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Abstract Investigating multi-taxa macroecological patterns can provide critical insights for spatial conservation planning and landscape management across biodiversity hotspots. The Pernambuco Endemism Center (PEC) is a biogeographic region of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest known to harbor the most threatened habitats in the Americas and a considerable number of recent bird extinctions. Here, we modeled the distribution of 30 threatened forest-dependent birds, 29 of which endemic to the PEC, to reveal key habitats/resources for their survival, identify conservation priority areas, and design ecological corridors. We found variations in the responses of the taxa to landscape characteristics when we addressed these organisms separately and when we grouped them by conservation status. Overall, the environmental variables related to forest quality (e.g., distance to large fragments, distance to the forest edge, percentage of tree cover, percentage of older forests) were important predictors of habitat suitability for the regional threatened avifauna. Additionally, we revealed forest fragments of high ecological importance for the PEC’s threatened birds, and we propose the creation of the Pernambuco Endemism Center Restoration Arc (PEC-ARC) that may maximize the investments in conservation and guarantee the connectivity of crucial areas for long-term species survival.

Pernambuco Endemism Center (PEC) stands as the Brazilian Atlantic Forest region with the most pronounced history of deforestation and forest fragmentation, attributed to early European colonization and agricultural settlement. As a result, PEC is known as the global tropical forest experiencing both the highest fragmentation levels and extinction rates. The extent of biodiversity loss and the factors associated with biodiversity persistence at PEC remain a knowledge gap. To address this gap, we evaluated how forest cover, fragmentation and other landscape features are related to the mammal’s persistence. Using baited camera traps, we sampled 21 landscapes dominated by hostile matrices in Alagoas. We examined the relationship between species composition, richness, abundance, and beta-diversity and seven predictors through Generalized Linear Models and Multiple Regressions on Distance Matrices. Our findings revealed the presence of 21 native mammals in the study area, representing nearly 78 % of the diversity expected for the PEC. Nevertheless, we also found a high proportion of species loss within each landscape (from 43 % to 76 %), and high levels of species turnover between landscapes. Considering landscapes metrics, mammals exhibited more pronounced responses to habitat fragmentation in contrast to habitat loss or other anthropogenic factors. We identified a positive relationship between connectivity and richness, while the number of patches negatively affected the abundance. Our results underscore the critical role of habitat connectivity in highly deforested and fragmented regions, where it becomes more important than forest cover. The pronounced species turnover is key in upholding regional diversity and is crucial to species persistence in the region.

ABSTRACT: The study of fossil and subfossil birds in Brazil is still in its early stages despite its relatively abundant material. The remains are represented by bones, feathers, mummified specimens, eggs, coprolites, pellets, and tracks found in all Regions of the country starting in the 1830s. They are known from the Early Cretaceous to the latest Holocene, albeit several temporal gaps exist, and the most expressive diversity and quantity are concentrated in a few but important sites. Our survey and review of the literature and some previously unpublished specimens resulted in a list of 670 records demonstrating that the country’s known past avifaunas are essentially modern and rely mostly on provisional determination methods. Despite this, 15 extinct genera and 20 extinct species were newly described, demonstrating this field’s potential. The proper study of numerous long-stored materials from both paleontological and archeological contexts and eventual new remains can contribute significantly to our understanding of avian evolution and their taxonomic diversity throughout time, besides furnishing paleobiogeographic and paleoenvironmental information.

ABSTRACT The semideciduous forest is a prominent yet highly degraded phytophysiognomy within the Atlantic Forest. Historically, bird species inhabiting these forests occurred throughout central and western São Paulo state, south‐eastern Brazil, until the mid‐20th century. Many of these species have not been observed again or are nearing extinction within the state's inland forest fragments. This study reviews and compares historical and recent ornithological records, using museum specimens, literature, citizen science and recent field surveys to understand these species' current lack of records. In the early 20th century, extensive deforestation occurred statewide, resulting in the current forest fragments, which are currently in various stages of regeneration, conservation and isolation. Many of these fragments lack the specific habitats some species require, or they have not been recolonised due to insufficient connectivity with other forest fragments where these species still exist (particularly in the eastern Atlantic Forest). The non‐detection of forest species in semideciduous forest fragments strongly suggests an unprecedented and largely unnoticed extinction scale. This pattern of defaunation, as predicted 30 years ago, may be prevalent across numerous Semideciduous Atlantic Forests in Brazil.

Cryopreservation and transplantation of testicular cells (TCs), especially spematogonial stem cells (SSCs), offers a new perspective for the genetic rescue of birds since traditional biobanking using semen and eggs are either inefficient or impractical. Here, we demonstrated that transplantation of TCs (which contained SSCs) from dead curassows were able to survive and colonize chicken testes, despite the phylogenetic distance between donors and recipients. Previously to transplants, TCs were collected, cryopreserved, thawed, and then labelled with PKH26. Subsequently, labelled TCs were transferred into gonads of sterilized recipient chickens, and monitored for their presence and development from 1 to 180 days after transplantation. The interval between collecting testes and processing them in the laboratory was crucial for TCs viability, but it did not affect the viability of undifferentiated spermatogonia within 24 hours post-mortem. Although positive correlation between testis weight and the total cells recovered was noticed, the number of undifferentiated spermatogonia comprised approximately 0.05% of the total TCs. Once the number of undifferentiated spermagonial stem cells was not sufficient, we decided to make transplants using crude TC fractions containing different types of germ and somatic cells. PKH26-positive cells were found in the cryosections of recipient testes until 42 days after transplantation, whereas the presence of the donor genomic DNA was confirmed until 120 days after transplantation. Taken together, our findings indicate that chicken testes can provide functional conditions for the survival and proliferation of germ cells rescued from individuals of another family of the Galliformes order. This approach represents a promising conservation tool for the recovery of testicular germ cells (including SSCs) from individuals of different ages (from embryos to adult males).

Reproductive activity in animals is regulated by variations in plasma levels of steroid hormones, which respond to both geophysical and social-environmental cues. Changes in testosterone (T) levels play a crucial role in coordinating the morphological, physiological, and behavioral adaptations among males, orchestrating gonadal recrudescence and regression in response to seasonal shifts in environmental factors. Although these reproductive neuroendocrine processes have been extensively examined in various bird species, they remain largely unexplored in owls. The Tropical Screech Owl is widely distributed across Central and South America, and it exhibits regional variations in the timing of chick hatching. This study hypothesized that male Tropical Screech Owls (Megascops choliba) exhibit fluctuations in testosterone levels and corresponding seasonal expression of reproductive genes, potentially linked to reproductive activity, including the presence of semen. To investigate this seasonal reproduction, a group of seven adult male owls was monitored for 14 consecutive months under ex-situ conditions. These owls underwent cloacal electrostimulation and subsequent massage to collect semen, as well as blood sampling to measure serum T levels. The expression of aromatase (CYP19A1), androgen receptor (AR), and estrogen receptor (ESR1 and ESR2) genes was also assessed in gonadal and hypothalamic tissues from four reproductively active and four non-reproductive males collected in-situ from a wild population. Serum T levels in males were significantly higher in July and August, coinciding with the presence of sperm. No significant difference was observed in the hypothalamic tissue transcripts of reproductive versus non-reproductive males. However, non-reproductive males exhibited higher expression of AR and ESR1 genes at the gonadal level. These results confirm the reproductive seasonality of M. choliba males during the winter season in São Paulo State.

Effective, resilient and strategic protected area networks are essential to protect biodiversity and human welfare, especially in vulnerable biodiversity hotspots. This is the case in the Brazilian Cerrado, the richest tropical savanna, and a deforestation front worldwide. Worryingly, the rate of habitat conversion in Cerrado greatly reduces opportunities to conserve its biodiversity. Herein, using the most comprehensive database on the distribution of Cerrado endemic terrestrial vertebrates, we mapped conservation priority areas and evaluated how and to what extent habitat loss and fragmentation reduce conservation opportunities. Priority areas are scattered throughout the Cerrado. Larger priority areas are concentrated in the northern portion of the region. Southern priority areas are small, scattered, and isolated. During the last 35 years, opportunities to conserve large contiguous areas have significantly decreased, hampering the representation of key endemic species. However, as most endemic vertebrates are small ranged, modest but well located increments in total protected area will result in significant overall improvements in the PA system. Protecting the largest priority areas identified here is urgent and mandatory, while using habitat restoration as a key activity to promote connectivity among smaller priority areas, especially in the southern portion of this hotspot.

Species have been lost at unprecedented rates. Because only a small fraction of the threatened taxa have been managed under human care, contrasting the characteristics of taxa that have, and have not been targeted to ex situ conservation can reveal the reach of this conservation strategy, and can indicate its main challenges. Here we investigated whether the level of threat, diet, body mass, phylogeny, and previous presence in captivity due to non-conservation purposes could be potential parameters accounting for the occurrence of Brazilian threatened avian species and subspecies in ex situ conservation facilities and for their eligibility to organized ex situ conservation plans. Using Bayesian phylogenetic comparative models we found positive effects of body mass and phylogeny, and a negative effect of insectivorous diet in the occurrence of the taxa in non-conservation facilities. The previous presence in non-conservation facilities, together with phylogeny, diet, and body mass were the main parameters accounting for the occurrence of the threatened taxa in ex situ conservation facilities, and the previous presence in non-conservation facilities and phylogeny explained the existence of organized ex situ conservation plans. This is evidence that conservation breeding facilities have mostly harbored threatened confiscated birds than choosing them based on scientific criteria. We suggest that investing in the development of husbandry techniques, especially for insectivorous passerines, and choosing taxa based on scientific criteria are important challenges that should be on the agenda of conservation managers.

Abstract The Black Skimmer (Rynchops niger) and the Large-billed Tern (Phaetusa simplex) are two migratory waterbirds that breed simultaneously on many river beaches in South America. Both are polytypic taxa with little information about the distribution and nonbreeding (“wintering”) areas. Based on data from the literature, citizen science websites, fieldwork, and specimens housed in natural history museums, we revised the distribution of some of the main breeding colonies in South America, comparing it with continental rainy cycles to identify generalities about the role of precipitation seasonality on the defining intratropical migration routes of these species. Our data suggest that the seasonal precipitation cycle of South America directly influences the reproductive timing and distribution of both species, which is largely circumscribed by South America’s rivers. After breeding on sandy beaches during the dry season, both species disperse in small groups or even individually - not in large flocks as seen in breeding areas - making it difficult to find general migration patterns during the rainy season. Nonetheless, individuals of both species tend to follow the course of the largest rivers of the continent and even alternative routes to disperse into several areas throughout South America during the nonbreeding season.

The Golden Parakeet is an endemic Brazilian flagship species that has suffered from poaching and habitat loss, leading to local extinctions in the urbanized parts of the Amazon. We reintroduced six groups of mostly captive-bred parakeets in a protected area. The birds were acclimatized for at least five months at the release site, where they were trained to recognize native foods and develop foraging skills. Subsequently, we conducted a soft release, followed by daily supplementation and monitoring. For three years following the release we recorded their diet, feeding behavior, and how they adapted to wild foraging. The reintroduced birds fed on 23 plant species, with 13 not being previously listed in past studies. The three most consumed species corresponded to 77% of their feeding records. Parakeets spent more time feeding in altered landscapes and secondary vegetation than in the preserved forest. Most of the feeding happened during the rainy season when most of their favorite plants are fruiting. The parakeets’ incorporation of new species in their diet and their transition from supplemental to natural feeding happened gradually, as we did not reduce food offerings. Parakeets that showed site fidelity were able to find native food rapidly following release, but individuals that dispersed immediately had more difficulty finding food. This study showed that captive-bred Golden Parakeets can transition to a wild diet following a gradual reintroduction process.

Understanding the mechanisms by which tropical forest fragmentation can affect the persistence of species and populations is of scientific and practical interest. However, nest survival has been one the least addressed of the potentially harmful effects associated with habitat fragmentation, and studies involving nest predator’s identification are still underdeveloped. The Pernambuco Endemism Center (PEC) is the part of the Atlantic Forest located north of the São Francisco River, in northeastern Brazil, where large forest tracts no longer exist and a wave of bird extinctions has occurred recently. Here, we investigated the nest survival of forest understory birds from three PEC fragments (690, 979, and 1036 ha), and we used infra-red camera traps for predators’ identification. Overall, the apparent nest survival was 15.5%, and nest-day-based survival probability for the four more representative species (including two endemic and threatened taxa) were 2.6, 4.4, 6.9, and 18.9%, being 2.7 to 8.5 times smaller than populations or related taxa from the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil. Predators were marmosets (25%), opossums (25%), tegu (19.4%), coati (16.7%), snakes (8.3%), and hawks (5.5%). Jackknife2 model-predicted nest predator’s richness was 20.7 (SD = 1.6). We reinforce the evidence that nest predation associated with fragmentation can affect negatively the bird populations from tropical forests.

We present records of chewing lice collected from bird skins of the families Anhimidae, Threskiornithidae, and Aramidae deposited at the Museum of Zoology of University of São Paulo (MZUSP). Twenty-one chewing lice species from the suborders Amblycera and Ischnocera were identified, seven of which are new records for Brazil. These species belong to the genera Ardeicola (1), Colpocephalum (3), Ibidoecus (1), and Plegadiphilus (2). Furthermore, ten species were recorded from new localities in Brazil, and Colpocephalum cayennensisPrice & Emerson, 1967 is for the first time recorded with precise locality in the country. Lastly, the bird host subspecies Phimosus infuscatus nudifrons (Spix, 1825) (Threskiornithidae) was for the first time found to harbor lice species.

Large forested tracts are increasingly rare in the tropics, where conservation managers are often presented with the challenge of preserving biodiversity in small and isolated fragments. The Atlantic Forest is one of the world's most important biodiversity hotspots, jeopardized by habitat loss and fragmentation. The Pernambuco Endemism Center (PEC) is the most degraded of the Atlantic Forest regions and because of the dramatic levels of deforestation, fragmentation, and ongoing species losses, studies on the distribution and configuration of the PEC's forest cover are necessary. However, across dynamic tropical landscapes, investigating changes over time is essential because it may reveal trends in forest quality attributes. Here, we used Google Earth Engine to assess land use and land cover data from MapBiomas ranging from 1985 to 2020 to calculate current landscape metrics and to reveal for the first time the spatiotemporal dynamics of the PEC's forests. We identified a forest cover area that ranged from 571,661 ha in 1985 to 539,877 ha in 2020, and about 90% of the fragments were smaller than 10 ha. The average fragment size was about 11 ha, and only four fragments had more than 5,000 ha. Deforestation was mostly concentrated in northern Alagoas, southern Pernambuco, and non-coastal Paraíba and Rio Grande do Norte. On average, borders represented 53.6% of the forests from 1985 to 2020, and younger forests covered 52.3% of the area in 2017, revealing a vegetation rejuvenation process 2.5 times higher than in total Atlantic Forest. In 2017, older forest cores in fragments larger than 1000 ha (i.e., higher-quality habitats) represented only 12% of the remaining forests. We recommend that the amount of forest cover alone may poorly assist conservation managers, and our results indicate that ensuring legal protection and increasing surveillance of the PEC's few last higher-quality habitats is urgently needed.

The Brown-backed Parrotlet, Touit melanonotus, is a rare endemic bird to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, currently considered as “Vulnerable” in the Brazilian Red List of Threatened Species. We estimated the sex ratio of a wild flock of T. melanonotus using molecular markers, examined morphological variation in 34 museum specimens to test for sexual dimorphism, and conducted a literature review about sex ratio in Psittacidae for comparative purposes. We found a sex ratio of 0.8:1 (male/female; n = 29) in T. melanonotus, and a χ2 Goodness-of-fit test showed no significant difference from equality (p > 0.05). We describe three main categories in plumage: the first (and most common) comprises uniformly lime green birds, slightly darker on the head. The second is composed of individuals who are overall lighter, with the breast feathers washed with light greenish gray, and feathers of the head being dark lime green, presenting a sharp contrast with the breast feathers. The third and the rarest one is composed of birds with light greenish gray underparts with emerald green and darker upper parts. T. melanonotus has no apparent sexual dimorphism. We found no evidence of geographic variation. Sex ratio deviation may not be a parameter increasing the vulnerability of the species. Data like these represent a big leap in the knowledge of the species and has the potential to help and inform conservation efforts.

Analyzing genetic variability and kinship relations is essential to guide conservation management plans for threatened species. The Red-browed Amazon (Amazona rhodocorytha) is one of the four Amazona parrots that are endemic to remnants of the Atlantic Forest, classified as Vulnerable (IUCN) owing to habitat loss and fragmentation and trapping for the illegal pet trade. At the end of 2021, 19 Red-browed Amazons were rescued from illegal trade in the Espírito Santo state, Brazil, including 14 nestlings reportedly captured in the Sooretama Biological Reserve, which provided the first opportunity to address the genetic parameters of a wild population of this threatened parrot. We used Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) data to assess the genetic diversity and kinship relations between the rescued birds. We observed high heterozygosity levels and low inbreeding coefficients. Principal Component Analysis revealed the presence of at least two distinct genetic groups, suggesting past isolation followed by secondary contact. Our results suggest that the population from Sooretama is an important genetic and demographic repository of the Red-browed Amazon, and the presence of individuals from the two genetic lineages in the same area reduces concerns about potential inbreeding depression in rehabilitation and reintroduction plans and also inspires further investigations on historical and contemporary population structuring.

Abstract The northeast Brazilian state of Alagoas harbors a rather diverse, and one of the world’s most threatened, avifauna. However, the knowledge about its avifauna is currently scattered on several publications and the state’s birds have never been comprehensively assembled into a checklist. To fill this shortfall, we present here the first critical review of all available bird records for the state of Alagoas. We present a list of 520 bird species recorded in the state, of which 503 are supported by documentary evidence. We also comment on the distribution, migratory movements, taxonomy and conservation of the region’s avifauna and correct previous misidentified or invalid records for the state.

The Neotropical avian genus Thraupis (Passeriformes, Thraupidae) currently comprises seven species that are widespread and abundant throughout their ranges. However, no phylogenetic hypothesis with comprehensive intraspecific sampling is available for the group and, therefore, currently accepted species limits remain untested. We obtained sequence data for two mitochondrial (ND2, cyt-b) and three non-coding nuclear (TGFB2, MUSK, and βF5) markers from 118 vouchered museum specimens. We conducted population structure and coalescent-based species-tree analyses using a molecular clock calibration. We integrated these results with morphometric and coloration analyses of 1,003 museum specimens to assess species limits within Thraupis. Our results confirm that Thraupis is a monophyletic group and support its origin in the late Miocene and subsequent diversification during the Pleistocene. However, we found conflicts with previous phylogenies. We recovered Thraupis glaucocolpa to be sister to all other species in the genus, and T. cyanoptera to the remaining five species. Our phylogenetic trees and population structure analyses uncovered phylogeographic structure within Thraupis episcopus that is congruent with geographic patterns of phenotypic variation and distributions of some named taxa. The first genetic and phenotypic cluster in T. episcopus occurs east of the Andes and is diagnosed by the white patch on the lesser and median wing coverts, whereas the second group has a blue patch on the wing and distributes to the west of Colombia's eastern Andes. Finally, we present evidence of hybridization and ongoing gene flow between several taxa at different taxonomic levels and discuss its taxonomic implications.

Cyanocorax chrysops (Vieillot, 1818) and Cyanocorax cyanopogon (Wied, 1821) are widespread jays. They are considered sister species according to recent molecular phylogenies. When analyzing museum specimens of both species, we found two individuals with intermediate plumage characteristics. They were collected near the range limits of both species, and we classified them as hybrids. Based on the sites where these specimens were found, we discuss the possible factors leading the interbreeding and compare our findings with information available in the literature. This is the first documented case of natural hybridization in jays in Brazil and the second case involving sister species within the New World jays.

The yellow-tailed woolly monkey, Lagothrix flavicauda (Humboldt, 1812), is a large atelid endemic to the cloud forests of Peru. The identity of this species was uncertain for at least 150 years, since its original description in 1812 without a voucher specimen. Additionally, the absence of expeditions to the remote Peruvian cloud forests made it impossible to collect material that would help to confirm the true identity of L. flavicauda during the 19th and first half of the 20th century. Until now, the specimens of L. flavicauda collected by H. Watkins, in 1925, in La Lejía (Amazonas, Peru) were thought to be the oldest ones deposited in any scientific collection. Nevertheless, after reviewing the databases of the several international museums and literature, we found one specimen of L. flavicauda deposited at the Muséum National d’histoire Naturelle (Paris, France) collected in 1900 by G.A. Baër, in the most eastern part of San Martín (Peru), where the presence of this species was not confirmed until 2011. Thus, Baër’s specimen represents the oldest known specimen of the yellow-tailed woolly monkey and the only one coming from the eastern part of the species’ distribution. Finally, we highlight the importance of online scientific databases for easily diagnosable species. However, caution needs to be taken when using them. We also discuss the value of scientific collections as sources of new discoveries.

The continued loss, fragmentation, and degradation of forest habitats are driving an extinction crisis for tropical and subtropical bird species. This loss is particularly acute in the Atlantic Forest of South America, where it is unclear whether several endemic bird species are extinct or extant. We collate and model spatiotemporal distributional data for one such “lost” species, the Purple-winged Ground Dove Paraclaravis geoffroyi, a Critically Endangered endemic of the Atlantic Forest biome, which is nomadic and apparently dependent on masting bamboo stands. We compared its patterns of occurrence with that of a rare “control” forest pigeon, the Violaceous Quail-Dove Geotrygon violacea, which occurs in regional sympatry. We also solicit information from aviculturists who formerly kept the species. We find that the two species share a similar historical recording rate but can find no documentary evidence (i.e., specimens, photos, video, sound recordings) for the persistence of Purple-winged Ground Dove in the wild after the 1980s, despite periodic sighting records, and after which time citizen scientists frequently documented the control species in the wild. Assessments of the probability that the species is extant are sensitive to the method of analysis, and whether records lacking documentary evidence are considered credible. Analysis of the temporal sequence of past records reveals the extent of the historical range contraction of the Purple-winged Ground Dove, while our species distribution model highlights the geographic search priorities for field ornithologists hoping to rediscover the species—aided by the first recording of the species vocalizations which we obtained from interviews with aviculturists. Our interviews also revealed that the species persisted in captivity from the 1970s until the 1990s (up to 150 birds), until a law was passed obstructing captive breeding efforts by private individuals, putting an end to perhaps the best chance we had to save the species from extinction.

Abstract The Program for Biodiversity Research (PPBio) is an innovative program designed to integrate all biodiversity research stakeholders. Operating since 2004, it has installed long-term ecological research sites throughout Brazil and its logic has been applied in some other southern-hemisphere countries. The program supports all aspects of research necessary to understand biodiversity and the processes that affect it. There are presently 161 sampling sites (see some of them at Supplementary Appendix), most of which use a standardized methodology that allows comparisons across biomes and through time. To date, there are about 1200 publications associated with PPBio that cover topics ranging from natural history to genetics and species distributions. Most of the field data and metadata are available through PPBio web sites or DataONE. Metadata is available for researchers that intend to explore the different faces of Brazilian biodiversity spatio-temporal variation, as well as for managers intending to improve conservation strategies. The Program also fostered, directly and indirectly, local technical capacity building, and supported the training of hundreds of undergraduate and graduate students. The main challenge is maintaining the long-term funding necessary to understand biodiversity patterns and processes under pressure from global environmental changes.

Taxonomy is essential to biological sciences and the priority field in face of the biodiversity crisis. The industry of scientific publications has made extensive promotion and display of bibliometric indexes, resulting in side effects such as the Journal Impact Factor™ (JIF) mania. Inadequacies of the widely used indexes to assess taxonomic publications are among the impediments for the progress of this field. Based on an unusually high proportion of self-citations, the mega-journal Zootaxa, focused on zoological taxonomy, was suppressed from the Journal Citation Reports (JCR, Clarivate™). A prompt reaction from the scientific community against this decision took place exposing myths and misuses of bibliometrics. Our goal is to shed light on the impact of misuse of bibliometrics to the production in taxonomy. We explored JCR's metrics for 2010–2018 of 123 zoological journals publishing taxonomic studies. Zootaxa, with around 15 000 citations, received 311% more citations than the second most cited journal, and shows higher levels of self-citations than similar journals. We consider Zootaxa's scope and the fact that it is a mega-journal are insufficient to explain its high level of self-citation. Instead, this result is related to the ‘Zootaxa phenomenon', a sociological bias that includes visibility and potentially harmful misconceptions that portray the journal as the only one that publishes taxonomic studies. Menaces to taxonomy come from many sources and the low bibliometric indexes, including JIF, are only one factor among a range of threats. Instead of being focused on statistically illiterate journal metrics endorsing the villainy of policies imposed by profit-motivated companies, taxonomists should be engaged with renewed strength in actions directly connected to the promotion and practice of this science without regard for citation analysis.

Abstract The Little Chachalaca (Ortalis motmot) is a widely distributed species in the Amazon basin, typically found in riverine habitats. There are two disjunct populations: the northern O. m. motmot and the southern O. m. ruficeps (known as Chestnut-headed Chachalaca). Here we performed a vocal, morphological and plumage comparison between these two taxa. Birds present differences in tail coloration but are otherwise undiagnosable in terms of plumage. Ortalis m. ruficeps is, however, markedly smaller and lighter than O. m. motmot, with no overlap in size or weight. We also found vocal differences between O. m. motmot and O. m. ruficeps, no overlap in geographic distributions and no signs of hybridization across its range. Based on the available data, Ortalis m. ruficeps thus must be considered a valid species, endemic to Brazil.

In the middle of a political and fiscal crisis, the Brazilian government is applying successive budget cuts, including in science funding. Recent cuts radically affect research programs on biodiversity that are crucial components for the design and monitoring of public policies for nature conservation and sustainable development. We analyze the consequences of such cuts on the Research Program on Biodiversity (PPBio), the largest biodiversity research network in Brazil (626 researchers, nine networks in all Brazilian biomes). Brazil holds a substantial part of the world's biodiversity and of tropical forests that play a significant role for regional and global climate stability. If underfunding is maintained, the dismantling of the Brazilian PPBio will have consequences that go beyond biodiversity knowledge itself but affect society as a whole. Brazil will likely fail to reach the National Targets for Biodiversity 2011–2020, and it will be difficult to fulfill the restoration target of the Brazilian NDC and to advance with the sustainable development goals.

Abstract The Belem Curassow (Crax fasciolata pinima) is one of the most endangered birds in South America, without sightings of birds in the wild for 40 years. This subspecies is nationally and internationally classified as critically endangered and close to extinction, suffering from poaching and deforestation in its range. Here we present new records of free-living individuals made on three indigenous lands in Pará and Maranhão states: in part of Terra Indígena Mãe Maria, Bom Jesus do Tocantins, Pará; in locations within the Reserva Biológica do Gurupi/Terra Indígena Alto Turiaçu, Centro Novo do Maranhão, Maranhão; and around the Terra Indígena Rio Pindaré, Alto Alegre do Pindaré, Maranhão. We also provide recommendations to protect this bird via a dedicated conservation program which includes finding new individuals in non-sampled areas (north of BR-222), estimating population size, enhancing taxonomic and natural history knowledge, capturing wild animals in order to start urgent ex situ conservation programs, and developing environmental awareness programs with the local and indigenous populations.

Abstract Montane and submontane forest patches in the state of Bahia, Brazil, are among the few large and preserved Atlantic Forests remnants. They are strongholds of an almost complete elevational gradient, which harbor both lowland and highland bird taxa. Despite being considered a biodiversity hotspot, few ornithologists have surveyed these forests, especially along elevational gradients. Here we compile bird records acquired from systematic surveys and random observations carried out since the 1980s in a 7,500 ha private protected area: Serra Bonita private reserve. We recorded 368 species, of which 143 are Atlantic Forest endemic taxa. Some 16 and 13 species are threatened at the global and national levels, respectively. If one accounts for subspecies, the number of Brazilian threatened taxa raises to 21. Species composition differs between lower and higher elevations, in which case lowlands harbor Amazonia-related taxa, whereas highlands are the home of Atlantic Forest-related taxa.

Brazil has the highest number of parrots in the world and the greatest number of threatened species. The Golden Conure is endemic to the Brazilian Amazon forest and it is currently considered as threatened by extinction, although it is fairly common in captivity. Here we report the first reintroduction of this species. The birds were released in an urban park in Belem, capital of Para State, where the species was extinct more than a century ago. Birds were trained to recognize and consume local food and to avoid predators. After the soft-release, with food supplementation and using nest boxes, we recorded breeding activity in the wild. The main challenges before the release were the territorial disputes within the aviary and the predation by boa snakes. During the post-release monitoring the difficulties were the fast dispersion of some individuals and the dangers posed by anthropic elements such as power lines that caused some fatalities. Released birds were very successful at finding and consuming native foods, evading predators, and one pair reproduced successfully. Monitoring continues and further releases are programmed to establish an ecologically viable population.

ABSTRACT Penelope obscura Temminck, 1815 is a forest guan found in Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina and Bolivia. Three subspecies are currently recognized: Penelope o. obscura Temminck, 1815, P. o. bridgesi Gray, 1860, and P. o. bronzina Hellmayr, 1914. The limits between Penelope taxa are poorly understood since few studies have evaluated their differences in plumage, distribution and taxonomy. Based on 104 specimens deposited in ornithological collections we studied the variations in the plumage of P. obscura, including all characters that have been used to describe the included subspecies. Our results show that the plumage of these birds is extremely variable in southern and southeastern Brazil. Without any morphological and morphometric characters to support P. o. bronzina as a valid taxon, we synonymized it with P. obscura. Conversely, P. o. bridgesi, which occurs in the Yungas and the Chaco, is a distinct taxon and should be treated as a separate species from P. obscura.

Abstract We reviewed the occurrences and distributional patterns of migratory species of birds in Brazil. A species was classified as migratory when at least part of its population performs cyclical, seasonal movements with high fidelity to its breeding grounds. Of the 1,919 species of birds recorded in Brazil, 198 (10.3%) are migratory. Of these, 127 (64%) were classified as Migratory and 71 (36%) as Partially Migratory. A few species (83; 4.3%) were classified as Vagrant and eight (0,4%) species could not be defined due to limited information available, or due to conflicting data.

The taxonomy of the polytypic and wide-ranging Gray-necked Wood-rail, Aramides cajaneus is reviewed, based on external morphology and voice. Throughout its distribution, there is extensive plumage variation, much of it taxonomically uninformative. However, through three informative plumage characters, as well as morphometric and vocal variation, three phylogenetic species were identified within what is today known as A. cajaneus, all of which already had available names: A. albiventris Lawrence, 1868, from southern Mexico to northeastern Costa Rica, A. cajaneus (Statius Müller, 1776) (sensu stricto), from southwestern Costa Rica to Argentina, and A. avicenniae Stotz, 1992, from a small section of the coast of southeastern Brazil. A. albiventris presents extensive plumage variation, but with no geographic structure. The song of A. cajaneus and A. avicenniae is strikingly and completely different from the song of A. albiventris. A previously unnoticed parapatric pattern of distribution of A. cajaneus and its congener A. saracura in southeastern Brazil is described, and we clarify that the name A. plumbeicollis, included in the synonymy of A. albiventris, was first made available in 1892, rather than in 1888 as is widely referred. In addition, plumage variation in A. ypecaha, A. wolfi, and A. mangle is discussed.

Lepidocolaptes angustirostris is a South American woodcreeper that inhabits predominantly open lowlands such as the Cerrado, Chaco and Caatinga. Eight subspecies are currently recognized based on plumage patterns and geographical distribution. However, a more detailed morphological analysis and taxonomic revision have not been done in this species. The objective of this study was to conduct a taxonomic revision of L. angustirostris using morphometrical and plumage character, and a Generalized Linear Models analyzes (GLM) were elaborated to identify environmental variables that could account for this variation. We found a high level of intergradation among all named populations. The principal component analyzes show certain levels of morphological differentiation among the taxa, with a first component formed by bill characters (bill length, exposed and total culmen), and a second one that includes the bill width and the tarsus-metatarsus length. In the GLM analyzes, two climatic variables explain the geographical variation in the taxon, temperature seasonality and precipitation of warmest quarter. The ecogeographic rules of Bergmann and Gloger can be applied to this variation, and, more narrowly, the Allen's rule. Thus, the populations of the Narrow-billed Woodcreeper tend to be larger to the south of the distribution. We propose here that L. angustirostris is a single species, with no subordinate taxa. Any evidence analyzed here did not support the taxonomic validity of the proposed subspecies in the taxon. Despite colour-polymorphism identified in the plumage patterns, the high level of intergradation and the poor resolution of geographical boundaries did not support the splitting of this species.

The Atlantic Forest of northeast Brazil hosts a unique biota which is among the most threatened in the Neotropics. Near-total conversion of forest habitat to sugar cane monocultures has left the region's endemic forest-dependent avifauna marooned in a few highly-fragmented and degraded forest remnants. Here we summarise the current status of 16 globally threatened species based on surveys conducted over the last 11 years. We found a bleak situation for most of these species and consider that three endemics: Glaucidium mooreorum (Pernambuco Pygmy-owl), Cichlocolaptes mazarbarnetti (Cryptic Treehunter) and Philydor novaesi (Alagoas Foliage-gleaner) are most likely globally extinct. Some positive news can, however, be reported for both Leptodon forbesi (White-collared Kite) and Synallaxis infuscata (Pinto's Spinetail) which may warrant re-evaluation of their respective red list statuses. We outline a road map to prioritise conservation interventions in the region directed at preventing the extinction of this suite of threatened bird species and their companion biota.

After the description in the 19th century of two hummingbird species currently allocated to the genus Stephanoxis, Peters (1945) merged both taxa into a single species without providing any rationale. Here we re-evaluate the taxonomy and species limits of the representatives of this genus based on an extensive number of specimens. We demonstrate these taxa are better treated as full species under both the Biological and Phylogenetic Species Concepts due to their well-defined range and plumage patterns and reciprocally diagnosability. They have distinct, allopatric distributions segregated by a 160 km gap between the Serra do Mar, to the east, and Serra de Paranapiacaba, to the west, in the state of São Paulo. Stephanoxis species have ranges which are congruent with other montane bird species’ suggesting shared vicariance events during preterit interglacial periods.

During the past 100 years in densely populated south-eastern Brazil, wetlands have been severely transformed due to urbanization, agriculture and mining. The recently discovered São Paulo Marsh Antwren (Formicivora paludicola) is endemic to these wetlands, and is listed as "Critically Endangered" by the IUCN. The species is only found in an area of 1.42 km2, it has a sparse and fragmented distribution, low dispersal capacity, and has probably lost around 300 km2 of habitat in the past 100 years. Furthermore, very little is known about F. paludicola natural history, and so it is difficult to construct a robust conservation plan. Using Kernel home range estimations and the Adjusted-SD/Torus Shift test (a novel tool for animal-habitat association studies), we showed that the species avoids patches of the alien invasive ginger lily (Hedychium coronarium). Given the high density of their population (3.6 mature individuals/ha), F. paludicola could thrive in relatively small areas of suitable wetlands protected from human occupation and water contamination, however special attention should be paid to biological invasions, which may represent a serious threat to the remaining populations. Protecting a few small wetlands used by F. paludicola would be an important step towards general conservation and restoration of Atlantic Forest wetlands and its endemic endangered species.

Despite their wide use in ornithological surveys, point counts and mist nets follow protocols developed in temperate regions, with little attention to possible modifications for tropical systems. Using these methods on a 3-month basis from December 2009-January 2011 in two forest fragments in southeastern Brazil, we wished to evaluate how long these locations needed to be surveyed with point counts for a relatively complete avifaunal inventory (at least 90% of all species and contacts), and if mist net hourly captures can equally detect numbers of species and individuals. Daily counting with four 20-min points during five consecutive days in a rain forest (MC) detected 90% of the estimated species richness after 20 h (60 20-min point counts), while 17 h (51 20-min point counts) did not detect 90% of the estimated species richness in a semideciduous forest (IT). The first 5 min of point counting in MC (63% of all species) and in IT (65%) detected significantly more species than the remaining minutes, but it took 15 min to accumulate 86% of all contacts in both forests. Consecutive 5-day mist netting (~ 9 h/day) resulted in 70.5 net-h/m² (MC) and 74.8 net-h/m² (IT) of sample effort, but 80-85% of the estimated number of species was obtained. Although accumulation curves showed no tendency towards stabilization of the number of observed species, the estimated number of species began to stabilize after the first 20 h in both forests. There was no significant difference in capture rates for both species richness and abundance among hourly net checks, but a trend in which these parameters were highest between the second and fourth checks of the day was observed. A 3-day (43.8 and 63.3 net-h/m²) mist netting section was enough to record 90% of the species captured during five days in MC and IT, respectively, while precise enough not to jeopardize species richness estimation. The number of individuals, however, decreased order 34% in MC and 38% in IT under the same conditions. Considering the number of net checks, 90% of the estimated species richness was captured until the 1100 h check in both remnants, while 67% of all individuals were captured until this same hour. Our results demonstrate that surveying the avifauna in these locations will require unique approaches, which must be tested before the beginning of point counting or net opening.

In the northern hemisphere, bird counts have been fundamental in gathering data to understand population trends. Due to the seasonality of the northern hemisphere, counts take place during two clearly defined moments in time: the breeding season (resident birds) and winter (after migration). Depending on location, Neotropical birds may breed at any time of year, may or may not migrate, and those patterns are not necessarily synchronous among species. Also in contrast to the northern hemisphere, population trends and the impact of rapid urbanization and deforestation are unknown and unmonitored. Throughout one year, we used point counts to better understand temporal patterns of bird species richness and relative abundance in the state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil, to examine how to implement similar bird counts in tropical America. We counted birds twice each day on 10 point transects (20 points day‑1), separated by 200 m, with a 100 m limited detection radius in a semideciduous tropical forest. Both species richness and bird abundance were greater in the morning, but accumulation curves suggest that longer-duration afternoon counts would reach the same total species as in morning counts. Species richness and bird abundance did not vary seasonally and unique species were counted every month; relatively few species (20%) were present in all months. Most (84%) known forest species in the area were encountered. We suggest that point counts can work here as they do in the northern hemisphere. We recommend that transects include at least 20 points and that the simplest timing of bird counts would also be seasonal, using timing of migration of austral migrants (and six months later) to coordinate counts. We propose that bird counts in Brazil, and elsewhere in Latin America, would provide data to help understand population trends, but would require greater effort than in temperate latitudes due to greater species richness and different dynamics of reproduction and migration. With collaboration among ornithologists and coordinated bird surveys, we may develop a technique for the tropics that would yield information for population trends and conservation of birds, similar to counts in temperate latitudes.

The Atlantic Forest is an excellent case study for the elevational diversity of birds, and some inventories along elevational gradients have been carried out in Brazil. Since none of these studies explain the patterns of species richness with elevation, we herein review all Brazilian studies on bird elevational diversity, and test a geometric constraint null model that predicts a unimodal species-altitude curve, the Mid-domain Effect (MDE). We searched for bird inventories in the literature and also analysed our own survey data using limited-radius point counts along an 800 m elevational gradient in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. We found 10 investigations of elevational diversity of Atlantic Forest birds and identified five different elevational patterns: monotonic decreasing diversity, constant at low elevations, constant at low elevations but increasing towards the middle, and two undescribed patterns for Atlantic Forest birds, trough-shaped and increasing diversity. The average MDE fit was low (r² = 0.31) and none of the MDE predictions were robust across all gradients. Those studies with good MDE model fits had obvious sampling bias. Although it has been proposed that the MDE may be positively associated with the elevational diversity of birds, it does not fit the Brazilian Atlantic Forest bird elevational diversity.

Due to rapid and continuous deforestation, recent bird surveys in the Atlantic Forest are following rapid assessment programs to accumulate significant amounts of data during short periods of time. During this study, two surveying methods were used to evaluate which technique rapidly accumulated most species (> 90% of the estimated empirical value) at lowland Atlantic Forests in the state of São Paulo, southeastern Brazil. Birds were counted during the 2008-2010 breeding seasons using 10-minute point counts and 10-species lists. Overall, point counting detected as many species as lists (79 vs. 83, respectively), and 88 points (14.7 h) detected 90% of the estimated species richness. Forty-one lists were insufficient to detect 90% of all species. However, lists accumulated species faster in a shorter time period, probably due to the nature of the point count method in which species detected while moving between points are not considered. Rapid assessment programs in these forests will rapidly detect more species using 10-species lists. Both methods shared 63% of all forest species, but this may be due to spatial and temporal mismatch between samplings of each method.

Boracéia Biological Station, near the city of Salesópolis, SP, is located in one of the most well-defined centers of endemism in eastern Brazil - the Serra do Mar Center. While the station was established only in 1954 under the auspices of the Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, the avifauna of this locality had already attracted the attention of ornithologists by the 1940s, when the first specimens were collected. Here we describe the ornithological history of the Boracéia Biological Station with a review of all the bird species recorded during more than 68 years, including recent transect and mist-netting records. Boracéia's records were found in museums, literature and unpublished reports that totaled 323 bird species when recent data is also considered. Of these, 117 are endemic to the Atlantic forest and 28 are threatened in the state. Although there are a few doubtful records that need to be checked, some species are the only sightings in the state. Boracéia includes a recently discovered species near the station site and is extremely important for the conservation of Atlantic forest birds.A Estação Biológica de Boracéia, localizada em Salesópolis, SP, situa-se na Serra do Mar, importante região biogeográfica e um dos centros de endemismo mais bem definidos do Brasil. Apesar de instituída em 1954, quando passou a pertencer ao Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, a avifauna desta localidade já era objeto de pesquisas desde a década de 1940, época em que foram realizadas as primeiras coletas de aves. Aqui é apresentada pela primeira vez uma revisão de todos os registros avifaunísticos realizados nessa localidade ao longo de mais de 68 anos assim como a adição de novos registros com base em dados coletados recentemente com transectos lineares e redes de neblina. Os registros para Boracéia estiveram representados em museus, na literatura e em dados não publicados que, somados aos registros recentes, acumularam 323 espécies de aves para a localidade. Destas, 117 são endêmicas da Mata Atlântica e 28 estão sob diferentes graus de ameaça no Estado. Embora alguns registros possam ser duvidosos e necessitem de confirmação, algumas espécies representam os únicos registros para o Estado. Boracéia inclui ainda uma espécie recém descoberta em áreas próximas, sendo de grande importância para a conservação das aves de Mata Atlântica.

Many species in the genus Sporophila are migratory. Migration patterns, while poorly studied, may be influenced by seed production which can be very seasonal in some regions. The distribution of S. bouvreuil extends from the Amazon and Suriname south through a large part of the open regions of Brazil. Sporophila pileata, on the other hand, is found in southeastern and southern Brazil as well as Argentina and Paraguay. Both of these species migrate, but their movement patterns are poorly known. To better understand the geographical and the seasonal distributions of S. bouvreuil and S. pileata, we grouped the records into two categories: the breeding season (September to March) and the putative migration season (April to August). We found two areas of sympatry between S. bouvreuil and S. pileata in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais and São Paulo. For S. bouvreuil we suggest that populations that breed in the Amazon migrate to the Cerrado or Caatinga, where they will encounter resident populations of the same species. These resident populations may take part in short distance migrations. Sporophila pileata, on the other hand, occur in the Cerrado and open areas within the Atlantic Forest and it is not yet possible to determine migratory tendencies or destinations in the non-breeding season.Muitos representantes do gênero Sporophila são migratórios. Estes movimentos são pouco estudados e podem ser determinados por fatores como a produção de gramíneas, que podem ser altamente sazonais em algumas regiões. A distribuição de Sporophila bouvreuil se estende desde a região amazônica e Suriname passando pelas áreas abertas de boa parte do Brasil, enquanto que S. pileata distribui-se pelo sul e sudeste do Brasil, além da Argentina e Paraguai. Os movimentos migratórios destas duas espécies são pouco conhecidos e h�� evidências de que algumas populações podem ser residentes durante todo o ano. Com o objetivo de definir a distribuição geográfica e sazonal de S. bouvreuil e S. pileata, os registros foram agrupados em dois tipos, um durante o período reprodutivo (setembro a março) e outro durante os meses de abril a agosto, quando supostamente estas espécies podem migrar. Foram identificadas duas áreas de simpatria entre S. bouvreuil e S. pileata, nos estados de Minas Gerais e São Paulo. Para S. bouvreuil sugere-se que as populações que reproduzem na Amazônia se deslocam para o Cerrado ou a Caatinga, onde se encontram com as populações residentes nestes biomas. As populações desta diagonal seca se reproduzem nestes domínios e provavelmente realizam apenas migrações de curta distância. Na Mata Atlântica parte das populações são residentes, permanecendo neste bioma durante todo o ano. As populações de S. pileata que ocorrem no Cerrado e nas áreas abertas da Mata Atlântica se reproduzem nos seus respectivos biomas, mas não foi possível identificar as possíveis áreas de invernagem para esta espécie.

Inventários de fauna acessam diretamente a diversidade de uma localidade, em um determinado espaço e tempo. Os dados primários gerados pelos inventários compõem uma das ferramentas mais importantes na tomada de decisões a respeito do manejo de áreas naturais. Entretanto, vários problemas têm sido observados em diversos níveis relacionados aos inventários de fauna no Brasil e vão desde a formação de recursos humanos até a ausência de padronização, de desenho experimental e de seleção de métodos inadequados. São apresentados estudos de caso com mamíferos, répteis, anfíbios e peixes, nos quais são discutidos problemas como variabilidade temporal e métodos para detecção de fauna terrestre, sugerindo que tanto os inventários quanto os programas de monitoramento devam se estender por prazos maiores e que os inventários devem incluir diferentes metodologias para que os seus objetivos sejam plenamente alcançados.Inventories of fauna directly access the diversity of a locality in a certain period of time. The primary data generated by these inventories comprise one of the most important steps in decisions making regarding the management of natural areas. However, several problems have been observed at different levels related to inventories of fauna in Brazil, and range from the training of humans to the lack of standardization of experimental design and selection of inappropriate methods. We present case studies of mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fishes, where they discussed issues such temporal variability and methods for detection of terrestrial fauna, suggesting that both inventories and monitoring programs should be extended for longer terms and that inventories should include different methodologies to ensure that their goals are fully achieved.

The Dark-winged Trumpeter, Psophia viridis (Gruiformes, Psophiidae) is a Brazilian endemic species and includes three subspecies: Psophia viridis viridis Spix, 1825; Psophia v. dextralis Conover, 1934, and Psophia v. obscura Pelzeln, 1857, as well as P. v. interjecta Griscom & Greenway, 1937, whose validity has been questioned by several authors. These taxa are allopatric in distribution along the south of the Amazon River, although the precise limits of their distribution still remain unknown. This complex has never been taxonomically reviewed and this work aims to test the validity of its taxa based on the Phylogenetic Species Concept. Morphometrical characters and plumage colour patterns were analyzed, and the distribution of the taxa was also revised. In this study, 108 specimens from 41 localities were examined (all types included), with each reliable literature-based locality being included in order to delimit the geographical distribution of the complex. Morphometrical data did not point out significant differences between the taxa, also showing no sexual dimorphism among them. Meanwhile, plumage characters showed consistent and distinct patterns for each of the taxa, except for P. v. interjecta, whose features indicated by authors as diagnosable are the result of individual variation. No clinal variation or intergradation were observed, even at regions close to the rivers headwaters, where supposedly populations could be in contact. It is suggested that the currently accepted subspecies be elevated to the species level, such as: Psophia viridis Spix, 1825, distributed in the Madeira-Tapajós interfluvium, P. dextralis, found in the Tapajós-Tocantins interfluvium, and P. obscura, which occurs from the right bank of the Tocantins River to the west of the State of Maranhão.Os jacamins-de-costas-verdes, Psophia viridis (Gruiformes, Psophiidae) são endêmicos da Amazônia brasileira e contam, atualmente, com três subespécies reconhecidas: Psophia viridis viridis Spix, 1825; Psophia v. dextralis Conover, 1934, e Psophia v. obscura Pelzeln, 1857, além de P. v. interjecta Griscom & Greenway, 1937, cuja validade tem sido questionada por diversos autores. Estes táxons distribuem-se alopatricamente ao sul do rio Amazonas, embora os limites precisos de suas distribuições sejam ainda pouco conhecidos. Os táxons deste complexo nunca passaram por uma revisão taxonômica, e o presente trabalho teve como objetivos testar a validade dos mesmos. Com base no Conceito Filogenético de Espécie, os caracteres morfométricos e de colorido da plumagem foram analisados, além de refinar a distribuição geográfica dos táxons do complexo. Foram examinados 108 espécimes procedentes de 41 localidades, incluindo todos os tipos, e foram considerados também os registros confiáveis de literatura para delimitar-se a distribuição geográfica. Os dados morfométricos não indicaram diferenças significativas entre os táxons, não apontando também qualquer dimorfismo sexual. Entretanto, a análise dos caracteres de plumagem evidenciou padrões consistentes e distintos para cada um dos táxons, exceto para P. v. interjecta, cujos caracteres indicados pelos autores como diagnósticos são resultado de variação individual. Não foi observada variação clinal ou sinal de intergradação entre estes táxons, mesmo nas regiões próximas às cabeceiras dos grandes rios amazônicos, onde supostamente as populações poderiam entrar em contato. Sugere-se que as subespécies correntemente aceitas sejam elevadas ao nível de espécie, a saber: Psophia viridis Spix, 1825, que ocorre no interflúvio Madeira-Tapajós; P. dextralis Conover, 1934, encontrado no interflúvio Tapajós-Tocantins, e P. obscura Pelzeln, 1857, que distribui-se da margem direita do rio Tocantins até o oeste do Estado do Maranhão.

Known with certainty solely from a unique male specimen collected in central Brazil in the first quarter of the 19th century, the Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct) Hooded Seedeater Sporophila melanops has been one of the great enigmas of Neotropical ornithology, arguably the only one of a host of long-lost species from Brazil to remain obstinately undiscovered. We reanalysed the morphology of the type specimen, as well as a female specimen postulated to represent the same taxon, and sequenced mitochondrial DNA (COI and Cyt-b) from both individuals. Furthermore, we visited the type locality, at the border between Goiás and Mato Grosso, and its environs on multiple occasions at different seasons, searching for birds with similar morphology to the type, without success. Novel genetic and morphological evidence clearly demonstrates that the type of S. melanops is not closely related to Yellow-bellied Seedeater S. nigricollis, as has been frequently postulated in the literature, but is in fact a representative of one of the so-called capuchinos, a clade of attractively plumaged seedeaters that breed mostly in the Southern Cone of South America. Our morphological analysis indicates that S. melanops has a hitherto unreported dark-coffee throat and that it is probably a Dark-throated Seedeater S. ruficollis collected within its wintering range, acquiring breeding plumage and showing melanism on the cap feathers. Alternatively, it may be a melanistic-capped individual of a local population of seedeaters known to breed in the Esteros del Iberá, Corrientes, Argentina, to which the name S. ruficollis might be applicable, whilst the name S. plumbeiceps might be available for what is currently known as S. ruficollis. A hybrid origin for S. melanops cannot be ruled out from the available data, but seems unlikely. The purported female specimen of S. melanops pertains either to S. nigricollis or to Double-collared Seedeater S. caerulescens based on genetic and morphological data, and thus cannot be a female of S. melanops. We conclude that Sporophila melanops is not typical of any natural population of seedeaters, appears to have been collected far from its breeding grounds while overwintering in central Brazil, and should not be afforded any conservation status.

The cranial osteology of Nothura maculosa is described and compared with species belonging to other seven genera of tinamous (Tinamidae). Dried, spirit preserved and stained specimens were used for the description and comparison. Young birds showing open sutures proved to be useful in determining the structural contribution of each bone. Results allow recognition of characters common to all genera, such as the presence of an articular surface in the dorsal portion of the otic process of the quadrate, the incomplete fusion of the caudal portion of the vomer and the presence of only one articular surface between the quadrate bone and the skull. We also recognize two groups in the family: one containing the birds belonging to the genera Tinamus and Crypturellus, which have a chain of supraorbital ossicles, a small choanal pit and a well-developed pseudotemporal tubercle, among other characters. A second group, including the birds belonging to the genera Nothura, Rhynchotus, Nothoprocta, Taoniscus, Eudromia and Tinamotis, can be distinguished by a discrete postorbital process, a large choanal pit and a discrete pseudotemporal tubercle. Besides, this group does not possess a chain of supraorbital ossicles as in the first group.

A osteologia craniana de Nothura maculosa é descrita e comparada com representantes de outros sete gêneros de tinamídeos (Tinamidae). Foram utilizados crânios preparados em via seca e úmida, bem como exemplares diafanizados, para a descrição e para as comparações. O uso de aves jovens, que ainda apresentam as suturas cranianas visíveis, mostrou-se útil para determinar a contribuição de cada osso na formação da estrutura. Os resultados obtidos permitem reconhecer alguns caracteres comuns a todos os gêneros estudados, como a presença de uma única superfície articular para a porção dorsal do processo ótico do quadrado, a fusão incompleta da porção caudal do vômer e a presença de apenas uma superfície articular entre o quadrado e a caixa craniana. Foi possível reconhecer, também, dois grupos dentro da família: um formado pelos representantes dos gêneros Tinamus e Crypturellus, que pode ser caracterizado pela presença de ossículos supra-orbitais, por uma reduzida fossa coanal e pela presença de um desenvolvido tubérculo pseudotemporal, entre outros caracteres. O outro grupo, composto por representantes dos gêneros Nothura, Rhynchotus, Nothoprocta, Taoniscus, Eudromia e Tinamotis, pode ser distinguido por possuir, entre outros caracteres, um discreto processo pós-orbital, uma ampla fossa coanal e um tubérculo pseudotemporal discreto, além de não possuir ossículo supra-orbital.

The currently accepted albatross taxonomy, based on characters of external morphology, plumage patterns, tail shape, bill size and coloration, organization of the plates of the bill, and, more recently, molecular data such as cytochrome-b gene sequences, resulted in a division of the family Diomedeidae into four genera: Diomedea, comprising the great albatrosses; Phoebastria, the North Pacific albatrosses; Thalassarche, the mollymawks; and Phoebetria, the sooty mollymawks. However, there are only a few, old studies on albatross osteology, which focused mostly on supra-generic relationships. Research on the group's taxonomy and anatomy is important in order to establish a secure basis for the identification of each species, including the differences between males, females and specimens of different ages, and also to verify anatomic characters which might be found useful for phylogenetic analysis based on morphological markers. In the present study, 63 skulls of Diomedea and Thalassarche albatrosses were analyzed and compared, thus establishing topographic correspondences and determining primary homologies, these resulting in: (a) the finding of no pattern of anatomical variation related to sex and age for both T. melanophris and for T. chlororhynchos; (b) the assessment of eight cranial landmarks separating the genera Diomedea and Thalassarche; (c) the recognition of 13 cranial landmarks differing among T. melanophris, T. chlororhynchos and T. cauta; (d) the re-identification of several specimens based on skull characters. The characters here presented for the genera and species, along with further anatomical research on the skull of the Diomedeidae, including the genera Phoebetria and Phoebastria, may help to enlighten relationships within the family.A atual taxonomia dos albatrozes consiste na divisão da família Diomedeidae em quatro gêneros: Diomedea, que inclui os grandes albatrozes; Phoebastria, formado pelos albatrozes do norte do Pacífico; Thalassarche, para os chamados "mollymawks" e Phoebetria, para os "mollymawks fuliginosos" e foi baseada em caracteres da morfologia externa, padrões de plumagem, forma da cauda, tamanho e coloração do bico e a organização das placas da ranfoteca e, mais recentemente, seqüências do citocromo-b. Entretanto, existem poucos e antigos estudos sobre a osteologia dos albatrozes que estudaram apenas as relações supra-genéricas. A pesquisa na taxonomia e na anatomia do grupo é importante para se criar uma base segura para a identificação das espécies, incluindo aí as diferenças existentes entre machos, fêmeas e de exemplares em diferentes idades, além de se verificar caracteres anatômicos cranianos que podem revelar-se úteis para análises filogenéticas com base em marcadores morfológicos. No presente trabalho, 63 crânios de representantes dos gêneros Diomedea e Thalassarche foram analisados e comparados, estabelecendo correspondências topográficas e determinando homologias primárias, o que resultou em: (a) a descoberta da ausência de padrões de distinção anatômica relacionados ao sexo e à idade para T. melanophris e para T. chlororhynchos; (b) levantamento de oito caracteres do crânio que separam os gêneros Diomedea e Thalassarche; (c) reconhecimento de 13 caracteres cranianos que diferem entre T. melanophris, T. chlororhynchos e T. cauta; (d) re-identificação de vários espécimes baseados em caracteres cranianos. Os caracteres aqui apresentados para os gêneros e espécies, juntamente com futuras pesquisas na anatomia do crânio de Diomedeidae, incluindo os gêneros Phoebetria e Phoebastria, podem ajudar na elucidação das relações de parentesco dentro da família.

Over the last 200 years the wetlands of the Upper Tietê and Upper Paraíba do Sul basins, in the southeastern Atlantic Forest, Brazil, have been almost-completely transformed by urbanization, agriculture and mining. Endemic to these river basins, the São Paulo Marsh Antwren (Formicivora paludicola) survived these impacts, but remained unknown to science until its discovery in 2005. Its population status was cause for immediate concern. In order to understand the factors imperiling the species, and provide guidelines for its conservation, we investigated both the species' distribution and the distribution of areas of suitable habitat using a multiscale approach encompassing species distribution modeling, fieldwork surveys and occupancy models. Of six species distribution models methods used (Generalized Linear Models, Generalized Additive Models, Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines, Classification Tree Analysis, Artificial Neural Networks and Random Forest), Random Forest showed the best fit and was utilized to guide field validation. After surveying 59 sites, our results indicated that Formicivora paludicola occurred in only 13 sites, having narrow habitat specificity, and restricted habitat availability. Additionally, historic maps, distribution models and satellite imagery showed that human occupation has resulted in a loss of more than 346 km2 of suitable habitat for this species since the early twentieth century, so that it now only occupies a severely fragmented area (area of occupancy) of 1.42 km2, and it should be considered Critically Endangered according to IUCN criteria. Furthermore, averaged occupancy models showed that marshes with lower cattail (Typha dominguensis) densities have higher probabilities of being occupied. Thus, these areas should be prioritized in future conservation efforts to protect the species, and to restore a portion of Atlantic Forest wetlands, in times of unprecedented regional water supply problems.

A avifauna da região de Vila Bela da Santíssima Trindade (incluindo aí o município de Pontes e Lacerda), Mato Grosso, foi amostrada no final do mês de julho de 1997. Para este levantamento foram utilizados diferentes métodos, que resultaram num total de 312 espécies de aves. Os resultados desta campanha foram comparados com aqueles obtidos por Johann Natterer e Willis e Oniki, que passaram por esta mesma região no século XIX (década de 1820) e na década de 1980, respectivamente. Para a região do Vale do Guaporé temos, quando somados os resultados de todos os autores, um mínimo de 472 espécies de aves, e extinções locais não são reportadas, demonstrando um considerável grau de conservação para esta área. A maioria das espécies registradas nesta região está ligada à Floresta Amazônica, e os cerrados de Vila Bela da Santíssima Trindade provavelmente abrigam a maior população de uma espécie considerada como globalmente ameaçada de extinção, o caboclinho-do-sertão, Sporophila nigrorufa, e outros endemismos do cerrado, sendo justificável a tomada de medidas de proteção a estas áreas.We inventoried the avifauna of the region of Vila Bela da Santíssima Trindade (including the municipality of Pontes e Lacerda), in Mato Grosso State, in the end of July of 1997. Our results were compared with those of Natterer and of Willis and Oniki, who covered the same region in the 1820's and 1980's respectively. We used different sampling methods, recording a total of 312 species of birds. Most of species recorded are related with Amazon region. A total of 472 bird species were recorded in Guaporé Valley when the results of the others authors were summed with ours results, and many of the species recorded by them were also recorded in our study. The cerrados of Vila Bela da Santíssima Trindade probably guards the largest population of a globally threatened species, the Black-and-tawny Seedeater, Sporophila nigrorufa, as many other cerrado specialists and deserve immediate conservation measures.

Reflexões sobre coleções zoológicas, sua curadoria e a inserção dos Museus na estrutura universitária brasileira