Rio de Janeiro, 2021. Muito tem se estudado sobre os impactos dos grandes empreendimentos de infraestrutura, como as Linhas de Transmissão, na biodiversidade. A legislação brasileira determina o licenciamento ambiental como o processo para avaliar, mitigar e compensar os impactos decorrentes de qualquer empreendimento possivelmente impactante. Entretanto, tem se questionado se a lógica empresarial de menor custo e maior agilidade, empregada nestes processos, seria a mais indicada para esse tipo de pesquisa. Ainda, em relação ao meio biótico, alguns autores vêm questionando que estes apresentam dados de baixa qualidade. Dessa forma, o objetivo desta tese foi avaliar a qualidade dos diagnósticos ambientais de mamíferos nos estudos de avalição de impacto vinculados ao processo de licenciamento ambiental de Linhas de Transmissão, disponíveis na base de dados online do IBAMA. Foi verificada a qualidade dos dados apresentados nos estudos de primatas e roedores sigmodontíneos, avaliando os quesitos (i) Identificação, (ii) Status de Ameaça e (iii) Amostragem. Foi calculada uma nota para cada estudo de primata e roedor sigmodontíneo, e uma nota geral para fauna, todas variando de 0 a 1. Essas notas foram usadas como referência para comparação entre os anos, empresa responsável e equipe técnica apresentada por cada estudo. Foram obtidos 60 estudos, dos quais 52 puderam ser avaliados. Destes, 90% apresentaram registros de primatas e/ou roedores sigmodontíneos. Roedores apresentaram mais problemas no quesito Identificação. A maioria dos estudos de primatas apresentou problemas no quesito Status de Ameaça, principalmente para a apresentação da CITES. Pouco mais da metade dos estudos informou que houve alguma coleta de um espécime de roedor. A maioria dos estudos apresentou o Método de Amostragem e a Forma do Registro corretamente. Porém, o principal erro foi omissão destas informações na tabela de apresentação dos resultados. Apenas metade dos registros apresentou as Coordenadas de forma completa, onde a maioria não apresentou o DATUM da coordenada. As notas calculadas para os estudos de primatas variaram de 0,60 a 1,00, de roedores de 0,38 a 0,95 e de fauna de 0,49 a 1,00. A maioria dos estudos foi considerada boa (notas ≥ 0,75), e um estudo foi considerado ótimo, sem erros (nota 1,00). Esses resultados contrariam a percepção sobre baixa qualidade, já que apenas um estudo foi considerado ruim (nota < 0,50). Não houve diferença na qualidade dos estudos ao longo dos anos no período avaliado (2006 a 2017). Não houve diferença entre as empresas que realizaram os estudos. Também não houve diferença entre os estudos que apresentaram equipe técnica completa e os que não apresentaram, nem entre os que apresentaram algum profissional especialista em fauna, mastofauna, pequenos mamíferos ou médio e grandes mamíferos, e os que não apresentaram. A verificação da qualidade dos resultados realizada no presente estudo foi pioneira. A avaliação aqui proposta pode auxiliar aos órgãos ambientais na verificação dos estudos, com a criação de um “CHECKLIST” e um sistema de notas para aceitação dos relatórios, assim como uma proposta de padronização para a apresentação dos resultados.

Os pequenos mamíferos apresentam maior diversidade para a região Neotropical e são bons indicadores de alterações de habitats. Nós amostramos dois tipos de fitofisionomias. Os objetivos deste estudo foram avaliar a estrutura, a estratificação vertical e o impacto da mineração na comunidade de pequenos mamíferos nas áreas de Canga e Floresta. Foram amostradas seis linhas paralelas a partir da borda, em cada área. Foram instaladas 60 armadilhas intercaladas nos três estratos: solo, sub-bosque e dossel, durante seis noites consecutivas. E armadilhas de queda e interceptação, com 15 baldes em cada trilha, apenas nas áreas de Floresta. Foram amostradas uma área de cada fitofisionomia mais próxima e mais afastada do impacto, durante dois períodos chuvosos e dois secos, de 2009 a 2011. Nós encontramos diferenças muito evidentes quanto à composição e estrutura nos dois tipos de fitofisionomias amostradas: a riqueza foi maior na Floresta e a abundância total foi maior na Canga. Das 24 espécies amostradas, 15 foram registradas exclusivamente no solo, oito no solo e sub-bosque e uma (Glironia venusta) exclusivamente no dossel. Apenas Micoureus demerarae foi registrado nos três estratos e Caluromys philander apenas no sub-bosque e dossel. O efeito do impacto é muito evidente nas Florestas e menos nas Cangas. Nas Florestas, quanto mais distante do impacto, maior a riqueza e abundância de espécies. É importante a continuidade e o aprofundamento de estudos com comunidades de pequenos mamíferos na Floresta Nacional de Carajás, ampliando o conhecimento científico para propor medidas que minimizem o impacto causado pela atividade mineradora na região.

Mammals are threatened worldwide, with ca. 26% of all species being included in the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associated to habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mammals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change and prey depletion for marine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems functionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is crucial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublished georeferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mammals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of Azores and Madeira that includes 107,852 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occurring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live observations/captures (42%), sign surveys (38%), camera trapping (16%), bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radio-tracking and inquiries that represent less than 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: 1) burrows | soil mounds | tunnel, 2) capture, 3) colony, 4) dead animal | hair | skulls | jaws, 5) genetic confirmation, 6) inquiries, 7) observation of live animal, 8), observation in shelters, 9) photo trapping | video, 10), predators diet | pellets | pine cones/nuts, 11) scat | track | ditch, 12) telemetry and 13) vocalization | echolocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and 100 m (76%). Rodentia (n = 34,754) has the highest number of records followed by Chiroptera (n = 18,858), Carnivora (n = 18,594), Lagomorpha (n = 17,679), Cetartiodactyla (n = 11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n = 6,400). The data set includes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened (e.g., Oryctolagus cuniculus (n = 12,407), Monachus monachus (n = 1512), and Lynx pardinus (n = 197)]. We believe that this data set may stimulate the publication of other European countries data sets which would certainly contribute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting on the development of more accurate and tailored conservation management strategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite this data paper when the data are used in publications

Although codistributed species are affected by the same abiotic factors, such as rivers and seasonal flooding regimes, ecological traits, such as locomotion hab- its and habitat preferences, may also influence differences in levels of genetic diversity and differentiation. We examined population genetic structure and diversity of Hylaeamys megacephalus and Oecomys aff. roberti, two cricetid rodent species from the mid-Araguaia River in central Brazil, using mitochon- drial DNA sequence data. Specifically, we aim to test whether the Araguaia River acts as a barrier to the gene flow of these two species and to assess how ecological traits, such as locomotion habits and habitat preferences, may influ- ence differences in levels of genetic diversity and differentiation. As both species occur in flooded forests, neither showed genetic differences related to river banks. Oecomys aff. roberti showed stronger population structure that appears to be associated with isolation by distance. This arboreal species maintained sta- ble populations in the Araguaia River, while the terrestrial H. megacephalus was more affected by seasonal floods, resulting in a genetic signature of population expansion. Our initial predictions were largely supported by our results given that locomotion habits and habitat preferences of each species appears to have played a role on the genetic structure of these two sympatric rodent species.

Seasonally flooded natural forest fragments, so-called ipucas, in the Araguaia alluvial plain of the state of Tocantins, central Brazil, represent a peculiar landscape that is poorly surveyed. This study considers the diversity in the small mammal assemblage and the zoogeographical patterns of this assemblage when compared to 30 other study sites in Brazil. Results: ‘Ipucas’ harbour species adapted to disturbed habitats that are common in fragmented landscapes and endemic species of the Cerrado. However, they also constitute the most central-eastern distribution limit of one typical Amazonian species. These fragments are closely related to the central-western region of Brazil, in the Amazonia-Cerrado ecotone, which lies in the so-called arc of deforestation. Conclusions: Our results reinforce the idea that the habitat mosaic found in the Araguaia alluvial plain has an important role in promoting the high biodiversity of this area and that natural forest fragments may act as a refuge and food resource for several species. These fragments may also constitute essential stepping stones for smallmammal species within agricultural landscapes. Further studies are essential to better understand small mammal communities inhabiting natural forest fragments in the Araguaia alluvial plain, and these will support in assessing the future of this fauna and, thereby, help to establish future conservation practices in this area.

Mediterranean peninsulas are well-known glacial refugia for several mammal species. For Eurasian red squirrel ( Sciurus vulgaris ), a forest-dwelling rodent, there is some evidence that population diversification was influenced by these refugia. Here, we review the poorly known history of the red squirrel in the Iberian Peninsula, and discuss current threats to this species, suggesting conservation guidelines and exploring several research lines for forthcoming studies. Red squirrel populations suffered several bottlenecks in Iberia, but recently, after four centuries of absence, this species is expanding throughout the Portuguese territory. Although S. vulgaris taxonomic and genetic status needs further investigation, molecular data support the occurrence of a possible distinct cluster in the Iberian Peninsula. Additionally, a distinct and endemic population was recorded to the Sierra de Espuña, in Spain, which was probably the result of Quaternary climatic and vegetation fluctuations. Two major threats for red squirrels in Europe were identified: (i) habitat deterioration; and (ii) competition with the invasive Eastern grey squirrel ( S. carolinensis ). Conservation actions should focus on the conservation, restoration and appropriate management of suitable forested habitats. Although to date no grey squirrels occur in the wild in the Iberia, the trade and release of this invasive sciurid species is already forbidden by national conservation agencies in both Iberian countries and awareness campaigns are suggested. An integrated research approach using both molecular and ecological data, and a large dataset containing samples from the entire Iberian Peninsula, should be followed to better understand historical, contemporary and future factors that may affect squirrel distribution.

In terrestrial organisms, sensitivity to the Earth's magnetic field is mediated by at least two different magnetoreception mechanisms, one involving biogenic ferromagnetic crystals (magnetite/maghemite) and the second involving a photo-induced biochemical reaction that forms long-lasting, spin-coordinated, radical pair intermediates. In some vertebrate groups (amphibians and birds), both mechanisms are present; a light-dependent mechanism provides a directional sense or 'compass', and a non-light-dependent mechanism underlies a geographical-position sense or 'map'. Evidence that both magnetite- and radical pair-based mechanisms are present in the same organisms raises a number of interesting questions. Why has natural selection produced magnetic sensors utilizing two distinct biophysical mechanisms? And, in particular, why has natural selection produced a compass mechanism based on a light-dependent radical pair mechanism (RPM) when a magnetite-based receptor is well suited to perform this function? Answers to these questions depend, to a large degree, on how the properties of the RPM, viewed from a neuroethological rather than a biophysical perspective, differ from those of a magnetite-based magnetic compass. The RPM is expected to produce a light-dependent, 3-D pattern of response that is axially symmetrical and, in some groups of animals, may be perceived as a pattern of light intensity and/or color superimposed on the visual surroundings. We suggest that the light-dependent magnetic compass may serve not only as a source of directional information but also provide a spherical coordinate system that helps to interface metrics of distance, direction and spatial position.

Emotional contagion is the most ancestral form of empathy. We tested to what extent the proximate mechanisms of emotional contagion are evolutionarily conserved by assessing the role of oxytocin, known to regulate empathic behaviors in mammals, in social fear contagion in zebrafish. Using oxytocin and oxytocin receptor mutants, we show that oxytocin is both necessary and sufficient for observer zebrafish to imitate the distressed behavior of conspecific demonstrators. The brain regions associated with emotional contagion in zebrafish are homologous to those involved in the same process in rodents (e.g., striatum, lateral septum), receiving direct projections from oxytocinergic neurons located in the pre-optic area. Together, our results support an evolutionary conserved role for oxytocin as a key regulator of basic empathic behaviors across vertebrates. Copyright © 2023 The Authors, some rights reserved.

Mammals are threatened worldwide, with 26% of all species being included in the IUCN threatened categories. This overall pattern is primarily associated with habitat loss or degradation, and human persecution for terrestrial mam mals, and pollution, open net fishing, climate change, and prey depletion for marine mammals. Mammals play a key role in maintaining ecosystems func tionality and resilience, and therefore information on their distribution is cru cial to delineate and support conservation actions. MAMMALS IN PORTUGAL is a publicly available data set compiling unpublished georeferenced occurrence records of 92 terrestrial, volant, and marine mam mals in mainland Portugal and archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira that includes 105,026 data entries between 1873 and 2021 (72% of the data occur ring in 2000 and 2021). The methods used to collect the data were: live obser vations/captures (43%), sign surveys (35%), camera trapping (16%), bioacoustics surveys (4%) and radiotracking, and inquiries that represent less than 1% of the records. The data set includes 13 types of records: (1) burrows j soil mounds j tunnel, (2) capture, (3) colony, (4) dead animal j hair j skulls j jaws, (5) genetic confirmation, (6) inquiries, (7) observation of live animal (8), observation in shelters, (9) photo trapping j video, (10) predators diet j pellets j pine cones/nuts, (11) scat j track j ditch, (12) telemetry and (13) vocalization j echolocation. The spatial uncertainty of most records ranges between 0 and 100 m (76%). Rodentia (n =31,573) has the highest number of records followed by Chiroptera (n = 18,857), Carnivora (n = 18,594), Lagomorpha (n = 17,496), Cetartiodactyla (n = 11,568) and Eulipotyphla (n = 7008). The data set includes records of species classified by the IUCN as threatened (e.g., Oryctolagus cuniculus [n = 12,159], Monachus monachus [n = 1,512], and Lynx pardinus [n = 197]). We believe that this data set may stimulate the publication of other European countries data sets that would certainly contrib ute to ecology and conservation-related research, and therefore assisting on the development of more accurate and tailored conservation management strategies for each species. There are no copyright restrictions; please cite this data paper when the data are used in publications.