Background The role of diet in health is well established and, in the past decade, more attention has been given to the role of food choices in the environment. The agricultural sector produces about a quarter of the world's greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), and meat production, especially beef, is an important contributor to global GHGE. Our study aimed to address a fundamental gap in the diet-climate literature: identifying consumers who are receptive to making dietary changes, and the effect of their potential changes on GHGE, diet healthfulness, and diet costs. Methods Dietary data on US individuals from a nationally representative survey were linked to food-related GHGE. We identified individuals receptive to changing their diets (potential changers) as those who reported trying US dietary guidance and were likely to agree that humans contribute to climate change. We assessed GHGE, diet healthfulness measured by the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), and diet costs before and after hypothetical changes replacing either beef or meats with poultry or plant-protein foods. Findings Our sample comprised 7188 individuals, of whom 16% were potential changers. These were disproportionately women, highly educated, or had higher income compared with individuals deemed not likely to change. Replacing 100% of beef intake in potential changers with poultry reduced mean dietary GHGE by 1•38 kg CO 2-equivalents per person per day (95% CI 1•19-1•58), a 35•7% decrease. This replacement also increased mean HEI by 1•7% and reduced mean diet costs by 1•7%. We observed the largest changes when replacing all beef, pork, or poultry intake with plant-protein foods (GHGE decreased by 49•6%, mean HEI increased by 8•7%, and dietary costs decreased by 10•5%). Hypothetical replacements in the potential changers alone resulted in whole population reductions in 1-day dietary GHGE of 1•2% to 6•7%, equivalent to 22-126 million fewer passenger vehicle km. Interpretation Individual-level diet studies that include a variation in response by consumers can improve our understanding of the effects of climate policies such as those that include sustainability information in national dietary guidance. In our study, we found that changes by a small percentage of motivated individuals can modestly reduce the national dietary GHGE. Moreover, these substitutions can modestly improve diet healthfulness and reduce diet costs for individuals who make these changes. Funding Wellcome Trust.

The Brazilian Savanna is threatened mainly by the expansion of agriculture and livestock. Regarding environmental problems, habitat loss in the biome and the need to verify studies on ants as bioindicators, the goal of this paper was to carry out a bibliographic review of the literature about ants as bioindicators in this biome from the last 30 years. We searched papers about ants as bioindicators in the Brazilian Savanna from the last 30 years, refining the search between the years 1986 to 2016 and we analyzed 16 papers about ants as bioindicators. Monitoring studies focusing on ants as bioindicators in the Brazilian Savanna started in 1992 and increased since 2002. The results obtained in the studies presented changes in the species richness and composition in relation to potential bioindication. In general, 167 species are defined as bioindicators of the Brazilian Savanna and are related to specific habitats. We verified that most studies were done Minas Gerais state. We noted that the absence of rigorous analysis damaged the results of the studies, as well as the knowledge of ant fauna biology for correct attribution of indication characteristics of preserved or degraded areas.

This paper uses income and expenditure surveys from 1992 to 2014 and public tax and spending accounts to estimate the redistributive impact of Mexico's fiscal system over this period. It presents standard and marginal benefit incidence analysis for the principal public transfers (education, health, social security, direct cash transfers) in 1992-2014, and for the full fiscal system for 2008-14. The paper also estimates the effects of a major recent fiscal reform for the years 2015-18: the transition from large subsidies to taxes on petrol. The analysis shows a continuous improvement in the redistributive effects of the fiscal system through the 1990s and 2000s associated with an increase in social spending and in the progressivity of this spending over this period. This trend stagnated and reversed after 2008/2010, reflecting in part an interruption of the expansive and progressive trend of social transfers, but especially a sharp decline of net indirect subsidies. JEL classification: D31, H22, H42, I38

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Resumo. Borboletas estão entre os artrópodes melhor estudados, pois participam de diversas interações ecológicas. Apesar de já existirem muitos inventários de borboletas publicados no Brasil, nenhuma informação ainda existe em Mato Grosso do Sul. O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a riqueza de espécies de borboletas encontradas em um remanescente urbano de cerrado em Campo Grande, Centro-Oeste do Brasil, além de indicar a presença de espécies raras e indicadora de ambiente preservado. Foram registradas 62 espécies de borboletas, pertencentes a seis famílias e 15 subfamílias. Entre as espécies registradas, 28 pertencem à família Nymphalidae (45,1%), 16 a Hesperiidae (25,8%), oito a Lycaenidae (12,9%), seis a Pieridae (9,7%) e quatro para Riodinidae (6,5%). As estimativas de riqueza Jack-Knife (de 1ª ordem) e Chao2 mostram que entre 81 e 86% das espécies, respectivamente, foram registradas durante o período do estudo para a área. A lepidopterofauna encontrada não apresenta espécies cuja presença indica ambiente preservado. Embora a área de estudo seja pequena, estando imersa em uma matriz urbana e sendo constantemente impactada, a reserva representa um ambiente importante para a conservação de borboletas na cidade de Campo Grande.Palavras-Chave: Espécies raras; Levantamento; Remanescente urbano de cerrado; Reserva Particular de Patrimônio Natural; Riqueza de espécies. Butterflies Species (Lepidoptera) in an Urban fragment of Savannah in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.Abstract. Butterflies are among the better studied arthropods, because they participate in several ecological interactions. In spite of already many inventories of butterflies have been published in Brazil, still any information exist in Mato Grosso do Sul. The present study aimed to evaluate the species richness of butterflies found in an urban remnant of savannah in Campo Grande, Midwest of Brazil, besides indicating the presence of rare species and indicative of preserved atmosphere. We registered 62 species of butterflies, ranging in six families and 15 subfamilies, for the area. Among the registered species, 28 belong to the family Nymphalidae (45.1%), 16 to Hesperiidae (25.8%), 8 to Lycaenidae (12.9%), 6 to Pieridae (9.7%) and 4 to Riodinidae (6.5 %). The wealth estimates Jack-Knife (1st order) and Chao2 show that among 81 and 86% of species, respectively, were registered during the period of the study for the area. The found lepidopterofauna didn't present species whose presence indicates preserved atmosphere. Although the small study area, being immersed in an urban matrix and constantly being impacted, the reserve represents an important environment for the conservation of butterflies in the city of Campo Grande.

Environmental heterogeneity is a major factor influencing the spatial distribution of organisms. Due to intimate relationships with their hosts, parasitic insects are inclined to be even more sensitive to variations. This study aimed to verify the relationship between spatial distribution of Mutillidae, potential hosts, and the effect of heterogeneity in the distribution of both, testing the hypotheses: i) the spatial distribution of mutillids depends on the distribution of hosts and ii) variation in environmental heterogeneity affects the distribution of both. Sampling was conducted in four fragments of the Cerrado. We collected Hymenopteran specimens from 25 plots of one hectare using 18 Malaise traps throughout one year, totalizing 32,400 trap-hours. Female Mutillidae were hand collected at all sampling points, for a total of 450 man-hours. At each hectare plot, we obtained the environmental variables from nine plots of 25 m A total of 1,089 individuals were collected (Apidae: 311; Crabronidae: 165; Shpecidae: 84; Vespidae: 229) belonging to 127 species of potential hosts (bees and wasps) and 300 individuals (42 species) of Mutillidae. Leaf-litter depths showed significant relation in host-parasitoid distribution. The spatiotemporal distribution followed the predator-prey model for Mutillidae, and environmental heterogeneity was a factor that determined the structure of the host-parasitoid community. The results suggest an intense relationship between the Mutillidae and Crabronidae, as well as Sphecidae and two Apidae subfamilies (Halictinae and Colletinae). These families and subfamilies present behavior in which they build nests in aggregations even each female being solitary. Crabronidae is considered the best potential host for Mutillidae.

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