Background: Urbanisation is a dominant geographical trend and an important component of global change, with unprecedented implications for socioeconomic , cultural and environmental characteristics. However, green areas, including original fragments, can help to conserve native diversity, improving the functioning of these artificial systems in the long term. Urban areas can still provide habitats usable by wild birds, however the structural characteristics of the habitat formed by different types of green area differ, and therefore dissimilar bird diversities are to be expected. The object of this study was to characterise the α and β diversities of birds in different green areas and to analyse how diversity relates to ten variables that characterise the habitat. Methods: We studied the green areas in the city of Temuco, southern Chile (Park, Square and Median strips of main streets), evaluating the variables: (a) surface area, (b) vegetation, (c) estimated human impact as the proportions of vegetation and bare soil by area, and the vehicle traffic. The bird assemblage structures were characterised by α (intraenvironment) diversity and β diversity (between environments) and the statistical analysis identified the environmental variables related with the presence and abundance of birds. A statistical model was constructed to describe the contribution of the variables to bird diversity. Results: We found significant differences between the diversity of bird species in the three types of green area. The β showed medium to high similarity between the different study units. There was a negative correlation with bare soil areas; the correlations with vehicle flow, plant structure and tree and shrub cover were not significant, meaning that these variables did not explain the variation in the richness of bird species between the green areas. However the surface area did explain this variation presenting a positive potential relation. There was also a high correlation with the origin (native) of shrub species. Conclusions: The bird diversity varied significantly according to the type of urban green area. The environmental variables presenting significant correlations with bird diversity were: surface area, native species of shrub stratum, shrub cover, and bare soil area. The best multiple regression model showed that the three most important variables for bird diversity are the surface area of the green area, the cover of the shrub stratum and the presence of native shrub species.

The freshwater crab Aegla expansa Jara, 1992 (Aeglidae) is endemic to Chile and has a geographical distribution restricted to one stream in the locality of Hualqui (37°S), Concepción Province, Chile. A chromosome number is here described for somatic cells of A. expansa. The chromosomes are large in number and small in size (<2 μm). These cytogenetic data are the first reported for a species of the genus Aegla.

The Atacama is the world’s driest desert. It contains various types of wetlands. In general, the diversity and structure of the zooplankton in these wetlands have been very little studied. The object of the present study was to analyse the specific composition and structure of the zooplankton in a transect which included highland bogs and an endorheic mountain river in the Altiplano of northern Chile. In 2017, samples of zooplankton were collected for qualitative and quantitative analysis in two types of wetlands. Eight taxa of zooplanktonic crustaceans were recorded. The results of null models revealed the absence of regulator patterns for all sites in species co-occurrence. Cluster analysis generated two groups with low similarity between them. The results observed in the correlation matrix showed significant direct associations between some species and the level of dissolved oxygen, conductivity and salinity.