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Background: The way humans perceive and interact with non-human animals is particular to each person, from antipathetic interactions evidenced by fear, aversion or repulsion, to empathy evidenced by feelings of affection, enchantment and interest in the animal. In this sense, herein we investigated the perception of university students about species belonging to different classes of wild vertebrates and the influence of social and educational factors on that. Methods: Data were obtained through online forms answered by 700 university students from nine Brazilian states, 328 females and 372 males, aged between 18 and 65 years. The form had eight sentences to be answered in relation to 17 species of wild vertebrates. The agreement level for each of these sentences was to be indicated using a five-point Likert scale. The sentences were designed to assess aesthetic, risk, utilitarian, and preservation perceptions attributed to each species by students. Results: We found that species perceived as useful by the students are generally also perceived as beautiful and as those that should be preserved. On the other hand, we found similarity between the species perceived as ugly and those that should not be preserved; and between the species perceived as harmful and those considered dangerous. Female and lower-income students more often agree that animals are harmful. We found that perceptions of danger in relation to animals were predominantly associated with younger respondents. However, this did not lead to less support for conservation among these students, as students of all age groups agree that species should be preserved. Our results show that students' knowledge area was an important predictor associated with empathetic and antipathetic perceptions. Environmental area students showed greater empathy in all analyzed categories (beauty, usefulness, harmlessness, and preservation) than non-environmental areas students. On the other hand, students from the area of the exact sciences showed greater dislike in all analyzed categories than students from other areas. We found a strong relationship between the areas "Environmental" and "Humanities, Languages and Arts" for the attitudinal factors associated with utility and preservation, suggesting a similar empathetic worldview for students in these areas. Conclusions: We found that the perception directed towards wild vertebrates varies according to the gender, age, income and study area of the students, in addition to the taxon considered. Finally, our results indicate that negative perceptions should be taken into account in environmental education efforts, educational policies and in planning fauna conservation plans which should incorporate the most diverse audiences, and not only encompass charismatic species but extend to animals that arouse great aversion from the part of people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Body condition is an important measure to estimate the energy reserve of an organism. Scientists frequently use body condition indices (BCIs) with morphometric measures but direct measurements, such as blood glucose, seem to be more reliable. We observed oscillations in the body condition and glucose indexes of individuals of Artibeus planirostris (Spix, 1823) during 13 nights in the field. We assume that if glucose levels are proportional to feeding state and body condition is a measure of energy reserve, blood glucose and BCI should be positively correlated and both are expected to increase during the night as the bats leave their diurnal roost to feed. To test this, we examined the relationship between blood glucose levels, BCI and reproductive phase of free flying male bats (n = 70) for 12 hours after sunset for 13 nights. Bats were captured in Reserva Biológica de Guaribas (Paraíba, Brazil) using mist nets. Blood glucose was analyzed with a portable glucometer. Supporting our assumptions, the number of hours after sunset and BCI presented significant positive correlations with glucose levels in A. planirostris. Reproductive phase did not present a significant correlation with any other variables. As we predicted, glucose level can be used as proxy for morphometric BCI and it can be measured with a simple portable glucometer. The increase both in glucose and BCI around the night can be explained by the efficient assimilation of nutrients present in fruits ingested by bats and the quick metabolism that increases the levels of glucose (an other nutrients) in blood, increasing the body mass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Neotropical Biology & Conservation is the property of Pensoft Publishers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Acta Scientiarum: Biological Sciences is the property of Universidade Estadual de Maringa and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Biociências is the property of Revista Biociencias and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Neotropical Biology & Conservation is the property of Pensoft Publishers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Tank bromeliads harbour aquatic microcosms with many endemic species among their leaves. We performed a set of experiments to determine which factors maintain the bromeliad aquatic fauna in isolation from neighbouring ponds. We cultivated three invertebrates species (an ostracod, an annelid and a cladoceran) from a pond surrounded by terrestrial bromeliads in Southeastern Brazil and introduced them inside cleaned bromeliads, using recipients with the same volume as controls. The pH, conductivity and organism densities were monitored in the bromeliad samples and controls for 41 days. The samples introduced inside the cleaned bromeliads showed a significant decrease in pH and conductivity compared to the controls. The pond organism populations introduced in the bromeliads presented a high extinction rate and a significant population decrease when compared to the ones introduced in the controls. We attributed the population decline experienced by the pond organisms to the oligotrophic conditions generated inside the tanks by the bromeliads due to the nutrient absorption. We suggest that the changes in water chemistry induced by the bromeliads could play an important role in isolating their microcosm communities from other freshwater systems. Other mechanisms that could produce the high rates of endemism in bromeliad fauna are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to test the effectiveness and the sustained effect (follow-up) of a four-week mindfulness intervention in reducing anxiety and stress in a group of Brazilian university students. The intervention was adapted to be made available through the Neurosaúde application, created as part of this work to serve as a platform for the intervention. The research took place in a virtual environment, with 48 participants recruited, who were randomly allocated to the intervention group or to the waiting list control group. Measures were used to access the levels of mindfulness, anxiety, and stress before and after the intervention and at the 4-week follow-up. Applying the intention-to-treat analysis, we found significant differences between the groups regarding the measurement of anxiety in the follow-up, with a large effect size (F(2, 92) = 10.275, p = .000, X2 = 0.183). The results suggest that the 4-week mindfulness intervention through a mobile application was able to act as a protective factor against the anxiety developed by university students during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the treatment group maintained reduced levels of anxiety the control group demonstrated a continuous increase in anxiety in the post-test and follow-up that coincided with the first wave of COVID-19 in the region where the participants lived. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phytoplankton functional groups structure and species abundance vary according to environmental conditions. The present study investigated the natural and anthropogenic stressors that affect phytoplankton functional group biomass in a Brazilian semiarid region reservoir (Argemiro de Figueiredo reservoir). Sampling occurred between August 2007 and July 2009 on a bi-monthly basis for the first year, and in a monthly basis for the last two years. There were three collection points (PC: river confluence; PNC: near the cages; PD: dam site). The water environment analysis of abiotic variables included: temperature, transparency, coefficient of vertical light attenuation, dissolved oxygen, pH, electrical conductivity, alkalinity, dissolved inorganic nitrogen, and reactive soluble phosphorus. Phytoplankton samples were collected into a Van Dorn bottle, and were then preserved in acetic lugol and were quantified using an inverted microscope to determine phytoplankton density and biomass; the identified species were assembled in functional groups. The data were explored by canonical correspondence analysis. Individual analyses were made to test the temporal and spatial variability of the data and the factors that interfered most with the biotic and abiotic variables. Functional groups S1, SN, and K, consisting of filamentous Planktothrix agardhii (Gomont) Anagnostidis & Komárek, Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii (Woloszynska) Seenaya & Subba Raju, and the coccoid Aphanocapsa incerta (Lemmermann) Cronberg & Komárek, respectively, dominated the dry months when the water was warm, turbid, and alkaline. The overflow reservoir served as a natural disturbance reducing the phytoplankton biomass to less than 50 % and the dominance of cyanobacteria, promoting the domain of functional groups F, M, MP, Lo, and X2. The nutrient inputs from intensive fish farming, associated with a low local depth (Zmax = 7.7 m) close to the cages (PNC), resulted in a significant human disturbance that increased the prevalence of functional groups S1, SN, and K, which are composed primarily of cyanobacteria. We concluded that, in reservoirs, overflow events are natural disturbances that have the ability to reduce phytoplankton biomass and alter the structure of local communities, and that intensive fish farming is an anthropogenic disturbance that increases the availability of nutrients and stimulates an increase in biomass of the functional groups that include cyanobacteria. Furthermore, the functional groups of phytoplankton were reliable control of environmental conditions in the reservoirs of tropical semiarid regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mesocyclops ogunnus is a copepod originally recorded in Africa and Asia, being considered an invader species in reservoirs in the Americas. The present work records its occurrence in northeastern Brazil for the first time. This species was collected in the Três Lagoas region in the city of João Pessoa, State of Paraíba, Brazil, which increases its geographical distribution beyond the central-western, southeastern and southern regions of the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bats are key components to the Neotropical forests. Unfortunately, their bad reputation is a major obstacle in their conservation as it creates fear and hostility towards them. Understanding this reputation acquired by bats and studying interactions between bats and humans has shown fundamental promise when creating strategies to forge a non-antagonistic coexistence between both parts and in the promotion of bat conservation in areas with ever-rising human occupation., Methods: Ninety people were surveyed from three villages that were situated around a Biological Reserve in the state of Paraiba; located in Northern Brazil. The survey was completed using semi-structured interviews addressing villager's knowledge of the biology and ecology of bats, their interactions with bats, potential medicinal uses, and their socioeconomic situation. Additionally, we sampled the bats that reside in or visit these villages., Results: Bats were often considered harmful, dangerous and carriers of disease. Bats were often connected to hematophagia, as well. The respondents believe that impacts such as the deforestation are forcing bats into urban environments. With this research, we were able to register one of the few records of bats in popular medicine in Brazil., Conclusion: The folklore and superstition surrounding bats can form an obstacle that affects their conservation. Environmental education is an important step in order to create a harmonious coexistence between humans and bats and to mitigate the impending conflicts between humanity and nature.