Pit cave 6 on Pointe Gros Rempart (Baie-Mahault, La Désirade, French West Indies) is a stratified fossil-bearing site. While the archaeological material and faunal remains from the oldest assemblage demonstrate it to have formed during the Amerindian period, the second assemblage dates to the first one-hundred years of the island's colonial period (mid-18th to mid-19th centuries). Faunal analysis revealed the presence of 4 now locally extinct or extinct species, three of which have never before been documented on La Désirade (Ameivasp.,Leiocephaluscf.cuneusandAlsophissp.). Changing faunal spectrums (invertebrates and vertebrates) due to environmental destabilisation combined with aspects of the island's colonial economy demonstrate habitat degradation and over-grazing to be the principal causes of extinctions and or extirpations.
Today, Diploglossine lizards (Anguidae) are common on the Greater Antillean Islands (West Indies), where they are represented by many endemic species. However these lizards are very rare on the Lesser Antillean Islands, where they are only represented by a single species, the Montserrat galliwasp (Diploglossus montisserrati). Here, we show that diploglossine lizards were present in the past on other Lesser Antillean islands, by reporting the discovery of Anguidae fossil remains in two Amerindian archaeological deposits and in a modern deposit. These remains are compared to skeletons of extant diploglossine lizards, including D. montisserrati, using X-ray microtomography of the type specimen of this critically endangered lizard. We also conducted a histological study of the osteoderms in order to estimate the putative age of the specimen. Our results show that the fossil specimens correspond to a member of the Diploglossus genus presenting strong similarities, but also minor morphological differences with D. montisserrati, although we postulate that these differences are not sufficient to warrant the description of a new species. These specimens, identified as Diploglossus sp., provide a new comparison point for the study of fossil diploglossine lizards and reflect the historical 17th century mentions of anguid lizards, which had not been observed since.
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RESUMO-Este projeto tem por objetivos principal desenvolver e implantar metodologias para inventariar e montar bancos de dados georreferenciado de resíduos sólido urbano RSU das Região Administrativa (RA) de Campinas (São Paulo). Após implementação e teste das metodologias, um projeto ampliado para estimar e integrar localização, qualidade, quantidade, sazonalidade, entre outros deverá ser submetido em Projeto Temático à Fapesp, ampliando o escopo (maior numero de regiões administrativas e com maior participação de interessados/stakeholders). O inventário e o banco de dados gerados também poderão ser utilizados em intermediações com os produtores de bioenergia e de matéria-prima, potenciais clientes interessados, bem como colaborar com a elaboração de novas políticas públicas, tomada de decisões de investimento e preparo de legislação para estimular o direcionamento dos resíduos. Este projeto irá estudar a RA de Campinas; levantando dados e demonstrando a janela de oportunidades para o aproveitamento de resíduos sólidos urbanos.
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