Human-induced climate change is considered a conspicuous threat to biodiversity in the 21st century. Species’ response to climate change depends on their exposition, sensitivity and ability to adapt to novel climates. Exposure to climate change is however uneven within species’ range, so that some populations may be more at risk than others. Identifying the regions most exposed to climate change is therefore a first and pivotal step on determining species’ vulnerability across their geographic ranges. Here, we aimed at quantifying mammal local exposure to climate change across species’ ranges. We identified areas in the Brazilian Amazon where mammals will be critically exposed to non-analogue climates in the future with different variables predicted by 15 global circulation climate forecasts. We also built a null model to assess the effectiveness of the Amazon protected areas in buffering the effects of climate change on mammals, using an innovative and more realistic approach. We found that 85% of species are likely to be exposed to non-analogue climatic conditions in more than 80% of their ranges by 2070. That percentage is even higher for endemic mammals; almost all endemic species are predicted to be exposed in more than 80% of their range. Exposure patterns also varied with different climatic variables and seem to be geographically structured. Western and northern Amazon species are more likely to experience temperature anomalies while northeastern species will be more affected by rainfall abnormality. We also observed an increase in the number of critically-exposed species from 2050 to 2070. Overall, our results indicate that mammals might face high exposure to climate change and that protected areas will probably not be efficient enough to avert those impacts.

Human-induced climate change is considered a conspicuous threat to biodiversity in the 21^stcentury. Species’ response to climate change depends on their exposition, sensitivity and ability to adapt to novel climates. Exposure to climate change is however uneven within species’ range, so that some populations may be more at risk than others. Identifying the regions most exposed to climate change is therefore a first and pivotal step on determining species’ vulnerability across their geographic ranges. Here, we aimed at quantifying mammal local exposure to climate change across species’ ranges. We identified areas in the Brazilian Amazon where mammals will be critically exposed to non-analogue climates in the future with different variables predicted by 15 global circulation climate forecasts. We also built a null model to assess the effectiveness of the Amazon protected areas in buffering the effects of climate change on mammals, using an innovative and more realistic approach. We found that 85% of species are likely to be exposed to non-analogue climatic conditions in more than 80% of their ranges by 2070. That percentage is even higher for endemic mammals; almost all endemic species are predicted to be exposed in more than 80% of their range. Exposure patterns also varied with different climatic variables and seem to be geographically structured. Western and northern Amazon species are more likely to experience temperature anomalies while northeastern species will be more affected by rainfall abnormality. We also observed an increase in the number of critically-exposed species from 2050 to 2070. Overall, our results indicate that mammals might face high exposure to climate change and that protected areas will probably not be efficient enough to avert those impacts.

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o potencial de mitigação de óxido nitroso (N2O) em sistema de integração lavoura-pecuária-floresta (ILPF), em comparação ao monocultivo, e identificar os principais fatores que regulam as emissões deste gás. O experimento foi realizado em Sinop, MT, entre as safras 2012/2013 e 2013/2014, e avaliou os seguintes tratamentos: floresta, lavoura e pastagem, além do ILPF. Durante a realização do experimento, não houve presença de bovinos nas áreas com pastagem. Amostras de óxido nitroso foram coletadas semanalmente, com uso de câmaras estáticas, modelo topo-base. As concentrações do gás foram determinadas por meio de cromatografia gasosa. A precipitação pluvial e a disponibilidade de N foram os principais fatores reguladores das emissões de N2O. O sistema de ILPF apresenta potencial promissor para mitigar as emissões de N2O, com emissão acumulada de 0,367 kg ha-1 de N, em comparação a de 1,401 kg ha-1 emitidas pela lavoura; de 0,298 kg ha-1, pela pastagem; e de 0,165 kg ha-1, pela floresta.

Despite environmental damage of cow meet production residues, specific methods to evaluate its spatial impact on soil contamination are sparse and time consuming. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of spectroscopy (400–2500 nm) to detected soil contaminated with organic compounds. It was conducted two experiments: (1) Three soils were incubated with pure and diluted blood from slaughterhouse in a greenhouse, and spectral data were obtained in laboratory with a FieldSpec sensor. (2) Field experiment was conducted to prove its approach. Soil spectral responses were evaluated by qualitative and quantitative methods, and chemical analyses were carried out. The addition of residues increased levels mostly of Na (92.9 %), Ca (80.9 %) and K (82.7 %). N and C increased 52.7 %. This high significant addition resulted on a decrease in soil reflectance intensity in all spectral ranges. These changed slightly at 650, 1450, 1550, 1900 and 2100 nm indicating alteration due to cation on the CEC of minerals. Principal components and soil line analyses corroborated the discrimination of samples quantification of Na, K, Ca and Mg, where R² vary from 0.68 until 0.85. In field areas with and without the waste also showed different spectra. Spectra were also able to analyze samples located downhill from the area with waste, indicating the presence of the waste close to streams, which came by leaching. The results indicate that it is possible to identify areas with organic residue by a quick method as compared with traditional soil analysis, helping man power inspection.

Changes in the distribution of rainfall and the occurrence of extreme rain events will alter the size and persistence of aquatic ecosystems. Such alterations may affect the structure of local aquatic communities in terms of species composition, and by altering species interactions. In many aquatic ecosystems, leaf litter sustains detrital food webs and could regulate the responses of communities to changes in rainfall. Few empirical studies have focused on how rainfall changes will affect aquatic communities and none have evaluated if basal resource diversity can increase resistance to such rainfall effects. In this study, we used water-holding terrestrial bromeliads, a tropical aquatic ecosystem, to test how predicted rainfall changes and litter diversity may affect community composition and trophic interactions. We used structural equation modeling to investigate the combined effects of rainfall changes and litter diversity on trophic interactions. We demonstrated that changes in rainfall disrupted trophic relationships, even though there were only minor direct effects on species abundance, richness, and community composition. Litter diversity was not able to reduce the impact of changes in rainfall on trophic interactions. We suggest that changes in rainfall can alter the way in which species interact with each other, decreasing the linkages among trophic groups. Such reductions in biotic interactions under climate change will have critical consequences for the functioning of tropical aquatic ecosystems.

A total of 70 Nellore bulls (18 ± 3 months of age) were used to determine the effects of crude glycerine (CG) replacing starch- v. fibre-based energy ingredients in low (LC; 0·40 concentrate) or high concentrate (HC; 0·60 concentrate) – on a dry matter (DM) basis – on DM intake (DMI), methane emissions and growth. Ten bulls were slaughtered (reference group) to obtain the carcass gain (CrG). The 60 remaining bulls (374 ± 24·5 kg) were allocated to a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement (two concentrate levels, LC or HC; and three feeding regimes, FR). The FR were: CO – without CG and maize as an ingredient of concentrate; CGM – inclusion of CG (0·10 of DM) replacing maize in the concentrate; and CGSH – inclusion of CG (0·10 of DM) replacing soybean hulls (SH) in the concentrate. Bulls fed LC or HC had similar DMI (kg/d) and growth. The DMI and average daily gain (ADG) were similar among FR. Concentrate level and FR tended to interact for methane emissions (g) per kg DMI. Bulls fed CGM had a greater G : F (g CrG/kg DMI) than those fed CO or CGSH diets. Increasing dietary concentrate (0·40–0·60) did not affect intake, methane emissions, or growth. Inclusion of CG in diets to replace SH in LC diets tended to decrease methane emissions from animals. When CG replaces SH in the diets, CrG and G:F (g CrG/kg DMI) are decreased compared with bulls fed CGM.

Amazon forest stocks large quantities of carbon both in plant biomass and in soil. Deforestation has accelerated the process of forest fragmentation in the Brazilian Amazon, resulting in changes in carbon stocks in both biomass and soil. Logging, including that under legal forest management, can create edge-like conditions inside the forest. We investigated the relationship between changes in carbon stocks in the soil and the distance to the nearest edge in forest remnants after about 30 years of isolation. We assessed the effect of edges using geographically weighted regression (GWR), which considers the non-stationary character of soil carbon stocks and assigns relative weights to the observations according to the distance between them. Data from 265 georeferenced plots distributed over 28 ha of forest fragments in the Manaus region were included in these analyses. Soil-carbon stocks were estimated for areas before (1984–1986) and after (2012–2013) isolation of the fragments. The GWR model indicated an apparent relationship between change in carbon stocks and distance from the edge (R2 = 0.79). The largest changes occurred in plots located closest to the edges. In 202 plots ⩽100 m from an edge, soil-carbon stock increased significantly (p = 0.01) by a mean of 1.34 Mg ha−1 over the ∼30-year period. Such changes in soil carbon stocks appear to be associated with higher rates of tree mortality caused by microclimatic changes in these areas. Increased necromass inputs combined with changes in composition and structure of vegetation may result in increased rates of decomposition of organic matter, transferring carbon to the soil compartment and increasing soil carbon stocks. Considering both “hard” edges adjacent to deforestation and “soft” edges in logging areas, the soil-carbon increase we measured implies an absorption of 6 × 106 MgC in Brazilian Amazonia. In hard edges maintained for ∼30 years, the soil-carbon increase offsets 8.3% of the carbon losses from “biomass collapse” in the first 100 m from a clearing. Soil carbon did not change significantly in 63 forest-interior plots, suggesting that global climate change has not yet had a detectible effect on this forest carbon compartment.

Fatty acid profile of crossbred beef cattle fed either a diet with corn gluten and protected fat (A) or a control diet (B) was evaluated. Animal’s gender and diet had greater influence on fatty acid profile than genotype. Diet A increased polyunsaturated fatty acids/saturated fatty acids ratio and decreased t11/t10-18:1 ratio and n-6 content.

Este artigo mostra os resultados de pesquisa para o semiárido pernambucano utilizando séries temporais diárias de temperatura e de precipitação com mais de 40 anos, com cenários futuros de mudanças do clima para o período de 2010 a 2050. Para determinar as tendências de mudanças do clima, presente e futuro, foram utilizadas tendências de mudanças climáticas, resultados de balanço hídrico e saídas do modelo atmosférico regional aninhado ETA, em cenário global do modelo climático aninhado em dois modelos climáticos globais, HadCM3 e BESM. Os resultados indicaram tendência de aumento das temperaturas máximas, redução das temperaturas mínimas, redução da pluviosidade, média anual, indicando tendência à aridização na região.

No ambiente marinho uma equação inversa entre a alcalinidade total e a salinidade, denominada de alcalinidade total normalizada (ATN) para mostrar uma relação linear entre esses parâmetros. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a distribuição superficial e vertical da ATN ao longo da Zona Econômica Exclusiva-ZEE da região Norte do Brasil, com os dados obtidos nas Operações Norte III e Norte IV, dentro do âmbito do Programa de Avaliação do Potencial Sustentável de Recursos Vivos na Zona Econômica Exclusiva (REVIZEE). Os dados demonstraram que o sistema do dióxido de carbono ao longo da ZEE Norte mantém o pH dentro da faixa esperada para o ambiente marinho. Os menores valores de pH (7,48 Norte III e 7,38 Norte IV), de AT (1971µmol kg-1, Norte III e 1878 µmol kg-1 Norte IV) e de ATN (2295 µmol kg-1 Norte III, 2293 µmol kg-1 Norte IV) na camada superficial, foram observados na área com influência da descarga do rio Amazonas, ou seja, com baixos valores de salinidade (28,31 Norte III e 24,00 Norte IV). As massas de águas na coluna de água, encontradas na região, tiveram diferenças na concentração de ATN. Essas diferenças podem ser associadas aos processos de degradação da matéria orgânica, e a formação ou dissolução do carbonato de cálcio. Pesquisas futuras englobando outras formas do sistema do dióxido de carbono, e também com a utilização de métodos mais precisos, irão servir para explicar a dinâmica desse sistema de forma mais precisa.

Forest biomass is an important variable for calculating carbon stocks and greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest fires in Brazilian Amazonia. Its spatial distribution has caused controversy due to disagreements over the application of different calculation methodologies. Standardized networks of forest surveys provide an alternative to solve this problem. This study models the spatial distribution and original total stock of forest biomass (Aboveground + Belowground + Fine and coarse litter) in Brazil’s state of Roraima, taking advantage of data from georeferenced forest surveys in the region. Commercial volume (bole volume) from surveys was expanded to total biomass. Kriging techniques were used to model the spatial distribution of biomass stocks and generate a benchmark map. All results were associated with phytophysiognomic groups, climatic regions and land uses (protected areas; agricultural use). We estimate forest in the state of Roraima to have an original biomass stock of 6.32 × 109 Mg. Forest biomasses in areas with shorter dry seasons were higher as compared to forests in regions with longer dry seasons. The original vegetation in protected areas, independent of phytophysiognomic group, has higher biomass compared to areas currently under agricultural use. Protected areas support 65.8% of Roraima’s stock of forest biomass, indicating an important potential role in REDD projects for conservation of forest carbon. Information on spatial distribution of biomass stocks at a more refined scale is needed to reduce uncertainties about the regional character of carbon pools in Amazonia.

A relationship between oceanic conditions in the northwestern equatorial Atlantic (NWEA) and the seasonal rainfall over the northern part of Brazilian Northeast (NNEB) allows large climate events to be forecasted with a delay of a few months. Observed sea surface variables (sea surface temperature, wind stress and latent heat flux) and reanalyzed temperature and salinity profiles at depths of 0 – 150 m are used during 1974-2008. Perturbations in the Wind-Evaporation-SST mechanism over the NWEA during the last months of the year and the first months of the following year are of primary importance in evaluating the risk that strong climate events will affect the subsequent seasonal rainfall (in March-April) over the NNEB. Especially interesting are the Barrier Layer Thickness (BLT) and Ocean Heat Content (OHC) in the NWEA region from August-September through the subsequent months, during which a slow and steady evolution is apparent, with the highest signal occurring in October-November. Through their relationship with the local surface dynamic conditions, such BLT and OHC perturbations during the last months of the year can be used as a valuable indicator for forecasting wet or dry events over the NNEB during the subsequent rainfall season. A proposal is discussed to deploy additional temperature/conductivity sensors down to a depth of 140 m at three PIRATA moorings located in the NWEA region. That will be necessary if the BLT and other parameters of energy exchange between the ocean and atmosphere are to be estimated in real time and with a sufficiently high vertical resolution.