Hunting, use and conservation of birds in Northeast Brazil

Brazil has one of the highest avifauna diversities in the world, and many species are used by human populations in many different ways. Capturing wild birds for food, or to raise as pets, or for commercial purposes, together with the loss of habitat, have been the principal causes of population reductions among many species. The present work provides new information about the diversity of wild bird species used in Ceará State (Northeast Brazil) and the techniques used for capturing them, as well as the forces motivating this hunting, the commercial relationships involved, the maintenance of captive species, and the legal and conservation implications of the use of the regional avifauna. A total of 92 wild bird species belonging to 26 families were found to be used as food (39 spp.), for medicinal (3 spp.) and magic-religious (1 spp.) purposes, for commercial ends (46 spp.), or raised as pets (44 spp.), or killed to control their predation on domestic animals (5 spp.). Raising or selling birds is motivated by their singing and/or their natural beauty, with Thraupidae, Icteridae and Emberizidae being the principal families sought after for those purposes. The Family Columbidae has the greatest importance as a food source. Eleven traditional capture techniques (both active and passive) were identified. The commercial value of the birds varied depending on both intra- and inter-specific factors, and the trade in these animals involved both dealers who sold large numbers of individuals at low prices and specialists (“passarinheiros”) who sold just a few domesticated individuals of greater value. Our evaluations of transactions taking place in public markets indicated the probable over-exploitation of a number of species, and these were often imported from other states and countries. In addition to being illegal, the capture of wild birds can cause serious environmental problems that can only be addressed through public policies directed towards education, monitoring and control, alternative sources of income, wildlife management, and ecosystem conservation.     

Mycorrhizae in Monocotyledonae of Northeast Brazil: subclasses Alismatidae, Arecidae and Zingiberidae

 We studied the mycorrhizal condition of three subclasses (Alismatidae, Arecidae, Zingiberidae) of Liliopsida (Monocotyledonae) occurring in different natural areas of the State of Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil. Twenty-two of 35 specimens (62.8%) were colonized by arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. No association was found in specimens of five families (Alismataceae, Cannaceae, Cyclanthaceae, Hydrocharitaceae, Limnocharitaceae), but in two other families (Costaceae, Zingiberaceae) all specimens formed mycorrhizae. Four families showed variable mycotrophy (Araceae, Bromeliaceae, Heliconiaceae, Marantaceae). This is the first evaluation of the mycorrhizal condition of 24 Monocotyledonae species from this region, 15 of which were found to form AM. Accepted: 4 July 2000     

For Love,Labour, and Lifestyle: European Men Moving to Northeast Brazil

ABSTRACT

This article debates the specific case of the migration of European men to Northeast Brazil and its relation to the creation of intimacy bonds with local women that have been made possible by previous tourist visits. The analysis has the principal objective of understanding the dense framework of social conditions and circumstances that cause the transatlantic mobility of men, and gives particular emphasis to the emotional and marital factors that fuel this type of movement, trying to show that they also migrate for intimacy reasons, and not only for economic reasons as studies based on a neoclassical approach have often seemed to indicate. While central, in these examples of international mobility, the intention to marry is not as determining a factor as the concept of ‘marriage migrations’ would suggest. Poetic motivations related to passion coexist dynamically with a much wider set of (micro)political economy and existential drives, related not only to employment and investment but also to recreation and the minutiae of everyday life. For this reason, it is important to avoid any unicausal schema based on exclusive or dichotomous conceptual frameworks that foreground migration for marital, lifestyle and/or employment motives. The migrations in question tend to be motivated, simultaneously, by the desire for matrimony and to secure assets, and even by what we might call ‘civilisational’ issues. The material that sustains both this and other perspectives presented in the article is the result of a multisited ethnographic fieldwork undertaken in various spaces within Euro-Brazilian configurations of intimacy.     

Counterpoint,patronage and professionalism

Abstract

Several studies have shown the role of thiol-rich proteins especially metallothionein (MT) in the therapeutic interventions against oxidative damage. Previously, we have provided strong evidence for the involvement of ROS in iron nitrilotriacetate (Fe-NTA)-induced renal toxicity, which may have relevance to its carcinogenicity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of zinc metallothionein (Zn-MT) on the protection against Fe-NTA-induced renal oxidative damage. The results demonstrate that Zn-MT pretreatment provided protection against Fe-NTA-induced mortality in mice (40% protection). Similarly, Zn-MT pretreatment also provided protection against Fe-NTA-induced lipid peroxidation (26% inhibition, P < 0.001). It is proposed that Zn-MT protects kidney tissue against the noxious effect of Fe-NTA primarily by interference with lipid peroxides. It is concluded that Zn-MT may serve as an excellent physiological antioxidant against Fe-NTA-mediated renal oxidative damage.     

Patient waiting: care as a gift and debt in the Thai healthcare system

Drawing on fieldwork in Chiang Mai during 2010 and 2012, I examine poor Thais’ and Shan migrants’ experiences of receiving healthcare from a public hospital, and, in parallel, care from the state. While universal health coverage has become a way in which the state finds legitimacy in people's lives through giving care, being a recipient of state aid is implicated in the emotive domain of waiting. By focusing on how people feel and think of a gift and debt of care, I suggest that flows of affects that loom large in social interactions within the public hospital denote not only poor people's subordinate position but also their effort to achieve a sense of mutuality and moral autonomy. This study contributes to a broader understanding of experiences of paternalism, inequality, and dependence by illuminating people's agentive submission into relations of care.     

Serologic Detection of Coccidioidomycosis Antibodies in Northeast Brazil

Coccidioidomycosis is a systemic infection caused by Coccidioides spp. The disease is endemic in Brazil but its incidence is underreported as it is not a notifiable disease. This article presents the results of a serologic survey carried out with 229 volunteers in northeast Brazil by the immunodiffusion (ID) test with commercial Coccidioides spp. antigens. The commercial ID test detected 15 individuals without clinical diagnosis of the disease and two individuals in treatment for coccidioidomycosis. Regarding the epidemiological data, most of the positive individuals were male, between 18 and 65 years of age and were engaged in armadillo hunting. Three women who had never participated in armadillo hunts also displayed positive results for coccidioidal antibodies. Besides armadillo hunts, exposure to environmental dust in endemic areas may account for the serologic response detected in the study. The data from this study suggest the importance of performing epidemiological surveys for coccidioidomycosis in order to understand the prevalence of this disease in Brazil.     

The Untold Sacrifice: The Monotony and Incompleteness of Self-Sacrifice in Northeast Brazil

There is no such thing as an accidental sacrifice. Sacrifice is always pre-meditated, and if not entirely goal-oriented, at the very least inherently meaningful as a process in itself. This paper is about how we might begin to understand sacrifices that do not conform to these rules. It concerns the question: does sacrifice exist outside of its (often) dramatic, self-conscious elaboration? Within the Brazilian Catholic tradition everyday life – ideally characterised by monotonous, undramatic, acts of self-giving – is ‘true sacrifice’. For ordinary Catholics, the challenge is not how to self-sacrifice, but how to make one's mundane life of self-sacrifice visible whilst keeping one's gift of suffering ‘free’. In this paper I describe, ethnographically, the work entailed as one of ‘revelation’ and use the problems thrown up to reflect upon both the limits and advantages of Western philosophical versus anthropological understandings of Christian sacrificial practices to date.     

Praying for Drought: Persistent Vulnerability and the Politics of Patronage in Ceará, Northeast Brazil

ABSTRACT   The phrase persistent vulnerability reflects the enduring relationship of the rural population in Ceará with a highly variable climate. Persistence underscores the historical and unyielding nature of this vulnerability. Yet contrary to once-catastrophic rates of mortality etched in a public consciousness, no one dies from severe droughts and few people flee them as in the past. Government relief and social transfers have become the institutionalized form of adaptation, giving way to the counterintuitive reality that drought stabilizes the food and income supply for poor people. We analyze how maladaptive risk reduction, which is embedded in clientilistic social relations, undermines resilience, and we examine pathways toward a more sustainable adaptive relationship.     

Learning Courage: Child Labour as Moral Practice in Northeast Brazil

This article explores the moral dimensions of child labour as cultural practice in Northeast Brazil. It reveals a link between children's participation in labour and local constructions of childhood as a period of ontological uncertainty and impending transition. Through detailed ethnographic exegesis, the article reveals the symbolic dimensions surrounding children's engagement in productive endeavours, and shows how the local opposition between ‘work’ and ‘play’ arises out of an encompassing moral process. The article critiques the tendency within protectionist influenced anthropological literature to acknowledge the important contribution that children make towards material survival, while denying that contribution any deeper cultural significance.     

Erythrocytary Zinc and the Infant Growth Profile in Northeast Brazil

This study evaluated nutritional status linked to zinc levels in 239 randomly selected children at crèches in Teresina, Brazil, aged 3 to 6. Blood samples were collected after fasting of 10 h. Erythrocytary zinc levels were determined through flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Zinc deficiency was determined as below 40 µg Zn/g Hb. Infant linear growth was evaluated measuring weight and height, and nutritional status by height/age, weight/height, and weight/age indices, expressed as Z scores, in line with the National Center for Health Statistics. The mean zinc concentration was 35.50?±?10.95 µg Zn/g Hb. Zinc distribution in the 10, 50, 75, and 90 percentiles was 24.73 µg Zn/g Hb, 35.45 µg Zn/g Hb, 40.73 µg Zn/g Hb and 52.77 µg Zn/g Hb, respectively. Based on this distribution, normal values were found only from the 75th percentile and above. Since the cutoff point adopted was 40 µg Zn/g Hb, the prevalence of zinc deficiency was 74.3%. As for growth profile, 8.4% were chronically malnourished, although the statistical association between linear impairment and nutritional status regarding zinc was insignificant. The study revealed that an important segment of the infant population was mineral deficient; however, the degree of deficiency did not influence growth profiles.     

Forecasting Temporal Dynamics of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in Northeast Brazil

Introduction

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a vector-borne disease of increasing importance in northeastern Brazil. It is known that sandflies, which spread the causative parasites, have weather-dependent population dynamics. Routinely-gathered weather data may be useful for anticipating disease risk and planning interventions.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We fit time series models using meteorological covariates to predict CL cases in a rural region of Bahía, Brazil from 1994 to 2004. We used the models to forecast CL cases for the period 2005 to 2008. Models accounting for meteorological predictors reduced mean squared error in one, two, and three month-ahead forecasts by up to 16% relative to forecasts from a null model accounting only for temporal autocorrelation.

Significance

These outcomes suggest CL risk in northeastern Brazil might be partially dependent on weather. Responses to forecasted CL epidemics may include bolstering clinical capacity and disease surveillance in at-risk areas. Ecological mechanisms by which weather influences CL risk merit future research attention as public health intervention targets.     

Soil bacterial diversity in degraded and restored lands of Northeast Brazil

Land degradation deteriorates biological productivity and affects environmental, social, and economic sustainability, particularly so in the semi-arid region of Northeast Brazil. Although some studies exist reporting gross measures of soil microbial parameters and processes, limited information is available on how land degradation and restoration strategies influence the diversity and composition of soil microbial communities. In this study we compare the structure and diversity of bacterial communities in degraded and restored lands in Northeast Brazil and determine the soil biological and chemical properties influencing bacterial communities. We found that land degradation decreased the diversity of soil bacteria as indicated by both reduced operational taxonomic unit (OTU) richness and Shannon index. Soils under native vegetation and restoration had significantly higher bacterial richness and diversity than degraded soils. Redundancy analysis revealed that low soil bacterial diversity correlated with a high respiratory quotient, indicating stressed microbial communities. By contrast, soil bacterial communities in restored land positively correlated with high soil P levels. Importantly, however, we found significant differences in the soil bacterial community composition under native vegetation and in restored land, which may indicate differences in their functioning despite equal levels of bacterial diversity.     

Serologic survey of West Nile virus in horses from Central-West,Northeast and Southeast Brazil

Since the emergence of West Nile virus (WNV) in North America in 1999, there have been several reports of WNV activity in Central and South American countries. To detect WNV in Brazil, we performed a serological survey of horses from different regions of Brazil using recombinant peptides from domain III of WNV. Positive samples were validated with the neutralisation test. Our results showed that of 79 ELISA-positive horses, nine expressed WNV-specific neutralising antibodies. Eight of the infected horses were from the state of Mato Grosso do Sul and one was from the state of Paraíba. Our results provide additional evidence for the emergence of WNV in Brazil and for its circulation in multiple regions of the country.     

Local ecological knowledge of shellfish collectors in an extractivist reserve,Northeast Brazil: implications for co-management

The Local Ecological Knowledge of shellfish harvesters in a Northern Brazil estuary was recorded to provide socio-ecological information for the development of a co-management system. The research was carried out in the community of Acaú, Paraiba state, from January to October 2015, and involved 120 shellfish harvesters (average age 44 years). Participant observations, interviews, questionnaires, free lists, and participatory mapping were used. Shellfishes were mostly collected by women as their main source of income. Most shellfish extraction sites were closest to the community and provided easy access to the resource. Twelve species of mollusks are collected, with Anomalocardia flexuosa being the most targeted species, with the highest Cognitive Salience Index—it stood out due to its relevance in terms of economic and cultural importance. The fishers stated that their main difficulties were transporting shellfish, health problems, low price and lack of buyers during winter. They would like to see the implementation of a fishery closure subsidized by unemployment insurance. We suggest that implementing management measures in conjunction with fishers’ input would be more effective than decisions based on scientific evidence alone.

     

Breeding sovereignty: the production of race,nature, and capital in Venezuela

This article explores the efforts of the Venezuelan government to improve food security and rural livelihoods with an experimental cattle-breeding project. It investigates the activities of a state enterprise in the western plains and how the selective-breeding practices of veterinary experts intersect with the logic of capital and biopolitics. Contributing to debates on the interaction between society and environment, the analysis suggests that ‘endogenous development’, or the reduction of poverty through internal markets, draws on systems of knowledge that treat the biology of animals as a field of intervention for the resolution of social contradictions. To reduce reliance on petroleum rent and food imports, Venezuelan experts have sought to create a new breed of cattle suited to the nation's diverse ecologies. But the knowledge systems which guide this project are embedded with a host of cultural and economic assumptions that subvert the successful application of this biotechnology. Ultimately, this article seeks to increase knowledge of the techno-politics of resource states at the start of the twenty-first century and the ways in which cultures of expertise impact food sovereignty.