Evellyn Borges de Freitas

História natural de Leptodactylus mystacinus e Leptodactylus fuscus (Anura: Leptodactylidae) no Cerrado do Brasil Central

Aspects of the ecology of Leptodactylus mystacinus and Leptodactylus fuscus were investigated in an area of the Cerrado of Central Brazil. The study included use of microhabitat, activity patterns, diet and, morphometry. Observations were conducted between April, 2006, and February, 2007. The species are sexually dimorphic - females larger than males - and body size in L. mystacinus is larger than that of L. fuscus. Both species preferred the ground surface (microhabitat) of wetland habitats with herbaceous vegetation close to lentic water bodies. Leptodactylus mystacinus was observed most often in October and November (8:00-8:59 PM and 11:00-11:59 PM), and L. fuscus in November and October between 7:00 PM and 8:59 PM. The diet of both populations was based on Arthropoda, primarily Coleoptera, which was the most important order (IVI). Differences in the volumetric proportions of the categories of then preys used, and in the periods when they were most observed, are probably the factors that contribute the most to the coexistence of both species in the area. Intersexual differences in the diet were observed in both species. These differences were probably associated with the differential allocation of resources to the production of gametes or occasional differences in the use of space by the two sexes.

Nicho ecológico e aspectos da história natural de Phyllomedusa azurea (Anura: Hylidae, Phyllomedusinae) no Cerrado do Brasil Central

Aspects of the ecology and natural history of Phyllomedusa azurea were investigated in an area of Central Brazilian Cerrado between April, 2006, and February, 2007. Observations were conducted between 6:00 PM and 5:00 AM. The study focused on spatial, temporal, and trophic niches, morphometry and reproduction. Most animals were recorded vocalizing in places dominated by herbaceous vegetation and an open canopy. The main substrates used were bushes and trees, and animals were seen perched most often between 0.5 and 1.0 m of height. Spatial niche breadth was 2.91 and 3.83 for substrate and perch height, respectively. Most animal were sighted close to lentic water bodies, usually up to 0.50 m. It is possible that these characteristics are related primarily to the phylogeny of the genus and secondarily to the specific needs of the species and the local availability of resources. The bushes and trees were used by the species mainly as sites of vocalization and oviposition. Specimens of Phyllomedusa azurea was sighted most frequently between 8:00 PM and 9:00 PM. Estimated temporal niche breadth (activity period) was 4.68. Prolonged reproductive pattern was also observed predominantly in the months with higher temperature and higher humidity (September to February). The diet consisted of eleven items. The most important prey taxon for the females was Orthoptera (IVI = 63), whereas for the males, it was Araneae (IVI = 33). The breadths numeric and volumetric of the trophic niche, was respectively 1.80 and 1.16, for females, and 4.03 and 3.92, for males. Males and females differed in size (SVL) and mass, with the females being larger and heavier. The sizes of smaller reproductive individuals males and females were 34.64 and 40.33 mm, respectively. Differences in size may be related to different investments in reproduction by the two sexes.

Abundance of Callicebus barbarabrownae (Hershkovitz 1990),(Primates: Pitheciidae) and other nonvolant mammals in a fragment of arboreal Caatinga in northeastern Brazil

Abstract The semi-arid Caatinga of the Brazilian northeast is a fragile, poorly known scrubland biome, which suffers increasing anthropogenic impacts. While 143 mammal species are known from the biome, few data are available on community composition or population parameters. In the present study, a 115-ha fragment of arboreal caatinga was surveyed in northern Sergipe in 2009 using standard line transect procedures. Total transect length was 133 km, and density estimates were calculated using sighting functions. Additional information on the occurrence of mammalian species was collected non-systematically. Nine species, including three carnivores, were confirmed in the study area, but only three were recorded in the surveys, two of which [the critically endangered blond titi, Callicebus barbarabrownae (Hershkovitz 1990), and the rock cavy, Kerodon rupestris (Wied-Neuwied 1820)] are endemic to the Caatinga. The third species was the common marmoset, Callithrix jacchus (Linnaeus 1758). C. jacchus and K. rupestris were relatively abundant, with estimated densities of 169.7 and 116.7 individuals per km2, respectively, but C. barbarabrownae was rare, and the local population was estimated to contain only five individuals, i.e., approximately four individuals per km2. If typical, densities this low would probably threaten the viability of C. barbarabrownae populations at most, if not all sites in which the species still occurs.

Amphibia, Anura, Hylidae, Phyllodytes punctatus Caramaschi and Peixoto, 2004: distribution extension and first record out of the type locality

This article provides a new record of Phyllodytes punctatus in Parque Nacional Serra de Itabaiana, municipality of Areia Branca, Sergipe, northeast Brazil. This point is the first record after the description of the species.

Living on the Edge: Habitat Fragmentation at the Interface of the Semiarid Zone in the Brazilian Northeast

The Brazilian Northeast is dominated by the Caatinga, a xeric scrub forest characterized by “semiarid” climatic conditions, with annual precipitation often below 600 mm, and an unpredictable rainy season. North of 13oS, the Atlantic Forest forms a narrow coastal strip, of only a few dozen kilometers in width, with a relatively humid climate. Both biomes have been subjected to intense anthropogenic habitat fragmentation over the past few decades, although this process has different implications for each ecoregion. In Sergipe, the geographic ranges of two titi species, Callicebus barbarabrownae and Callicebus coimbrai, appear to correlate with the Caatinga and Atlantic Forest, respectively. Titis are relatively rare in the Caatinga, in terms of both the number of populations and their density. In the lower Rio Sao Francisco basin, 41.2 % of Atlantic Forest fragments (n = 17) had titi populations, whereas only 28.1 % of Caatinga sites (n = 32) had titis. In the ecotone between the two (the Agreste), however, no populations were found (n = 21), suggesting a lacuna in their distribution. Population surveys at sites representative of the distribution of the two titi species indicate that the density of C. coimbrai may be two to four times higher than that of C. barbarabrownae. Overall, the data appear to indicate that while the survival of titi populations in the Caatinga may be dependent on factors such as fragment size and the presence of groundwater, the survival of the populations of the Atlantic Forest may be more closely related to more random factors such as the history of colonization.

First record of Pipa carvalhoi (Miranda-Ribeiro, 1937) (Anura: Pipidae) in the state of Sergipe, northeastern Brazil

The Pipidae family is represented by seven frog species in South America and Panama, strictly linked to aquatic environments. Pipa carvalhoi is currently distributed in the states of Bahia, Ceara, Espirito Santo, Minas Gerais, Paraiba and Pernambuco, in Brazil. We report the first record of Pipa carvalhoi for the state of Sergipe, Brazil, in the Conservation Unity Monumento Natural Grota do Angico, Poco Redondo municipality. This study significantly expands the distribution of the species in northeastern Brazil.