Resumo: A dispersão de sementes é uma parte essencial da biologia reprodutiva das plantas, na qual a zoocoria é a principal forma de dispersão em florestas tropicais. Isto revela sua extrema importância para a regeneração e manutenção das florestas, sendo que os marsupiais podem agir como dispersores efetivos de plantas neotropicais através da ingestão de sementes. O objetivo deste estudo foi determinar as espécies de marsupiais ocorrentes e as espécies de plantas utilizadas como recurso em um fragmento de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual, localizado nos arredores do município de Botucatu, SP. O presente estudo também objetivou estudar a viabilidade e o comportamento germinativo das sementes após a passagem pelo sistema digestivo destes animais. Os marsupiais foram capturados de agosto de 2008 a julho de 2009 com armadilhas do tipo alçapão e de interceptação e queda. Suas fezes foram coletadas diretamente das armadilhas, durante o manuseio do animal ou ainda após a manutenção em cativeiro por 24 horas. Depois as amostras fecais foram triadas em laboratório. Foram realizados testes de germinação de sementes com dois tratamentos: (1) sementes retiradas das fezes e (2) sementes retiradas dos frutos maduros. O teste de tetrazólio foi aplicado para verificar a viabilidade das sementes de Piper amalago que não germinaram. Foi caracterizada a fenologia reprodutiva de 14 espécies vegetais utilizadas pelos marsupiais, sendo que quatro estavam presentes nas fezes. O período de maior disponibilidade de frutos prevaleceu dentro da estação chuvosa. Foram encontradas 11 espécies vegetais presentes nas amostras fecais dos marsupiais, sendo parte de plantas pioneiras. O marsupial Didelphis albiventris foi a espécie mais abundante e os frutos mais consumidos por ele foram as piperáceas: Piper hispidinervum (36% das amostras), seguido de Piper aduncum (19%) e Piper amalago (17%) ...(Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Seed dispersal is an essential stage on plant reproductive biology, and zoochory is the main process of dispersion in tropical rain forests. Therefore, seed dispersal is very important to forest conservation and regeneration, and the marsupials may act as seed dispersers of neotropical plants by ingesting seeds. The main goal of this study was to determine the marsupial species as well as their food plants occurring in a semi-deciduous seasonal forest fragment located near the city of Botucatu, SP. This study also investigated seed viability and germination after passage through the marsupial guts. The animals were collected from August to July 2008 by using live and pitfall traps. Their feces were collected from traps, during animal handling or when the animals were kept in captivity for 24 hours. In the laboratory, seeds were removed from feces. Germination tests were carried out following two treatments: (1) seeds from feces and (2) seeds removed from mature fruits. The tetrazolium test was applied on nongerminated seeds of Piper amalago to determine their viability. The reproductive phenology of 14 plant species used by marsupials was also recorded, from which four were observed in the marsupial's feces. Most fruits were available to the marsupials during the rainy season. A total of 11 plant species were found in the feces samples, and some of them was consisted of pioneering plants. Didelphis albiventris was the predominant marsupial species, and fruits of Piper hispidinervum (36%), Piper aduncum (19%) and Piper amalago plants (17%) were preferably consumed. The germination tests were carried out considering those plant species with high abundances on feces: P. aduncum, P. amalago, P. hispidinervum and Psidium guajava. The passage of P. amalago, P. aduncum and P. guajava seeds through the D. albiventris gut did not change the germination percentage when comparing with... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Orientador: Marcelo Nogueira Rossi / Coorientador: Renata Cristina Batista Fonseca / Banca: Cinthia Aguirre Brasileiro / Banca: Gledson Vigiano Bianconi / Mestre

Orientador: Edson Luiz Furtado / Banca: Nilton Luiz de Souza / Banca: Roberto Antonio Rodella / Banca: José Otavio Machado Menten / Banca: Adriana Martins / Abstract: The rubber tree is a tropical species that loses its leaves periodically. This deciduifolio habit is an important character for the rubber tree, that is, clones uniform defoliation provides a reduction in the pathogens inocule whose reproductive structures are located in the old leaves. After defoliation, it occurs the foliar renewal and it is at this stage, also known as refoliation, that the rubber tree presents susceptible leaflets in which occur most part of the foliar deseases, such as leaf blight, where the cycle of the pathogen (Microcyclus ulei (P. Henn.)v. Arx) is straightly related with the foliar stages (B, C and D). Therefore, the knowledge on these stages, clones phenologic behavior, factors that influence this character and local climate conditions is important for their selection. The objectives of this work were: characterize through quantitative and descriptive foliar morphology the stages B, C and D; characterize the phenologic behavior and the incidence of South American Leaf Blight; correlate the beginning of the defoliation period with climatic parameters, and leaf blight incidence, during the foliar renewal period, with climatic parameters. For the stages characterization, it was used the clone PB 235, from which the leaves central leaflets were collected, at different stages. It was measured the foliolar limbus lenght, width and area, and the petiole lenght and diameter. It was also determined the form of the limbus, apex and base of the foliolar lamina, as well the leaf coloration. For the other objectives, the clones Fx 3844, Fx 3864, Fx 2261, IAN 873, IAN 717 and RRIM 600 of rubber trees from Vale do Ribeira region, São Paulo state were used, being the fallen leaflets collected weekly in four baskets by clone, randomly distributed. The leaflets were totalized, separated by age and analyzed as for the incidence of the fungus Microcyclus ulei... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Orientador: L. Patricia C. Morellato / Banca: Flavio Nunes Ramos / Banca: Sergius Gandolfi / Resumo: Variação intra-específica na fenologia de espécies de sub-bosque de Floresta Atlântica e sua relação com variáveis microambientais - Fatores abióticos, como a umidade relativa, temperatura e luz, influenciam o estabelecimento, desenvolvimento e reprodução das espécies vegetais florestais. Entretanto é necessária a coleta de parâmetros estruturais, microclimáticos e microambientais para a caracterização dos ambientes nos quais as plantas se desenvolvem. Neste contexto, o presente trabalho objetivou avaliar a influência de fatores do microambiente na resposta fenológica de espécies vegetais componentes do sub-bosque de floresta Atlântica, em Ubatuba, SP. Procuramos responder as seguintes perguntas: i) As plantas de sub-bosque podem ser agrupadas em relação aos ambientes de luz: borda natural, clareira e interior sombreado da floresta?; ii) Existem variações intra-específicas na fenologia das espécies de sub-bosque de Floresta Atlântica de acordo com o ambiente de luz em que foram agrupadas?; iii) A intensidade das respostas fenológicas (número de estruturas reprodutivas produzidas) está relacionada aos locais de luz?; iv) Outras condições microclimáticas, como temperatura e umidade relativa, e microambientais, como a densidade da vegetação, também influenciam a fenologia das espécies? Para tanto a fenologia e a produção de estruturas reprodutivas de quatro espécies abundantes do sub-bosque foram acompanhadas de janeiro de 2009 a abril de 2010. Indivíduos foram selecionados em ambientes previamente determinados como borda natural (beira de rio), clareira e interior de floresta atlântica. Medidas periódicas das variáveis microclimáticas (temperatura, umidade relativa, PAR) e microambiental (abertura do dossel) próximas aos indivíduos amostrados foram realizadas. Medidas estruturais... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: Phenological intraspecific variation of Atlantic Forest understory species and its relation to microenvironmental variables - Abiotic factors such as humidity, temperature and light influence the establishment, development and reproduction of forest plant species. However, it is necessary to collect structural, microclimatic and microenvironmental parameters to characterize the environments in which plants grow. In this context, this study evaluated the influence of the microenvironment in the phenological response of understory plant species components of the Atlantic Forest in Ubatuba, São Paulo State. We tried to answer the following questions: i) Can the understory species be grouped in relation to natural edge, gaps and interior microenvironments? ii) Do exist intraspecific variations in the phenology of understory species of Atlantic forest in accordance with the light environment in which they were grouped? iii) Do the intensity of phenological responses (number of reproductive structures produced) related to local condictions of light?; iv) Do other microclimatic (such as temperature and relative humidity) and microenvironmental (density vegetation) conditions also influence the phenology of species? The phenology and reproductive structures production of four abundant species of the understory were followed from January 2009 to April 2010. Individuals were selected in environments previously determined as natural edge (riverside), gap and interior. We performed periodic measurements of microclimatic (temperature, relative humidity and PAR) and microenvironmental variables (canopy openness) near the sampled individuals. Structural measures (CAS, CAP, plant height, crown height from the ground and crown size) and microenvironment characterization (canopy height, understory vertical density, distance... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre