Nílber Gonçalves da Silva

A erradicação das cabras ferais e seu impacto sobre a biodiversidade vegetal – um marco na história da Ilha da Trindade, Brasil

Os recentes sinais de recuperacao da flora nativa e endemica da Ilha da Trindade, Brasil, sao atribuidos a erradicacao de vertebrados introduzidos no seculo XVIII. Tres seculos de devastacao resultaram no desaparecimento de especies vegetais endemicas e na reducao drastica da cobertura florestal e das populacoes de aves marinhas. Em 2005 a Marinha do Brasil conclui a erradicacao das cabras ferais, resultando no inicio da expansao da cobertura vegetal em areas previamente nuas. Os unicos vertebrados invasores remanescentes sao os camundongos. Esse fato representa um marco na historia natural de Trindade e deve incentivar novos trabalhos de conservacao na ilha.

Longevity of the Brazilian underground tree Jacaranda decurrens Cham.

Underground trees are a rare clonal growth form. In this survey we describe the branching pattern and estimate the age of the underground tree Jacaranda decurrens Cham. (Bignoniaceae), an endangered species from the Brazilian Cerrado, with a crown diameter of 22 meters. The mean age calculated for the individual was 3,801 years, making it one of the oldest known living Neotropical plants.

Two rediscoveries and one extinction for the flora of Trindade Island, Brazil1

Abstract Trindade is an oceanic archipelago situated roughly 1140 km east of Espírito Santo State, Brazil. It reaches an altitude of 620 m a.s.l. and covers approximately 10 km2. Less than 5% of the island is covered by forest and approximately 60% by herbaceous vegetation. Several new and endemic plant taxa were described in the 1960s, and some of these had not been registered since then. From 1700 to 2005 the Island suffered from large populations of feral mammals, especially goats. Within the framework of a vegetation regeneration survey following goal eradication, our specific objective was to search for the putatively extinct species. Six field trips were undertaken from 2009 to 2012, resulting in more than six months of effective search time on the Island. Two of the three putatively extinct species were rediscovered, both ferns: Asplenium beckeri and Elaphoglossum beckeri. Peperomia beckeri remains known only from the holotype. Most likely the rediscovered species regenerated through the spore bank. Due to the elimination of goats and to conservational efforts, and in light of the observed expansion of the populations, the reestablishment of these rediscovered species on Trindade Island seems guaranteed.

Lentibulariaceae, Serra de São José, Minas Gerais, Brazil

The Serra de Sao Jose is a mountain range within Cerrado (Brazilian savanna) biome, situated in the south of Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The predominant vegetation of the study area is campo rupestre (Brazilian rocky savanna). The latter formation, better known from the Espinhaco Chain, is the scene of many speciation events and comprises several rare species. Thirteen species of the family Lentibulariaceae belonging to the two genera occurring in Brazil are listed, briefly diagnosed, and ecologically commented herein.

The genus Cora in the South Atlantic and the Mascarenes: Two novel taxa and inferred biogeographic relationships

Abstract The new species Cora sanctae-helenae Lücking and Cora trindadensis Lücking, M. Cáceres, N.G. Silva & R.J.V. Alves are described from the South Atlantic islands of Saint Helena (British Overseas Territory) and Ilha da Trindade (Brazil). Both are putative endemics for each of the two islands. Cora sanctae-helenae is with certainty known from three independent historic collections from Saint Helena; it has not been encountered in a recent survey and may have become extinct, considering the massive transformation of native vegetation on the island to farmland and eroded areas. In contrast, C. trindadensis was encountered during more recent surveys on Ilha da Trindade. In addition, a lectotype is selected for C. gyrolophia Fr., the only species of Cora known from the Paleotropics, based on a single gathering (two collections) from the Mascarenes (Mauritius). Cora trindadensis, C. sanctae-helenae and C. gyrolophia represent the three easternmost and only extra-American occurrences of Cora, which is otherwise an exclusively neotropical to southern South American genus (including the Galápagos Islands and the Juán Fernández Islands). While the geographic origin of the type material of C. gyrolophia was in some doubt, the phylogenetic relationships of the vascular plant flora of Saint Helena indicate partial affinities with the Neotropics and South America on the one hand and with Africa and the Mascarenes on the other, placing the occurrence of Cora in the South Atlantic and the Mascarenes in a new perspective as a possible eastward expansion of the genus originating from South America.

First report of naturalization of Houttuynia cordata Thunb. 1783 (Piperales: Saururaceae) in South America

A relatively large and established population of Houttuynia cordata from Itatiaia National Park in Brazil represents the first record of naturalized Saururaceae in South America. Although the species is potentially invasive, unknown mechanisms have prevented its spread to other localities between 1940, when it was recorded in cultivation in Brazil, and the present. The nearest known naturalized population is situated 5,600 km away, in Costa Rica, Central America.

Two New Species of the Carnivorous Genus Philcoxia (Plantaginaceae) from the Brazilian Cerrado

Abstract The genus Philcoxia (Plantaginaceae) was published less than 20 yr ago, based on three species, and its circumscription has been broadened more recently with the description of two additional species. Here we report the discovery of two new species from the Brazilian Cerrado, bringing the number of currently known species of Philcoxia to seven. We describe and illustrate the new species and provide notes on their taxonomy, morphology, habitat, geographic distribution, phenology, and conservation status, along with a key to all species of the genus. Philcoxia maranhensis is characterized by the non-peltate, cordiform leaves and glandular-pubescent bracts, and is endemic to the Chapada das Mesas, southwestern Maranhão; Philcoxia courensis is characterized by a more developed underground system and is endemic to the Chapada dos Veadeiros, northern Goiás. Both species are assessed as Critically Endangered (CR).

Flora do Rio de Janeiro: Lentibulariaceae

This study focuses on the Lentibulariaceae found in the state of Rio de Janeiro. It is based on a morphological analysis of herbaria collections, as well as on a review of the relevant literature and on collections in the field. A total of two genera and 20 species were recorded for the state. An identification key, descriptions, illustrations, flowering and fruiting data, habitat and species distribution are also provided.

The dead forest on Trindade Island was not monospecific, says the wood

The first reports of a dead forest on Trindade Island are from the 18th century. Since then, the tentative identifications of the trees with red wood included Caesalpinia, Acacia, Rapanea, Pisonia, Eugenia and Colubrina, the latter having been confirmed by three independent wood anatomists familiar with Brazilian woods. In the 1960s Johann Becker was the last to sample a live Colubrina glandulosa Perkins var. reitzii on Trindade, which was presumed to be a remnant of the extinct forest. Based on this information, along with the eradication of feral goats from the island in 2005, thousands of C. glandulosa seedlings were reintroduced to Trindade. These trees, which grew well at first, are now collectively dying, less than two decades after planting. Their wood colour is much lighter than that of the dead trees, raising doubts about the latter’s correct identification. Herein we report the first detailed descriptions of two wood types from the extinct forest of Trindade, confirming the presence of C. glandulosa and reporting the presence of Paratecoma peroba (Bignoniaceae), a novel occurrence for the island. Radiocarbon dating of a dead C. glandulosa tree confirms that it belongs to the forest which died three centuries ago. The preserved wood proves that the extinct forest was not monospecific and suggests that further sampling of the remaining dead wood may enhance the floristic knowledge of the forest which once covered most of the island with additional species.

New records of Helicina inaequistriata (Gastropoda: Helicinidae) from Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo states, Brazil

New records of Helicina inaequistriata Pilsbry, 1900 (Gastropoda: Helicinidae) are reported here from southeastern Brazil: Cabo Frio Island (“Ilha do Cabo Frio” in Portuguese), a continental island off Rio de Janeiro state, and three localities in Sao Paulo state (Mairipora and Piracicaba municipalities and Alto Ribeira State and Tourist Park). The species was previously known only from Grande Island (“Ilha Grande”), off southern Rio de Janeiro, and two localities in Sao Paulo state (including the type locality). The occurrence of this species in well preserved areas such as Cabo Frio Island and Alto Ribeira Park is reassuring. The species is known from few localities and data on its abundance and conservation status are unknown.