular side; (d) there is a negative correlation between asymmetry and locomotor performance. A summary of the available information and a brief discussion about some asymmetric relationships are presented.

SUMMARYHuman population is a predictor of mammal extinction risk, an indicator of conservation conflict and habitat conversion, and is thus associated with the threats to primate species. Priority areas that represent endemic primates in Atlantic Forest were identified where all counties had the same cost or where the costs of counties varied according to human population size (HPS); networks for both approaches consisted of nine counties. In the networks without human constraint, the average HPS was not higher than expected by chance alone. In the approach with human population constraint, HPS was not lower than the average of the null distribution. Although it is possible to minimize human conservation conflict, available occurrence data of endemic primates seems to be related to highly populated areas. The sum of HPS is greater in counties with some occurrence data than expected by chance. Conservation conflicts in the Atlantic Forest will continue to exist once this is the Brazilian most populous region, and data availability is directly related to counties' HPS. Field surveys are necessary to minimize Wallacean shortfall and efforts must be made to maintain the few natural areas remaining in this biome to promote the conservation of endemic primates and other biodiversity elements.

Brazilian Atlantic Forest is recognized as a hottest hotspot of biodiversity, and plant endemism is a key criterion used to this definition. In this biome, although geographic range of most plant species is unknown, it is possible to define limits of vegetation types. Here we performed a reserve selection analysis using vegetation types for Brazilian Atlantic Forest, more specifically in Rio de Janeiro State. The area of 19 vegetation types was calculated in each of the 5 km × 5 cells km superimposed to the Rio de Janeiro State. The representation targets established in the reserve selection procedure was 30% of the total area for more common vegetation types, and a higher target was established for rare vegetation types. The final network that represents all the targets for vegetation types with the smaller possible number of cells contains 351 cells. Many cells selected are coincident with current strictly protected areas, but this study shows the urgency to increase the number of protected areas mainly in the North and Northeast regions of Rio de Janeiro State. Twenty three cells are coincident with priority areas indicated to be created as strictly use reserves by a government agency. However, there are several important cells selected in our analysis that are not covered by the actual strictly reserves system. Four vegetation types are not represented in the current strict use reserve system. Further analyses based on vegetation could be blended with scattered data of species geographic distribution to obtain more comprehensive results and strategies.

revista vol 13 no 3.indd Normal 0 21 false false false PT-BR X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Ha consenso entre os cientistas de que a ha atualmente uma “crise da biodiversidade”, resultado da constante e intensa perda de habitat natural causada pela expansao da ocupacao. Como a biologia da conservacao tem sido muitas vezes reconhecida como uma ciencia da crise, ela deve fornecer informacoes capazes de mediar, de forma mais cientifica possivel, as tomadas de decisao que sao necessarias. Dentre estas, uma das mais importantes e indicar regioes prioritarias para a conservacao, ja que por motivos obvios nao e possivel preservar todos os ecossistemas por inteiro. Nesse contexto, recentemente sugeriu-se que a aplicacao de principios, teorias e analises provenientes da biogeografia e da macroecologia seriam importantes na Biologia da Conservacao, formalizando uma abordagem que tem sido denominada “Biogeografia da Conservacao”. Assim, o objetivo deste artigo e discutir e revisar esses componentes da biogeografia da conservacao, utilizando uma abordagem macroecologica para desenvolver e aplicar metodos de planejamento sistematico em conservacao, utilizando o bioma Cerrado como um modelo de estudo. Foram discutidos inicialmente os padroes de riqueza e diversidade beta e, em um segundo momento, como esses padroes podem ser correlacionados a ocupacao humana do Bioma. Essa relacao e fundamental para subsidiar a aplicacao de modelos de planejamento sistematico de conservacao em escala regional (analises de insubstituibilidade, complementaridade e de lacunas). E preciso considerar tambem que ha serias falhas de conhecimento sobre os padroes de biodiversidade na regiao e que a escolha de grupos indicadores pode ser importante para minimizar problemas gerados pela falta de conhecimento. Assim, essa abordagem e interessante em um cenario de grandes incertezas (ausencia de dados detalhados) e de rapida transformacao da paisagem, possibilitando a otimizacao de estudos em grandes escalas e depois transferir os resultados para escalas espaciais mais locais e realmente relevantes para a conservacao. Nessas regioes, podem ser realizados, em um segundo momento, estudos mais detalhados a fim de avaliar padroes de viabilidade populacional, fragmentacao de habitat e regioes potenciais de manutencao da diversidade genetica.

A selecao de reservas e uma area da biologia da conservacao atualmente merecedora de muita atencao e pesquisa, e e uma ferramenta poderosa para preservar a biodiversidade de especies. Nesse estudo foi feita uma cienciometria dos trabalhos que fizeram selecao de reservas na America do Sul, e foram encontrados apenas 24 artigos, a partir do ano 2000. OBrasil foi destacadamente o pais onde houve o maior numero de estudos (12 artigos), e, dentro desse pais, o bioma Cerrado (8 artigos). Os dados mais utilizados foram relativos ao grupo das aves, e nenhum trabalho foi realizado usando informacoes sobre os invertebrados. Os objetivos de cada estudo foram relatados numa descricao sucinta. Varios foram os objetivos dos trabalhos: apenas selecionar areas prioritarias, avaliar a influencia do nivel de resolucao taxonomica na selecao de reservas, verificar a eficiencia de reservas existentes, comparar a performance de dois programas ( softwares ) diferentes, descrever programa, verificar a performance de grupos indicadores, selecionar reservas minimizando custos, usar distribuicoes modeladas de especies existentes e hipoteticas, ver influencia das bordas das distribuicoes nas solucoes de reservas. Foi feita uma revisao sobre os principais conceitos abordados em selecao de reservas. A pesquisa em selecao de reservas na America do Sul ainda e escassa e muito recente. O numero de trabalhos deve aumentar nos proximos anos acompanhando a tendencia mundial dessa area de pesquisa.

conservaTion Biology in Brazil: a review of Ten years Conservation biology is a multidisciplinary field with several specialized journals. The present paper presents a list of all dealing with conservation biology in Brazil from eight different journals published in a period of ten years (1998-2007). The list includes the number of articles per periodical, the affiliation of each author, the most frequently discussed biological groups, biomes, and themes. A total of 386 articles were found, and 71% of which published in three journals: Conservation Biology, Biological Conservation, and Biodiversity and Conservation. A steep increase in the number of articles in the field over the last five years was perceived, mostly focusing on biological issues rather than socio-economical and political issues. The authors of 268 articles currently reside and work in Brazil. Most discussed biological groups were plants (105 articles), mammals (100 articles), and birds (75 articles), and the most dicussed biomes were the Atlantic and Amazon forests.

This study is an exercise to check the efficiency of the existing reserve system, and to show how systematic conservation planning—using information available and the complementarity concept—can improve the basis for decisions and minimize costs. We verified the performance, in number of cells and primate species representation, of the existing Atlantic Forest (Brazil) reserve network with a quarter-degree resolution grid, with 1,884 cells. We used occurrence data of 20 endemic primate species, and the maps of 237 existing reserves. Reserve networks were selected to represent primate species first considering no pre-existing reserves in Atlantic Forest, and then, considering the existing reserve system, taking into account the minimum area for viable population of the larger species (Northern muriqui Brachyteles hypoxanthus). Reserve selection was carried out using the complementarity concept implemented by a simulated annealing algorithm. Primate species representation (at least one occurrence in the network) could be achieved with 8% of the existing reserve system (nine cells in relation to the 120 in the existing reserve system). We found that today’s reserve system represents 89% of endemic primate species, excluding the species Coimbra Filho’s titi monkey (Callicebus coimbrai) and Marcgraf’s capuchin (Cebus flavius). The networks selected without considering existing reserves contained nine cells. The networks selected considering existing reserves (120 cells), had two new cells necessary to represent all the primates. This does not mean that a viable alternative is to start from zero (i.e., nonexistent reserves). Identifying critical supplementary areas using biodiversity information to fill the gaps and then starting “conservation in practice” in these areas should be priorities.

Uma das maiores ameaças à diversidade biológica é a perda de hábitat, de modo que uma das alternativas para proteção da biodiversidade é a seleção de reservas pela utilização de procedimentos de otimização para estabelecer áreas prioritárias para conservação. Neste estudo, um algoritmo simulated annealing foi usado para verificar como a periferia das distribuições das espécies influencia na seleção de áreas no Cerrado para conservação de 131 espécies de anfíbios anuros. Dois conjuntos de dados foram analisados, um contendo a distribuição original das espécies e outro excluindo a periferia das distribuições. As redes ótimas encontradas a partir das distribuições originais contiveram 17 quadrículas enquanto aquelas encontradas a partir das distribuições restritas foram maiores, com 22 células. As células com alto grau de insubstituibilidade foram mantidas em todas as redes e novas regiões de células substituíveis, localizadas na margem do bioma, surgiram quando apenas as distribuições reduzidas foram usadas.

A criação de unidades de conservação tem sido uma importante ferramenta para minimizar a perda de biodiversidade. Entretanto, a alocação destas unidades deve ser otimizada de forma que possam preservar o maior número de espécies sob uma série de restrições sócio-econômicas, as quais incluem o efeito da malha rodoviária sobre a biodiversidade. Utilizando um conjunto de dados sobre a distribuição de 131 espécies de anfíbios Anuros no bioma Cerrado, distribuídos em 181 células (1º de latitude e 1º de longitude), um processo de otimização foi feito através do algoritmo “simulated annealing”, disponível no programa SITES 1.0. O presente estudo apresenta duas redes de unidades de conservação para o Cerrado, uma baseada no conceito de complementaridade e a outra na distribuição de rodovias. Elas indicam, respectivamente, as localidades mais importantes para a criação de unidades de conservação e os locais onde deve existir uma unidade de conservação para que todas as espécies de anuros com ocorrência neste Bioma sejam preservadas, levando em consideração a extensão rodoviária. Estes resultados sugerem a utilização de ambas as redes para que haja sinergismo entre projetos de conservação e desenvolvimento humano, medido através da malha viária.Building conservation units has been an important tool to minimize the loss of biodiversity. However, the allocation of these units need to be optimized to preserve the greatest number of species, under a series of socioeconomics restrictions that include the road network effect on biodiversity. An optimization process was made by using the “simulated annealing” algorithm, available on program SITES 1.0, to model a set of data on the distribution of 131 species of anuran amphibians occuring in Cerrado, distributed in 181 cells with 1º of spatial resolution. This study shows a couple of conservation units networks in Brazilian Cerrado, one of them based on the concept of complementarity and another on the distribution of roads. This paper points out the most important sites to create conservation units, attempting to preserve anuran amphibians from Cerrado and the places that should protect all anuran species spread on this biome, along the roads’ length. The results suggest that both networks should be used to combine conservation plans and human development, evaluated by means of road network.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi o de entender a importância e avaliar as tendências da ecologia de populações ao longo do tempo, relacionando-as com as principais regiões geopolíticas mundiais através de uma análise cienciométrica. Para isso foi realizado um levantamento bibliográfico no sítio do “Thomson ISI”, disponível entre 1942 a 2005, utilizando a palavra-chave “population ecology”. Constatou-se crescimento exponencial nítido do número de publicações em ecologia de populações, muitos dos quais desenvolvidos nos EUA e Europa, publicados em periódicos de circulação internacional e apresentando elevado índice de citação. Em uma análise de componentes principais (PCA) evidenciaram-se diferentes tendências temporais nas pesquisas em ecologia de populações, indicando, para as décadas mais recentes (1990 e 2000, até 2005), uma diversidade maior de organismos estudados e relacionados a outros campos da ecologia (biologia da conservação e ecologia de comunidades) e das ciências naturais (biogeografia, genética, evolução, epidemiologia e demografia). Esses resultados contradizem a estagnação científica da ecologia, ponto muito criticado, e indicam progresso da ecologia de populações como ciência, buscando novos horizontes de atuação e conseqüentemente novos paradigmas, leis, teorias e princípios que possam ser úteis à sociedade em geral.The aim of this paper was to carry out a scientometric analysis in population ecology. We seek to understand the importance and trends of that population ecology field throughout years, connecting them with the principal geopolitical regions around the world. To that end, a bibliographic survey at Thomson ISI web site was carried out, at the period between 1942 and 2005, using the key-word “population ecology”. Data showed an exponential growth in the number of publications on population ecology, most of them developed in USA and Europe and publicized in ecological journals of wide international distribution and high Citation Index. A Principal Component Analysis (PCA) showed distinct temporal trends in population ecology researche, leading to more recent decades (1990 and 2000, until 2005) a great variety of organisms studied and related with other ecology fields (conservation biology and community ecology) and natural sciences (biogeography, genetics, evolution, epidemiology and demography). These results contrast with the scientific stagnation widely criticized in ecology and indicate the progress of the population ecology as science, persuing new horizons as well as new paradigms, laws, theories and principles that might be useful to the society.

The choice of surrogates of biodiversity is an important aspect in conservation biology. The quantification of the coincidence in the spatial patterns of species richness and rarity between different groups and the vulnerability of groups are different approaches frequently considered to accomplish this task. However, a more appropriate approach is to verify the efficiency of priority networks selected using information from one group of organisms to capture the biodiversity of other groups. Using a deconstructive approach, the main purposes of this study were to evaluate the performance of some orders and families of birds in the Cerrado biome (a savanna-like biome) as surrogates of other bird groups, in a pairwise analysis, and to investigate the characteristics of these groups that predict the efficiency in representation of other groups. We used biogeographical data on bird orders or families with more than 10 species that occur in the Brazilian Cerrado. The best surrogate group was the Thamnophilidae. Moreover, this group is not the most specious, favouring further survey efforts that are necessary to verify the conservation value of areas at suitable scales. The majority of the species from this family are dependent on forest habitats, one of the characteristics that most influenced representativeness level, probably due to the spatial distribution of these habitats throughout the Brazilian Cerrado. Beta diversity patterns of the different groups also affected representativeness, and our analyses showed that the networks selected by a surrogate group will be more effective in the representation of other groups of species if their patterns of beta diversity (not richness) are correlated.

São propostas três causas principais para sincronia de populações: fatores exógenos, dispersão e interações interespecíficas. O presente trabalho teve por objetivo testar a influência dos fatores exógenos na sincronia de populações de Sitophilus zeamais (Mots.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), isoladas espacialmente (sem dispersão), em microcosmos com diferentes condições ambientais (umidade e temperatura). Doze populações com 20 indivíduos cada, foram divididas, aleatoriamente, em dois tratamentos: com lâmpada e sem lâmpada. O censo dos indivíduos adultos foi realizado semanalmente, durante sete meses. A tendência de crescimento da abundância ao longo do tempo foi eliminada através do ajuste de modelos autoregressivos. A sincronia entre as populações, detectada por meio dos coeficientes de correlação de Pearson e Spearman, foi maior dentro do que entre tratamentos, embora as populações mantidas sem lâmpada tenham sido mais sincrônicas do que as populações com lâmpada. Além de evidenciarem a influência do ambiente nas flutuações populacionais, esses resultados sugerem que o metabolismo e as interações intraespecíficas são fatores importantes na dinâmica populacional. Organismos em ambientes desfavoráveis podem apresentar taxas metabólicas anormais, contribuindo pouco para o crescimento populacional. Logo, populações pequenas sofrem maior influência da estocasticidade demográfica, reduzindo a probabilidade de sincronia entre elas. Nos ambientes mais favoráveis, espera-se que os indivíduos desenvolvam funções metabólicas normais, levando as populações a apresentar taxas de crescimento mais elevadas. Nesse caso, a estocasticidade demográfica tem menor influência, levando as populações sem lâmpada a flutuar de forma mais sincrônica. Three main causes to population synchrony are proposed: exogenous factors, dispersal and inter-specific interactions. This paper had as main goal to test the influence of the exogenous factors in the synchrony in spatially isolated (i.e., no dispersal) populations of Sitophilus zeamais (Mots.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), in microcosms with different environmental conditions (humidity, temperature and light intensity). Twelve populations of 20 individuals each, were randomly assigned between two treatment conditions: with or without light. Population size and environmental factors (temperature and relative humidity) were weekly assessed for seven months. Temporal trend in populations increase was eliminated adjusting autoregressive models. Population synchrony, detected by means of Pearson’s and Spearman’s correlation coefficients, was higher within than between treatments, although the populations kept without lamp were more synchronized than populations with lamp. Besides demonstrating the influence of environment on population fluctuations, these results suggest that metabolism and intra-specific interactions are important factors in population dynamic. Organisms exposed to unsuitable environmental conditions may have abnormal metabolic rates, which negatively influences the population grow. Thus, small populations are more likely to suffer from demographic stochasticity, decreasing the probability of the synchrony among populations. On the other hand, in more suitable environments, individuals are expected to have normal metabolic functions, and so, to achieve higher rates of population grow. In this case, the demographic stochasticity has smaller influence, leading populations without lamp to fluctuate synchronously.

The rapid destruction of habitat in biodiversity hotspots calls for the urgent formulation of conservation strategies. In this study, macro-scale biogeographical data for 33 species of Psittacines were used to select networks of priority areas, using an algorithm based on the complementarity concept. Human population size was also incorporated as a cost in the selection process, and the two networks of priority areas (with and without cost) were compared. In the comparison the number of cells selected to represent all species did not differ, but a rearrangement occurred between them. Two of the four cells were located in the same place, and the others changed location but stayed aggregated within the same regions. The study shows that it is possible to minimize human population size and represent all species in a network of priority areas.

We evaluated how different variables reflecting human occupation in Brazilian Cerrado are correlated with diversity patterns and which one could be the best indicator of conflicts between biodiversity conservation and socio-economic development across the region. A spatially corrected multiple regression of anuran species richness against axes derived from a principal component analysis summarizing 23 socioeconomic variables was performed. Species richness was positively correlated with the first two principal components, expressing patterns of modern agriculture and cattle ranching, respectively, but not with the third component, expressing human population size. Thus, human population density is not the best indicator of conflicts and, consequently, other socio-economic variables should be considered to minimize costs when establishing regional programs for conservation planning in Brazilian Cerrado.

Knowledge about biodiversity remains inadequate because most species living on Earth were still not formally described (the Linnean shortfall) and because geographical distributions of most species are poorly understood and usually contain many gaps (the Wallacean shortfall). In this paper, we developed models to infer the size and placement of geographical ranges of hypothetical non-described species, based on the range size frequency distribution of anurans recently described in the Cerrado Biome, on the level of knowledge (number of inventories) and on surrogates for habitat suitability. The rationale for these models is as follow: (1) the range size frequency distribution of these species should be similar to the range-restricted species, which have been most recently described in the Cerrado Biome; (2) the probability of new discoveries will increase in areas with low biodiversity knowledge, mainly in suitable areas, and (3) assuming range continuity, new species should occupy adjacent cells only if the level of knowledge is low enough to allow the existence of undiscovered species. We ran a model based on the number of inventories only, and two models combining effects of number of inventories and two different estimates of habitat suitability, for a total of 100 replicates each. Finally, we performed a complementary analysis using simulated annealing to solve the set-covering problem for each simulation (i.e. finding the smallest number of cells so that all species are represented at least once), using extents of occurrence of 160 species (131 real anuran species plus 29 new simulated species). The revised reserve system that included information about unknown or poorly sampled taxa significantly shifted northwards, when compared to a system based on currently known species. This main result can be explained by the paucity of biodiversity data in this part of the biome, associated with its relatively high habitat suitability. As a precautionary measure, weighted by the inferred distribution data, the prioritization of a system of reserves in the north part of the biome appears to be defensible.

Broad-scale correlations between species richness and human population suggest that processes driving species richness, mainly related to high ecological productivity, may also drive human populations. However, it is still under debate if this coincidence implies conflicts between biodiversity conservation and human development. In this paper, we analyzed the relationships among human population size, species richness and irreplaceability in Brazilian Cerrado. We analyzed a dataset with 131 species of anurans distributed in 181 cells with 1° of spatial resolution covering the biome. We found a positive correlation between human population size and anuran species richness (r = 0.46; P = 0.033 with 19.5 geographically effective degrees of freedom, v*), but the irreplaceability of each cell was poorly correlated with human population size (r = 0.075; P = 0.323; v* = 173.9). The 17 cells in the 97 optimal reserve networks contained a total human population ranging from 2942,195 to 4319,845 people, representing on average 11.8% of the human population in the entire Cerrado grid. The comparison of these observed values with 10,000 values from randomly generated networks suggests a relatively high flexibility in optimal complementarity sets for reserve selection. Our results indicated that correlation between richness and human population does not necessarily result in conflicts, given the opportunities for conciliating conservation and development. However, the analyses performed here are initial explorations within the framework of conservation biogeography, so more detailed studies are necessary to establish conservation planning at regional and local scales.

Spatial patterns of viperid species richness in South America: environmental temperature vs. biochemical kinetics. The aim of this study was to test the influence of temperature on metabolic rates of viperid species as the underlying mechanism to explain the richness pattern of this group in South America, following the Metabolic Theory of Ecology (MTE) proposed by Allen et al. (2002). We tested MTE predictions by considering the relationship between the natural logarithm of viperid species richness and the inverse of temperature (in Kelvin, 1000*K -1 ) after to correct for spatial autocorrelation effects and to check whether the linear function presents a slope of -9.0*T. The relationship between variables presented low correlation coefficient (r 2 = 0.216; P < 0.0001) and a slope of -3.737*T (C.I. (95%) ± 0.379).These results showed that viperids respond in a different way to the temperature gradient in comparison with other taxa and the prediction of Allen et al. (2002), since the confidence interval of slope in this case does not include the value of -9.0*T. This study demonstrates that temperature is not the sole driver of broad-scale spatial pattern of viperid species richness in South America.

Several variables have been used to indicate conflicts between socioeconomic interests and biodiversity conservation. Thus, efforts to minimize biodiversity losses are being based on the analysis of such conflicts, since there is more and more evidence that important sites to conservation could support high population densities and their impacts. However, in the Cerrado this might not be true due to the technological progress associated with human settlement. Consequently, the aim of this paper was to verify whether human population density ( H ) revealed conservation conflicts in the Cerrado. Through multiple regressions of Emberizidae richness (spilt into three groups according to their occurrence) as a biodiversity index and land-use variables, we verified that human population density was not the best indicator of conservation conflicts. Modern agriculture and cattle ranching indexes were the best indicators for the three Emeberizidae groups. Thus, the use of H as model selection to designate conservation units can be a mistake for Emberizidae species richness. In the Cerrado region, variables linked to modern agriculture and cattle ranching should be taken into account during systematic conservation planning

Os cupins normalmente constroem ninhos que apresentam formas e características diferenciadas de acordo com a espécie, oferecendo-lhes proteção, além de manter a coesão da sociedade. Algumas espécies constroem seus ninhos sobre a superfície do solo, enquanto outras preferem a subsuperfície, troncos e galhos de árvores como suporte ou madeira para construção das galerias. O objetivo deste trabalho foi analisar a relação entre a ocorrência de colônias do cupim arborícola Constrictotermes cyphergaster Silvestri e as espécies vegetais suporte em um Cerrado sentido restrito na Serra de Caldas Novas, GO. Os dados sugerem forte associação entre C. cyphergaster e algumas espécies vegetais de porte arbóreo, como Qualea grandiflora Mart., Annona crassiflora Mart., Caryocar brasiliense Camb. e Plathymenia reticulata Benth., evidenciado pelo alto valor do Qui-quadrado (chi2 = 214,986, gl. = 20, P < 0,001). Essa relação é verificada entre outras espécies de cupins e plantas, inclusive na região dos cerrados, e pode estar associada a vários fatores. Por um lado pode ser influenciada pela presença de inimigos naturais (competidores e predadores), e pela produção de substâncias tóxicas por essas plantas, ou por outro lado, pode haver benefício entre as espécies associadas, neste caso indicando relações ecológicas de mutualismo facultativo ou facilitação. Termites usually build nests differently shaped and characterized according to each species, to protect and keep society cohesion. Some species build nests in the ground, some prefer tree thunks or branches as support, whereas other dig galleries in the wood. The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between the occurrence of arboreal termites Constrictotermes cyphergaster Silvestri and tree species that support the nest of this species, in a Cerrado sensu strictu of the Serra de Caldas Novas, GO. Data suggest a association relationship between C. Cyphergaster and the tree species Qualea grandiflora Mart., Annona crassiflora Mart., Caryocar brasiliense Camb. and Plathymenia reticulata Benth., shown by high Qui-squared values (c² = 214.986, gl. = 20, P < 0.001). This relationship may be found among other termites and tree species, including Cerrado biome, and may be due to several factors, such as natural competitors and predators, toxin production by other tree species or benefits between associated species (facultative mutualism or facilitation).

The relationship between the aquatic macrophyte cover in upper segments of tributaries and this cover in these tributaries but near the reservoir's main body was tested. Sixteen taxa belonging to 12 families of aquatic macrophytes were recorded in Cachoeira Dourada Reservoir. The most frequent species were Eichhornia azurea (frequency of occurrence = 92%; n = 37 sites) and E. crassipes (44%). Upper segments of the tributaries were the main areas colonized by these aquatic macrophytes. The positive relationship between the aquatic macrophyte cover between the upper and lower segments of tributaries indicates the importance of dispersion in the colonization of the arms and the reservoir's main body. Neste trabalho, foi realizado um levantamento da riqueza e da composição de espécies de macrófitas aquáticas no reservatório de Cachoeira Dourada (GO-MG). Os dados obtidos foram utilizados para testar se há relação positiva e significativa entre a cobertura de macrófitas aquáticas nos segmentos superiores dos tributários (próximo às nascentes) e a cobertura de macrófitas aquáticas nos mesmos tributários, próxima ao corpo central. Foram identificados 16 taxa, pertencentes a 12 famílias. Eichhornia azurea, a espécie mais freqüente no reservatório, ocorreu em 92% dos locais visitados, enquanto E. crassipes ocorreu em 44% dos locais. Os trechos superiores dos tributários foram as principais regiões colonizadas por macrófitas aquáticas. A relação positiva entre a cobertura de macrófitas aquáticas nos segmentos superiores e inferiores dos tributários indica a importância da dispersão para a colonização dos braços e corpo central do reservatório.

The aim of this paper was to evaluate the influence of the spatial autocorrelation (absence of independence among observations gathered along geographical space) in ecological studies. For this task, an evaluation of the studies that used spatial autocorrelation analysis was carried out using the data furnished by the Institute for Scientific Information. There is a positive temporal tendency in the number of studies that used spatial autocorrelation analysis. A significant autocorrelation was detected in most studies. Moreover, scientist of several nationalities carried out these studies in different countries, with different organisms and in different types of ecosystems. In this way, it is possible to consider that the explicit incorporation of the spatial structure of natural processes, through the autocorrelation analysis, is a new ecological paradigm

Increasing rates of habitat loss and human occupation are creating demands for optimum strategies that maximize conservation efforts, despite the lack of detailed data required for implementation. Broad scale biogeographical data may furnish initial guidelines for conservation planning in a hierarchical framework for establishing conservation priorities and helping guide future research programmes. This approach may be critical in regions for which few detailed data on diversity, abundance and distribution are available, such as in the Cerrado biome of central Brazil. We used a macroecological approach, based on the extent of occurrence of 127 species of terrestrial vertebrates endemic to the Cerrado, to design a regional network of potential areas that represent all species at least once. The final network has a total of 24 regions widely distributed throughout the biome. We also evaluated these regions in terms of their human occupation by adding a cost for each cell based on 23 variables expressing variation in agricultural, demographic and cattle-ranching patterns on the Cerrado. Our analyses showed that conservation efforts should be concentrated in the south and south-east of the biome. This macro- ecological approach can provide broad guidelines for conservation and define the focus for more local and realistic conservation efforts.