Litterfall plays an important role in nutrient cycling and maintenance of soil fertility in terrestrial ecosystems. We gauged the effects of anthropogenic impacts on the production, decomposition and seasonality of litterfall in primary and secondary forests within a tropical landscape of the Brazilian Amazon. We hypothesized that leaf litter quantity and quality would differ in line with forest disturbance and that these changes would translate into dissimilar decomposition rates. If proved, these processes could be used as surrogates for indentifying the ecological status of forest habitats. The obtained results have shown that, in the study area litterfall is reduced and litter decomposition is braked in disturbed habitats when compared with primary and recovered secondary forests. Also, within similar climatic conditions, the litter production and decomposition rates begin to stabilize in mature secondary forests. Our results represent a useful contribution to understand the dynamics of the litterfall and litter decomposition processes in the neotropics. Both processes were correlated and sensitive to disturbance gradients and should used as forest recovery indicators in ecological monitoring and ecological restoration studies.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-7925.2016v29n1p115O presente estudo teve como objetivo fazer o levantamento etnobotânico de plantas medicinais comercializadas pela população do município de Uruará, Pará, e seus principais distritos. Foram mencionadas pelos entrevistados 63 espécies distribuídas em 36 famílias botânicas. As famílias mais representativas foram Lamiaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae e Rutaceae. As espécies com maior valor de uso foram o capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus, VU = 0,90); mastruz (Chenopodium ambrosioides, VU = 0,83) e hortelã (Mentha sp., VU = 0,79), enquanto o capim-cidreira (Cymbopogon citratus) e o picão (Bidens pilosa) apresentaram maior frequência relativa de indicação, sendo indicados como calmante/analgésico e tratamento dos rins, respectivamente. Dentre as principais afecções tratadas por meio do uso de plantas medicinais, as mais expressivas foram as do sistema digestório, infecções/inflamações, gripes e as do sistema respiratório. Não foi observada diferença significativa entre o número de espécies citadas e o número de indivíduos por família nem a distância da zona urbana. Também não houve diferença entre o número de espécies mencionadas em relação ao nível de escolaridade. Dentre as plantas medicinais comercializadas no município, predominam as que compõem o estrato herbáceo, sendo as folhas as partes mais utilizadas e a forma de preparo mais comum, o chá.

Ground Beetles (Carabidae) have been suggested to be used as indicators of ecological status under the effects of anthropogenic land use and land cover changes in highly biodiverse regions such as the Neotropics. In this study Ground Beetles' assemblages from a region in the Brazilian Amazon were investigated for evaluating their applicability as disturbance indicators. Differences in assemblages between ecosystems, discriminated by complimentary methodologies, demonstrate a sensitive reaction from the most pristine forests to increasingly disturbed systems. Besides capturing the influence of different prevailing conditions between ecosystems, Ground Beetles are easy to communicate and to link with the other components of the system, being effortless and routinely measurable using standard methodologies. This study represents a step forward in using Ground Beetles for the purposes of planning, management and public reporting on the ecological status of Neotropical ecosystems. Additionally, the methods depicted could support projections for trends of relevant ecosystem attributes under realistic social-ecological change scenarios, which can be used to guide effective conservation planning.

RESUMOO consumo de animais cinegéticos tem importância fundamental para a alimentação humana em diferentes áreas tropicais. Conhecer as espécies escolhidas, as técnicas de capturas e a quantidade escolhida são aspectos fundamentais para compreender a forma de uso e o grau de ameaça da caça sobre cada espécie silvestre. Nessa perspectiva, o presente trabalho teve como objetivo registrar as principais espécies de animais silvestres utilizados como recurso alimentar em cinco assentamentos rurais no município de Uruará, Pará, além de qualificar as principais técnicas de captura dessas espécies. A obtenção dos dados ocorreu através de entrevistas semiestruturada e observação participante. Para a seleção dos entrevistados, adotou-se o método "bola de neve". Como resultado, identificaram-se 38 espécies de animais consumidas, sendo a maioria delas mamíferos (42,1%), seguidos por aves (39,4%) e répteis (18,5% Palavras-chave: Amazônia; animais cinegéticos; etnozoologia.ABSTRACT The consumption of hunting animals is of fundamental importance for human subsistence in different tropical areas. Knowing the chosen species, the techniques of capture and the quantity are fundamental aspects to understand how to use and the degree of threat of hunting on each wild species. In this perspective, the objective of this work was to record the wild animal species most commonly used as food resource in five rural settlements in the municipality of Uruará-PA, in addition to qualify the main techniques of capturing these species. The data collection was made through semi-structured interviews and participant observation.

Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) are considered essential for enhancing the physicochemical characteristics of soils, principally by changing organic materials (e.g. dead animals, faeces, fruits e leaf litter). This study compared the species richness and abundance of dung beetles captured using various types of baits, to demonstrate attractiveness differences in variable habitats of the Brazilian Amazon. Samplings were carried out with pitfall traps baited with human faeces, rotten banana, rotten meat and a nonbaited trap, in February, March, June, September and October 2015. Habitats included native forests, agriculture areas, pastures and disturbed forests in different regeneration stages. A total of 13 736 Scarabaeinae beetles were captured, distributed over 98 species. Most individuals were captured using traps baited with faeces (76.7 % of individuals), followed by rotten meat baited traps (17.8 % of individuals), fermented banana baited traps (3.9 % of individuals) and finally by non-baited traps (1.6 % of individuals). A significant difference in attractiveness of the different baits used and habitats types was observed. Most of the captured assemblages were composed by coprophagous (42 %), generalist species (32 %), necrophagous (15 %) and none was classified as saprophagous. Approximately 54 % of the specimens were tunnelers, 25 % were rollers and 12 % were dwellers. The species of Scarabaeinae sampled in the region revealed qualitative and quantitative differences among their assemblages and the phytophysiognomies. The forest environments housed the greatest species richness observed, and a fraction of these is exclusive of those areas. We concluded that some species of Scarabaeinae have an important potential as disturbance indicators in the Amazonian ecosystem. Rev. Biol. Trop. 65 (3): 917-924. Epub 2017 September 01.

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Resumo.A ação humana vem transformando as paisagens florestais em fragmentos isolados de remanescentes, podendo levar muitas espécies à extinção. Desta maneira se faz necessário a realização de estudos para o conhecimento e adequada caracterização da fauna de solo e, por conseguinte sua preservação. O objetivo do presente trabalho foi caracterizar a fauna de coleópteros em um fragmento florestal ao entorno da cidade de Uruará, PA. Para tanto, utilizou-se armadilhas tipo pitfall não iscadas para a coleta. O fragmento foi dividido em quatro transectos, com armadilhas instaladas ao longo da borda (T1), 50 m (T2), 100 m (T3) e 200 m (T4). Foram coletados 196 indivíduos, classificados em sete famílias e 34 espécies/morfoespécies. A família que apresentou a maior abundância foi a Curculionidae representando 56,40% da abundância, tendo o gênero Xyleborus sp. a maior dominância. Através do índice de Diversidade de Shanon, observou-se que a área de borda apresentou a menor diversidade e maior dominância (índice de Berger-Parker). Através da curva de acumulação e dos estimadores de espécies, ficou evidenciado que a área de estudo apresenta uma quantidade superior de espécies ao encontrado no presente estudo, e que pesquisas futuras são necessárias para um melhor acompanhamento das alterações que ocorrem nos fragmentos florestais com a finalidade de propor medidas de menor impacto e preservação dessa biodiversidade.Palavras-Chave: Análise faunística; Biodiversidade; Coleoptera; Fragmento florestal; Insecta. Abundance and Diversity of Ground Dwelling Beetles (Arthropoda: Insecta) in Fragments of Shrubbery Vegetation (Capoeira) in the Surroundings of the Urban Zone of Uruará City-PA, BrazilAbstract. Human action has been transforming forest landscapes into isolated fragments, which may lead to the extinction of many species. Therefore, studies should be conducted to provide knowledge and the appropriate characterization of soil fauna, and, consequently, its preservation. This study was aimed to characterize the fauna of beetles in a forest fragment in the surroundings of Uruará city, PA. Unbaited pitfall traps were used for the collection of the beetles. The fragment was divided into four transects, with traps installed along the border (T1), 50 m (T2), 100 m (T3) and 200 m (T4). 196 individuals classified in seven families and 34 species/morphospecies were collected. The most abundant family was the Curculionidae accounting for 56.40% of the abundance, with gender Xyleborus sp. being the most dominant. Measurement with the Shannon Diversity Index for measurement showed lower diversity and greater dominance (Berger-Parker index) in the border area. Using species accumulation curves and estimators it became evident that the study area had a greater number of species than those found in the present study, and that further studies are needed to better monitor changes in forest fragments in order to propose measures to reduce the impact on this biodiversity and preserve it.