There have been recent disagreements as to how many taxa of titi monkeys, genus Callicebus, occur in the region between the Purus and Madeira rivers in western Brazilian Amazonia. Three parapatric taxa were proposed for the area: Callicebus caligatus, Callicebus stephennashi, and Callicebus dubius, but the latter has recently been considered a synonym of C. caligatus, even though both form monophyletic groups and are morphologically distinct. We analyzed the geographic variation in the pelage of Callicebus occurring between the Madeira and Purus rivers and concluded that the phenotypes attributed to C. caligatus and C. dubius are not individual morphs, but rather well-marked and geographically restricted varieties. For this reason, we classify Callicebus caligatus as a polytypic species with two subspecies: Callicebus caligatus caligatus and Callicebus caligatus dubius. This classification is corroborated by molecular evidence as well. The morphological and distributional data indicate that Callicebus stephennashi is a hybrid form of C. c. caligatus and C. c. dubius, due to the presence of intermediate characters. Therefore, until more precise locality records are provided and further evidence is presented, we consider Callicebus stephennashi to be a homonym of the two parental forms.
Fifty years of deforestation in the Arc of Deforestation have put at risk species survival, ecosystem services and the stability of biogeochemical cycles in Amazonia, with global repercussions. In response, we need to understand the diversity, distribution and abundance of flagship species groups, such as primates, which can serve as umbrella species for broad biodiversity conservation strategies and help mitigate climate change. Here we identify the range, suitable habitat areas and population size of Vieira's titi monkey Plecturocebus vieirai and use it as an emblematic example to discuss biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation in one of the largest deforestation frontiers. Our findings show that deforestation for agriculture and cattle-ranching expansion is the major threat to P. vieirai and is responsible for present (56%) and projected (14%) reductions in habitat area and population size. We also found that human-driven climate change affects the P. vieirai niche negatively, triggering habitat degradation and further population decline even inside protected areas. Primate watching can be a profitable alternative to forest exploitation on private, public or Indigenous lands in the Arc of Deforestation and is a way to shift the traditional, predatory extraction of natural resources from Amazonia towards sustainable land use based on biodiversity conservation at local, regional and global scales, local people's welfare and climate change mitigation. New models of land use and income generation are required to protect the unique natural and human heritages of the Arc of Deforestation and the life-supporting ecosystem services and products provided by Amazonia.
The Mammal Collection of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo (MZUSP) is one of the largest collections of Neotropical mammals in Latin America, housing about 50,000 specimens. One of the most representative series in this collection comes from the Brazilian Amazon Biome. Among the Brazilian Amazon states, Pará was target of several scientific expeditions led by MZUSP researchers, becoming one of the most representative in terms of number of specimens and species richness in the collection. Here we present a list of the medium and large-sized mammal specimens from Pará state housed in the MZUSP, with comments about taxonomy, the conservation status of the species and other associated information. We found 1,910 specimens representing 79 species and nine orders of medium and large-sized mammals from Pará. Among these, 24 species are currently classified as threatened in Brazil. Furthermore, we found some areas with higher concentration of collection localities, such as at the banks of the lower Rio Tapajós and in the northeastern region of the state. The present catalog plays an important role in presenting the currently known biodiversity of medium and large-sized mammals of Pará, also acting as a primary source for systematics, ecological, conservation and biogeographic studies
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