No abstract

The Pantanal is one of the faunistic provinces considered as a priority area for invertebrate conservation. However, it is one of the areas in Brazil where the local fauna is less assessed, thus needing more scientific information that could allow political decisions to be made regarding conservation. The continuous pressure for new pasture areas leads to improper habitat occupation and destruction, like fragmentation of forest areas in the region. Such alterations can cause different impacts on the local fauna, including the soil arthropods. The main objective of this work was to compare the morphospecies composition, diversity and density of the soil arthropod fauna between a secondary single species forest (Cambarazal) and a cultivated pasture with exotic and native grass species, using only pitfall traps as sampling method. We found a great variation on the vegetal cover among environments. A higher humidity in the forest soil was observed, as well as a greater compaction of the soil in the cultivated pasture. A total of 3635 individuals were collected, belonging to 214 different morphospecies. 139 morphospecies were collected in the forest (37% exclusive to this environment), while 134 morphospecies were collected in the cultivated pasture (35% exclusive). The diversity was higher in the forest (H¢ = 1.634) than in the cultivated pasture (H¢ = 1.253). However, considering the area as a whole (forest and pasture) the global diversity was increased. In this paper we discuss about the effects of environmental changes on soil arthropod diversity and propose a hypothetical model for invertebrate management in mosaic ecosystems.

A zooplankton checklist is presented for the Middle Xingu River, based on surveys conducted at four sites in the main channel and two fluvial lakes. A total of 175 taxa are listed, including 141 rotifers, 20 cladocerans, and five copepods. Rapids presented the greatest species richness, with up to 124 taxa, while Ilha Grande lake had 70 taxa, the lowest number. Non-planktonic benthic larvae were recorded frequently in the samples.Keywords: clear water rivers, zooplankton, fluvial habitats, limnology. Diversidade zooplanctônica do médio Rio Xingu -bacia amazônica ResumoLevantamentos realizados em dois lagos e no canal principal do médio Xingu objetivaram a listar a diversidade do zooplâncton. De um total de 175 táxons, 141 foram rotíferos, 20 cladóceros e 5 copépodes. As corredeiras foram os ambientes mais diversos com 124 táxons, enquanto que no Lago da Ilha Grande se registraram somente setenta táxons. Destaca-se a ocorrência de grupos de hábito não planctônico na coluna d'água do rio que indica o efeito perturbador da correnteza.Palavras-chave: águas claras amazônicas, zooplâncton, ambientes fluviais, limnologia.