Urbanization causes environment changes that directly affect biotic diversity, and understanding the relationship between fauna and urban features is a key aspect of urban planning. Birds are particularly affected by urbanization. Noise levels, for instance, negatively affect birds’ behavior and social communication, while the presence of green areas promotes bird diversity. The effects of urbanization could differ according with the level of urbanization, and our goal was to understand how bird species assemblages are related to urban features in an intermediate stage of urbanization (a city in Brazil with 2,470 inhabitants/km²). We used canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and generalized linear models (GLM) analyses to assess how bird species assemblages are affected by urban features (e.g., noise level, abundance of buildings) as well as habitat features (e.g., vegetation cover). Despite we did not find a clear pattern of urbanization both the urban and habitat features had, even if weak, an effect on bird species distribution. Bird species distribution was spatially correlated, and we identified three groups: 1) grassland and wetland species; 2) forest species; 3) species tolerant to habitat degradation. Species richness was positively related to the proportion of trees, abundance of people and presence of buildings, and negatively affected by higher levels of noise. The abundance of species decreased as noise levels increased, but the proportion of green areas (open or forest vegetation) had a positive effect. Agreeing with previous research, our study shows that noise levels and vegetation cover seem to be the best predictors of diversity in urban areas. Nevertheless, the presence of particular habitats (wetlands, grasslands, woodlots), patchily distributed in the urban matrix, could buffer the effects of urbanization on birds. These habitats should thus be taken into account in urban planning.

Background: Raptor distributions and abundances are poorly known in southern Brazil. Given that raptors have low population densities, methods typically applied to census birds are usually inappropriate for surveying raptors. Roadside surveys allow large areas to be searched at a relatively low cost and are often applied to count raptors. We conducted eight paired roadside surveys (roadside point transects and roadside strip transects of 54.5~58.6 km long) to assess the species richness and abundance of raptors in two grassland landscapes of southern Brazil and to compare results of the two methods. −1 · h −1 ). No significant differences were found in relation to species richness, although five species were exclusively recorded with point transects versus one with strip transects. Conclusions: Roadside point transects may reduce bias due to differences in species detection caused by habitat features and in abundance estimates resulting from survey habitat being disproportional to their availability. Point counts may enhance the quality of the search for raptors in a surveyed area, increasing the detection probability. The choice of survey method depends on the objectives of the study, but our results favor the use of point transects rather than strip transects to survey raptors in open landscapes.

. Neotropical hawk-eagles (Spizaetus spp.) are large forest raptors, having low population densities and high sensitivity to human disturbance. The three species of Brazil's Atlantic forest (S. ornatus, S. melanoleucus, S. tyrannus) are threatened and little is known of many aspects of their biology, such habitat requirements, nesting behavior, and food habitats. Here I present data about the breeding biology, diet and behavior of the Ornate Hawk-Eagle (S. ornatus; OHE) and the Black-and-white Hawk-Eagle (S. melanoleucus; BWHW), and estimations of distribution -extent of occurrence (EOO) -and population sizes for the three hawk-eagles of the southern Atlantic Forest. I compiled data from nine years of field studies done in Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina combined with data from the literature (n = 191 records). I calculated the total amount of forest available for each species by GIS analyses and estimated population sizes based on species density data from the literature. The EOO was 123,551 km² for BWHE, 92,512 km² for OHE, and 67,824 km² for Black Hawk-Eagle (S. tyrannus; BHE). All species experienced more than 30% shrinkage in their historical distribution (before the year 2000). Forest remnants comprise 32% of BHE's EOO and around 20% for other hawk-eagle species. Population sizes estimated for the southern region were 869 pairs for BHE (1,684 individuals), 1,532 pairs for BWHE (2,849 individuals), and 2,020 pairs for OHE (1,192 individuals). Population size estimates based only on forest patches larger than 10 km² were 542 pairs for BHE (RS = 48 pairs; SC = 494 pairs), 818 pairs for BWHE (RS = 67 pairs; SC = 751 pairs), and 1,178 pairs for OHE (RS = 67 pairs; SC = 1,111 pairs). I recorded displays and copulation of BWHE in July; the nest was built in an inaccessible, emergent tree in the hillside of a valley. Two nests of OHE were found in emergent trees (20 m and 30 m height) measured 138 x 115 x 45 cm and 132 x 100 x 100 cm; one egg was found (64.5 x 51.1 mm). Spizaetus seems to have very variable breeding cycles and begin breeding in the austral winter. I estimated egg laying occurs from July to September with fledging happening 3-4 months later. Diet of OHE consisted mostly of birds (90%) but also some mammals. Individuals of Spizaetus require large, unbroken forest areas to live, and my data reinforce the critical situation of hawkeagles in southern Atlantic forest. All three species have lost habitat and their distributions have shrunk over the past decades. The estimated population sizes suggest concern and a need for conservation actions. Conservation of large raptors in the Atlantic Forest is not a simple task, requiring the need to preserve and limit the disturbance of remaining forests, establish connectivity among fragments and reduce direct threats to raptors (e.g., persecution). We also need to better understand the ecological requirements of hawk-eagles and establish public policies to protect both species and their habitats.KEYWORDS. Distribution, diet, nest, population estima...

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Historically, games of all kinds have often been the subject of study in scientific works of Computer Science, including the field of machine learning. By using machine learning techniques and applying them to a game with defined rules or a structured dataset, it's possible to learn and improve on the already existing techniques and methods to tackle new challenges and solve problems that are out of the ordinary. The already existing work on card games tends to focus on gameplay and card mechanics. This work aims to apply neural networks models, including Convolutional Neural Networks and Recurrent Neural Networks, in order to analyze Magic: the Gathering cards, both in terms of card text and illustrations; the card images and texts are used to train the networks in order to be able to classify them into multiple categories. The ultimate goal was to develop a methodology that could generate card text matching it to an input image, which was attained by relating the prediction values of the images and generated text across the different categories.

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We provide the first record of breeding of the Ornate Hawk-Eagle (Spizaetus ornatus) for southern Brazil. In September 2005 a nest was found inside the reservoir of the Barra Grande Hydroelectric Power Station, northern Rio Grande do Sul. On the nest there was a nestling around two months old. Based on prey remains collected on the nest, birds were the main item in the diet. This is an endangered species in the Atlantic Rain Forest biome in Brazil and the presence of the nest and nestling offer evidence of reproduction in Southern Brazil.