In the Brazilian Amazon, two monospecific genera, the Harpy Eagle and Crested Eagle have low densities and are classified by IUCN as Near Threatened due to habitat loss, deforestation, habitat degradation and hunting. In this study, we evaluate occurrence of these large raptors using the environmental surveys database from Belo Monte Hydroelectric Power Plant. Integrating the dataset from two methods, we plotted a distribution map along the Xingu River, including records over a 276-km stretch of river. Terrestrial surveys (RAPELD method) were more efficient for detecting large raptors than standardized aquatic surveys, although the latter were complementary in areas without modules. About 53% of the records were obtained during activities of wildlife rescue/flushing, vegetation suppression or in transit. Between 2012 and 2014, four Harpy Eagles were removed from the wild; two shooting victims, one injured by collision with power lines and one hit by a vehicle. Also, seven nests were mapped. The mean distance between Harpy Eagle records was 15 km along the river channel, with a mean of 20 km between nests near the channel, which allowed us to estimate 20 possible pairs using the alluvial forest, riverine forest and forest fragments. Territories of another ten pairs will probably be affected by inundation of the Volta Grande channel, which is far from the main river. The average distance between Crested Eagle records was 16 km along the river channel. The only nest found was 1.3 km away from a Harpy Eagle nest. The remnant forests are under threat of being replaced by cattle pastures, so we recommend that permanently protected riparian vegetation borders (APP) be guaranteed, and that forest fragments within 5 km of the river be conserved to maintain eagle populations.Keywords: neotropical raptors, Amazon, hydroelectric power plant, environmental impact, Accipitridae. Abundância de Gavião-real e Gavião-real falso numa área sob impacto de reservatório no Baixo e Médio rio XinguResumo Na Amazônia brasileira dois gêneros mono-específicos, Harpia e Morphnus, caracterizam-se por baixa densidade e estão classificados pelo IUCN como Quase Ameaçados, porém ocorrem sobre grande parte do território nacional, suas principais ameaças são a fragmentação florestal, a degradação de hábitat e a caça. Neste estudo avaliamos a abundância destas duas grandes aves de rapina utilizando a base de dados dos programas ambientais da UHE BeloBraz.

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Decontamination protocols in seaweeds are essential tools for ecophysiological studies in laboratory cultures. These protocols consist of a set of procedures and physical and chemical treatments that must be adjusted for each species. Thus, the effects of explant size and of combinations of physical treatments (brushing and cutting) and chemical treatments (sodium hypochlorite, detergent, seawater, distilled water, germanium dioxide) on the process of obtaining unialgal culture of two pigmentar morphos of Hypnea musciformis were investigated. It was found that thallus segments 50 mm in length, when transported from the field to the laboratory, remained healthier and were less susceptible to epiphytes than those 7 mm in length. The collected material had surfaces contaminated by diatoms, which were weakly attached, as well as surface contamination caused by strongly attached Sahlingia subintegra. The most efficient combination of physical and chemical treatments was explant brushing, cutting and washing with detergent. This combination eliminated the contamination by S. subintegra, but not all of the diatom contamination. The population of the latter was reduced by using physical treatment and by washing with detergent and distilled water and then exterminated by using germanium dioxide (0.003 mg/L). Employing this protocol, unialgal cultures of H. musciformis could be established in approximately eight to ten weeks.

Abstract:Hypnea musciformis (Wulfen) JV Lamour. is a species of great economic interest as it produces κ-carrageenan and has shown biological activities against HIV and HSV viruses. This species displays different colour strains in its natural habitat, which may have implications for the biotechnological potential of the species. The aim of this study was to characterize the photosynthetic apparatus and pigment profile of three colour strains of H. musciformis (green, brown and red) in their natural habitat and in culture. Chlorophyll a fluorescence of photosystem II was measured with a pulse-amplitude modulated fluorometer and pigments were quantified by spectrofluorimetry (chlorophyll a) and spectrophotometry (phycobiliproteins). In the natural habitat, we detected significant differences between the colour strains for the following photochemical parameters: the green strain had a higher effective quantum yield (ΦPSII) than the red strain and a higher maximum relative electron transport rate (rETRmax) than the brown and red strains. Saturation irradiances were 1000 μE.m -2 .s -1 (green) and 500 μE.m -2 .s -1 (brown and red). Concerning in vitro culture, the green strain presented the lowest ΦPSII, rETRmax, and α rETR, while the brown strain presented the highest values for these same parameters. The chlorophyll a content of the cultured green strain was the lowest. The phycoerythrin contents of the three colour strains were unchanged by either natural of in vitro conditions: lower in green, intermediate in brown and higher in the red strain, ensuring the chromatic identity of the strains. Our results suggest that the green strain has a better performance when exposed to high irradiance, but a lower efficiency under low irradiance compared to the brown and red strains.

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