Building bridges between environmental and political agendas is essential nowadays in face of the increasing human pressure on natural environments, including wetlands. Wetlands provide critical ecosystem services for humanity and can generate a considerable direct or indirect income to the local communities. To meet many of the sustainable development goals, we need to move our trajectory from the current environmental destructive development to a wiser wetland use. The current article contain a proposed agenda for the Pantanal aiming the improvement of public policy for conservation in the Pantanal, one of the largest, most diverse, and continuous inland wetland in the world. We suggest and discuss a list of 11 essential interfaces between science, policy, and development in region linked to the proposed agenda. We believe that a functional science network can booster the collaborative capability to generate creative ideas and solutions to address the big challenges faced by the Pantanal wetland.

Resumo -O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar as variações nos solos e em seus atributos químicos sob diferentes unidades da paisagem no ecossistema Pantanal, na sub-região da Nhecolândia, no Mato Grosso do Sul. As unidades da paisagem avaliadas incluíram: FS, floresta semidecídua; CE, cerradão; CC, cerrado/ campo cerrado; CLE, campo limpo com Elionurus muticus; CLA, campo limpo com Axonopus purpusii e Andropogon spp.; BB, bordas de baías; e VB, vazantes/baixadas. Perfis de solos representativos de cada unidade da paisagem foram descritos morfologicamente, e os atributos químicos foram determinados nas profundidades de 0,00-0,05, 0,05-0,10, 0,10-0,15 e 0,15-0,20 m. Os solos apresentaram textura arenosa, baixo teor de matéria orgânica, e baixa capacidade de troca catiônica e aniônica. A principal diferenciação entre os solos avaliados foi a fertilidade natural, a qual foi mais elevada sob FS, especialmente nas camadas mais superficiais e nos horizontes abaixo de 2 m de profundidade. A qualidade química do solo é capaz de discriminar as unidades da paisagem em três diferentes grupos: 1, FS; 2, CE; e 3, CC, CLE, CLA, BB e VB. The soils showed sandy texture, low soil organic matter content, and low cation and anion exchange capacity. The main difference between the evaluated soils was natural fertility, which was higher in the SF, particularly at the surface layers and at the horizons below 2-m depth. Soil chemical quality is able to discriminate the landscape units into three different groups: 1, SF; 2, CE; and 3, CC, TPE, TPA, EP, and TPL.Index terms: wetland, floristic composition, environmental conservation, landscape funcioning, Pantanal of Nhecolândia, natural systems. IntroduçãoA composição e a estrutura da paisagem do ecossistema Pantanal são bastante diversificadas, sendo formadas por um mosaico de distintas unidades da paisagem, fitofisionomias, solos e gradientes de inundação. Nesse ecossistema de rica biodiversidade, encontram-se: florestas como as matas semidecíduas e o cerradão, localizadas em áreas conhecidas regionalmente como "cordilheiras"; florestas ripárias; formações monodominantes, como carandazais, cambarazais e paratudais; e matas secas ou florestas decíduas. Também ocorrem formações savânicas, como cerrado sensu stricto, campo cerrado e campo sujo; formações campestres, com alagamentos eventuais, como campo limpo, campos inundáveis e vazantes; e ambientes aquáticos permanentes ou

(Identification key for woody species of an Atlantic Rain Forest remnant, in the Southeast of Brazil, based on vegetative characters). Our main objective was to elaborate an identification key for 185 woody species from an Atlantic Rain Forest fragment in Cananéia, in the South of São Paulo State (24° 54' S and 47° 56' W). The key is based on morphological characters such as phyllotaxis, leaf type and shape, stipules, indument, exsudates, and glands. Images of branches, details of the reproductive and vegetative structures of 123 species were acquired to support the species identification. Most of the species (84%) can be easily separated in the key based on vegetative characters. For the other species, reproductive characters must be also considered.

Estuaries are the buffer zones between river and ocean. Because they are under strong tidal influence, their flora must be able to cope with salinity and flooding stress. In the present study we combined results from two surveys we performed in the Massaguaçu River Estuary (23°37’20” S, 54°21’25” W), with the objective of providing a full inventory of its aquatic, amphibian, and marginal flora. We reported 102 species among 77 genera and 47 families, including six Pteridophyta species.

-(Floristic composition and similarity analysis of an Atlantic rain forest fragment in Cananéia, São Paulo State, Brazil). The aim of this study is to investigate the floristic composition of an Atlantic rain forest fragment located in Cananéia, São Paulo, Brazil, and to contribute to the knowledge on Atlantic forest through the comparative analysis of this and other floristic surveys both on the southern and southeastern Brazil, in different soil and relief types. We surveyed 215 species in 132 genera and 51 families. Classification and ordination analysis were applied to a binary matrix in order to analyze the similarity among 24 surveys, including the present one, of Atlantic forest from the south and southeast coast of Brazil. Higher floristic similarity was observed among this area and the ones where there was marine influence and more rugged relief. The surveys in areas with greater marine influence (sandy soil) were separated from those in other conditions, possibly indicating a species replacement gradient from the steep slopes towards the lowland and were probably related to different edaphic conditions. A latitudinal gradient was found among the surveys apparently confirming a continuous species replacement along the Atlantic forest, related to a restricted distribution of the species. This suggests that it is essential to preserve areas from the whole Atlantic coast. Atlantic forest distribution is quite complex and its composition cannot be adequately represented by small localized areas.Key words -lowland rain forest, montane rain forest, shrubs, submontane rain forest, tree community RESUMO -(Composição florística e análise de similaridade de um trecho de Floresta Ombrófila Densa Atlântica em Cananéia, São Paulo, Brasil). O presente trabalho teve como objetivo caracterizar a flora arbustiva e arbórea de um trecho de Floresta Ombrófila Densa Submontana localizado no Município de Cananéia, São Paulo, de modo a contribuir para o conhecimento da Mata Atlântica através de sua comparação com outros 23 inventários do Sul e Sudeste do Brasil. Foi encontrado um total de 215 espécies distribuídas em 132 gêneros e 51 famílias. Foram realizadas análises de classificação e ordenação aplicadas a uma matriz binária para avaliar a similaridade florística entre os levantamentos. Observou-se maior similaridade entre a área estudada e florestas com menor influência marinha e relevos mais acidentados. Os levantamentos de planície costeira realizados em áreas com influência marinha (solo arenoso) diferenciam-se daqueles feitos em locais com outras condições, indicando um possível gradiente de substituição de espécies da encosta para a planície, que pode estar relacionado com condições edáficas diferenciadas. Foi encontrado um gradiente latitudinal entre os levantamentos analisados, o que parece confirmar uma substituição contínua de espécies ao longo da Mata Atlântica, relacionada com uma distribuição restrita de espécies. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que é essencial a preservação de áreas ao longo de toda a ...

Variações na altitude podem propiciar mudanças na composição florística e fisionomia das formações vegetais. Este trabalho tem o objetivo de descrever a flora e a estrutura de comunidades arbóreas ao longo de gradiente altitudinal na morraria do Urucum, Corumbá, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brasil. Foram instaladas 10 parcelas contíguas de 10mx20m em cada altitude (100, 200, 300, 500 e 700m), totalizando 1ha amostrado. Foram registrados todos os indivíduos arbóreos vivos, incluindo palmeiras, com diâmetro à altura do peito ≥ 5cm. Foram amostrados 1295 indivíduos pertencentes a 32 famílias e 74 espécies. Fabaceae e Meliaceae foram as famílias mais representativas da base da morraria, e Fabaceae e Myrtaceae as do topo. A composição florística variou ao longo do gradiente de altitude, desde Floresta Estacional Semidecídua Submontana (de 100 a 500m) até Savana Florestada (a 700m). A estrutura das comunidades arbóreas também variou segundo o gradiente altitudinal, com alternância das espécies com maior índice de valor de importância (IVI). Nas cotas mais altas, houve diminuição da altura média dos indivíduos, e aumento da área basal e da dominância de espécies. Essas mudanças podem estar relacionadas às características físicas do solo, uma vez que na cota de 700m ocorre um solo raso, que apresenta somente o horizonte A. Palavras-chave: floresta semidecídua; cerradão; Maciço do Urucum; borda oeste do Pantanal. ABSTRACT COMPOSITION AND DISTRIBUTION OF TREE SPECIES IN AN ALTITUDINAL GRADIENT, URUCUM MOUNTAINS, BRAZIL. Altitudinal variation can promote changes in floristic composition and physiognomy of the vegetation. This research aims to describe the floristic composition and structure of tree communities along an altitudinal gradient in the Urucum mountains, Corumbá, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Ten contiguous plots of 10m x 20m were established in each altitudinal levels (100, 200, 300, 500 and 700m), performing 1ha at all. We surveyed all trees, including palms, with diameter at breast height ≥ 5cm. We found 1295 trees belonging to 32 families and 74 species. Fabaceae and Meliaceae were the most common families at lower altitude, and Fabaceae and Myrtaceae at higher altitude. Floristic composition changed from the base to the top of the study area, i.e. from submontane semideciduous forest (100 to 500m) to woodland savanna (700m). Also, the community structure changed at the same direction, with the species of greater importance value index (IVI) changing in each level. Altitude average height decreased, and basal area and dominance of specimens increased in higher altitudes. These changings may be related to soil physical properties, since at 700m soil is shallow, presenting only an A horizon.

Bovine livestock is a major anthropogenic greenhouse gas source via enteric methane. Brazilian bovine livestock is also responsible for emissions from land-use changes. In contrast, enteric emissions from extensive cattle systems in wetlands might have been overestimated. We provide scientific evidences that the human footprint of bovine products delivered by the Pantanal can be much lower. To assess this, a historical cloud-free imagery of the Landsat-5, spanning 26 years, were processed for mapping spatiotemporal landscapes in a Pantanal farm under cattle intensification studies. Eight landscape categories were identified according to spatiotemporal dynamics of interannual floods. The spatiotemporal map allowed in the field the adoption of stratified random samplings of chamber gas fluxes. The combination of stratified sampled landscapes with Monte Carlo simulations of measured methane emissions in wet and dry soils permitted to integrate landscapes emissions at annual basis with biased uncertainties. Assuming enteric emissions obtained for the Pantanal region, our results suggest that the landscapes methane emissions are 10-to 23-fold superior than the enteric emissions of traditional bovine systems. While enteric emissions seem negligible with respect to net farmland emissions, cattle livestock provide important environmental services like carbon recycling through non-competing herbivory. Moreover, cattle might be making use of a biomass that would undergo decomposition during the flooding phase. Our analysis thus indicate that enteric emissions from traditional bovine systems in flooding farmlands could be considered neutral. By contrast, intensification to improve the stocking rate should be accounted as net anthropogenic emissions. A case study of intensification allowed an increase of 48% in the stocking rate, which is associated with net anthropogenic emissions from 534 bovine animals or about 27 to 63 Mg of enteric CH 4 per year. In short, the

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