Seed biometry: another functional trait in caatinga

Seed dispersal by ants in the semi-arid Caatinga of North-East Brazil.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Myrmecochory is a conspicuous feature of several sclerophyll ecosystems around the world but it has received little attention in the semi-arid areas of South America. This study addresses the importance of seed dispersal by ants in a 2500-km(2) area of the Caatinga ecosystem (north-east Brazil) and investigates ant-derived benefits to the plant through myrmecochory. METHOD...

Biometry

The Textbook of Contraceptive Practice is a current overview of population control. The authors are John Peel, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, University of Hull and Malcolm Potts, Director of Medical Studies, Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. Individual chapters cover the various methods: the oral contraceptives, intrauterine devices, withdrawal, diaphragm, spermicides, safe period, sterilizatio...

Statistical Methodology in Biometry

Frugivory and seed dispersal by birds in Cereus jamacaru DC. ssp. jamacaru (Cactaceae) in the Caatinga of Northeastern Brazil.

Studies of the dispersal modes of plants aid our understanding of the dynamics of resource and its availability for dispersal agents. The present work sought to characterize the fruiting patterns of the native Caatinga (dryland) cactus Cereus jamacaru, identify its principal dispersers, and evaluate the effects of seed passage through digestive tract of dispersers on its germination. Cereus jam...

Taxonomic and functional profiles of soil samples from Atlantic forest and Caatinga biomes in northeastern Brazil

Although microorganisms play crucial roles in ecosystems, metagenomic analyses of soil samples are quite scarce, especially in the Southern Hemisphere. In this work, the microbial diversity of soil samples from an Atlantic Forest and Caatinga was analyzed using a metagenomic approach. Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria were the dominant phyla in both samples. Among which, a significant proportio...