MotivationThe BioTIME database contains raw data on species identities and abundances in ecological assemblages through time. These data enable users to calculate temporal trends in biodiversity within and amongst assemblages using a broad range of metrics. BioTIME is being developed as a community‐led open‐source database of biodiversity time series. Our goal is to accelerate and facilitate quantitative analysis of temporal patterns of biodiversity in the Anthropocene.Main types of variables includedThe database contains 8,777,413 species abundance records, from assemblages consistently sampled for a minimum of 2 years, which need not necessarily be consecutive. In addition, the database contains metadata relating to sampling methodology and contextual information about each record.Spatial location and grainBioTIME is a global database of 547,161 unique sampling locations spanning the marine, freshwater and terrestrial realms. Grain size varies across datasets from 0.0000000158 km2 (158 cm2) to 100 km2 (1,000,000,000,000 cm2).Time period and grainBioTIME records span from 1874 to 2016. The minimal temporal grain across all datasets in BioTIME is a year.Major taxa and level of measurementBioTIME includes data from 44,440 species across the plant and animal kingdoms, ranging from plants, plankton and terrestrial invertebrates to small and large vertebrates.Software format.csv and .SQL.

The global lockdown to mitigate COVID-19 pandemic health risks has altered human interactions with nature. Here, we report immediate impacts of changes in human activities on wildlife and environmental threats during the early lockdown months of 2020, based on 877 qualitative reports and 332 quantitative assessments from different studies. Hundreds of reports of unusual species observations from around the world suggest that animals quickly responded to the reductions in human presence. However, negative effects of lockdown on conservation also emerged, as confinement resulted in some park officials being unable to perform conservation, restoration and enforcement tasks, resulting in local increases in illegal activities such as hunting. Overall, there is a complex mixture of positive and negative effects of the pandemic lockdown on nature, all of which have the potential to lead to cascading responses which in turn impact wildlife and nature conservation. While the net effect of the lockdown will need to be assessed over years as data becomes available and persistent effects emerge, immediate responses were detected across the world. Thus, initial qualitative and quantitative data arising from this serendipitous global quasi-experimental perturbation highlights the dual role that humans play in threatening and protecting species and ecosystems. Pathways to favorably tilt this delicate balance include reducing impacts and increasing conservation effectiveness.

The extensive oil spill (> 2,900 km) that occurred in the southwestern Atlantic (2019/2020) increased the vulnerability of the Brazilian coast, affecting marine and coastal protected areas (MPAs). In addition to supporting conservation, MPAs are sustainably used by local populations to help maintain ocean-dependent livelihoods. In this sense, we aim to assess the socioeconomic vulnerability of human communities in MPAs affected by this major oil spill. Using digital mapping, we assessed the socioeconomic vulnerability of 68 human communities living in or near 60 MPAs of different categories that were impacted by this spill. This is the first assessment of the vulnerability status of human populations under significant levels of poverty and social inequality, which are particularly dependent on healthy and effective Brazilian MPAs. More than 6,500 enterprises and institutions were mapped, including trade activities, services, tourism, and leisure venues. Most enterprises (34.4%) were involved in the food sector, related to the ocean economy, and, therefore, highly vulnerable to oil spills. Furthermore, the majority (79.3%) of the vulnerable activities are concentrated in multiple-use MPAs, with extractive reserves coming second and accounting for 18%. This result shows the high vulnerability of this tropical coast to oil accidents and the risks to food security for traditional communities. We also found a heterogeneous vulnerability indicator along the coast, with the most vulnerable regions having an undiversified economic matrix heavily dependent on activities such as fishing, family farming, tourism, accommodation, and the food sector. Thus, this study provides a tool to help prevent and mitigate economic losses and increases the understanding of the weaknesses of MPAs in the face of large-scale disasters, thus helping to build socioeconomic and ecological resilience.

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The influence of the lunar phases and tidal range on the fish capture was analysed in a tidal flat in Barra do Paraguaçu (Baía de Todos os Santos). The sampling was realized in the flood tide and ebb tide of the spring (full moon) and neap (waning moon) tides, between June 2007 and May 2008. At all sampling occasions, two parallel drags were accomplished to the tidal flat, in the same direction of the current, in a 100 m long area marked on the beach beforehand, using a seine net of 15 m × 2.0 m with a mesh of 12 mm between adjacent knots. A total of 2312 fish specimens were captured (26.5 kg), belonging to 75 species from 45 families. The mean number of captured fish was significantly larger in full moon at ebb tides, while the mean weight in the captures was larger in ebb tides. There was significant difference in number of species, number of fish, richness and diversity between full and waning moons. The number of fish and biomass were significantly different between tides. Significant differences were found in community structure regarding trophic groups in relation to tide and moon, although the classic diversity indices did not capture this effect between tides. Furthermore, it was possible to identify preferences of occurrence related to the change of tide in dominant species.

Benthic estuarine studies are usually very time-consuming. Therefore, it is critical to optimize procedures ensuring efficiency with low cost. The present study aimed to assess the cost/benefit ratio of different sampling procedures and analyze its effect on the description of spatial pattern of benthic assemblages along an estuarine gradient. Six methodological combinations (sampling gear: van Veen grab or corer; mesh sizes: 0.5, 0.7 or 1.0 mm) were applied at 11 sampling stations. The van Veen grab captured 1,219 individuals and 59 taxa, while the corer captured 967 individuals and 53 taxa. Increasing the mesh size caused a decrease in the number of specimens retained and in the time needed to sort samples. However, no significant differences were observed among the analyzed sampling methods (sampling gear and mesh size). Spearman rank correlation coefficient showed that there was little 'information loss' when aggregating data to genus and family taxonomic levels. A cost/ benefit index is introduced which reveals that the van Veen grab ? 1.0 mm sieve ? family level was the best combination to achieve the best balance between cost and precision of the results. However, choice of sampling procedure must consider estuary characteristics, target fauna, and research infrastructure, resources and objectives.

Dados de abundância, biomassa, comprimento, riqueza, diversidade e equitatibilidade da ictiofauna estuarina do Rio Joanes foram obtidos para investigar o efeito do ciclo lunar e da variação espaço-temporal na ictiofauna. Foram capturados 1.497 peixes, pesando 7.760g, pertencentes a 48 espécies de 22 famílias. As análises de comunidade indicaram não haver diferença significativa avaliando o efeito da lua, contudo, a lua minguante foi responsável por maiores capturas. A composição e estrutura da comunidade variaram com o tipo de sedimento e vegetação de manguezal, onde maior número de espécies e maior número de indivíduos preferiram sedimento lamoso em áreas com vegetação marginal preservada. Agrupamentos baseados nos dados de abundância não seguiram variações temporais de longo período, porém peixes com nichos similares em relação ao uso do habitat preferiram determinadas áreas de acordo com o tipo de sedimento. Unitermos: lua, padrões espaciais e temporais, peixes estuarinos

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