No description available.

Natural dispersal mechanisms and biogeographical barriers have shaped species' native distributional ranges over millions of years. However, over the last few centuries, humans have dispersed species beyond their natural ranges. Those species that undergo explosive population growth and rapid expansion in the introduced region are considered as invasive because they have the potential to cause negative effects on desirable species and/or ecosystem services. In chapter II, I identified what ecosystem characteristics are more closely associated with successful establishment of exotic and native species, to have a better idea of where to concentrate our efforts and resources to prevent invasion events while preserving native species. I found that native and exotic species were differently affected by ecosystem properties. Exotic species were favored by human activities and low native species abundance and diversity. However, in Chapter III, I found that species functional traits, such as growth form and phenology, are more important to explain their response to ecosystem characteristics than native status under certain circumstances. The abundance and reproductive capacity of the evaluated plants were reduced when disturbances occurred during their respective active growing periods. This finding suggests that we need to have into account species-specific responses to ecosystem characteristics when managing biological invasions. Chapter IV examined phenotypic differentiation of native, expansive, and introduced populations of Baccharis halimifolia L. occurring in different regions of the world. The results suggest that there are significant phenotypic differences in germination and early growth among native, expansive, and introduced populations, which could have contributed to the success of B. halimifolia in the introduced and expansive ranges. Finally, in Chapter V, I used the information that I learned in the past projects to predict the spread of 45 exotic plants across southeastern United States and evaluated what landscape factors make an area more susceptible to be invaded. I found that the influence of landscape composition and configuration on invasion risk is species-specific. This result suggests that not only we have to consider species functional traits when managing biological invasions, as we saw earlier in the experiment with disturbance timing, but also species habitat preferences.

No description available.

This thesis is concerned with acknowledging farm animals and their co-presence in the more-than-human space of the livestock farm, and with accounting for them responsibly in sustainability debates. The enrolment of farm animals as actors in political agendas for environmental sustainability, and farm animal welfare suggests that there are new ways of seeing and being with farm animals that permit their relational presence and recognise their subjectivity. Indeed geographers have in recent years acknowledged animals and their relations with humans, and they have begun to recognise the nature of animal subjectivies. However, within the fundamental rethinking of animals that has been provoked by these discussions, I suggest that farm animals have remained relatively invisible. Occupying ethically confusing terrain, farm animals have nonetheless been visible in a set of philosophical positions regarding their moral status, yet these debates present a rather confusing picture in which the farm animal as an individual is conspicuous by its absence. In seeking to redress the invisibility of farm animals within these debates, and recast them in relation to humans and the broader farm ecology, this thesis attempts to set out an epistemological and methodological framework through which farm animals might become visible as individual fleshy beings. Drawing on the concept of agricultural stewardship and new agendas in farm animal welfare science, it makes use of new methodological tools that have emerged in the social sciences to conduct a relational study of the livestock farm; a study in which farm animals themselves participate. It also considers how the divisions that have been constructed between humans, farm animals and the environment can be reconfigured as a more unified political science of the livestock farm.

Inúmeros estudos experimentais contribuíram para o desenvolvimento da teoria das redes tróficas lacustres, revelando o importante papel dos peixes, ignorados no campo da limnologia durante décadas. A maioria dos estudos foi desenvolvida na Europa e Estados Unidos e a generalidade da teoria ainda não foi amplamente testada em ambientes subtropicais e tropicais. Apesar das controversas, as hipóteses de cascata trófica e de bottom-up : top-down são os modelos conceituais mais utilizados. Neste contexto, este trabalho baseia-se na hipótese de que as relações tróficas em cascata, relacionadas aos efeitos bottom-up e top-down, podem ser encontradas no Reservatório de Itaipu, inserido em região subtropical. Com base em dados disponibilizados pela Itaipu Binacional, para o período de 1999 a 2004. Análises de Covariância (ANCOVAs) foram realizadas para determinar as relações das variáveis dependentes clorofila-a, cianobactéria e transparência da água sobre as demais variáveis limnológicas. Análises de correlações também foram realizadas para verificar a existência de algum tipo de efeito na cascata trófica. Os resultados obtidos caracterizam o reservatório como mesotrófico, com situações de oligotrofia na zona lacustre. Efeito negativo foi verificado para transparência da água em relação aos sólidos suspensos totais e turbidez. A clorofila apresentou relação positiva com nitrogênio total, mas não para fósforo total. Os peixes onívoros, detritívoros e insetívoros exerceram efeito negativo (controle) na densidade das cianobactérias e na concentração de clorofila. A estimativa da produção de peixes no reservatório foi melhor relacionada com as cianobactérias do reservatório, gerando um modelo estatístico através desta análise. Os efeitos top-down e bottom-up foram confirmados, sendo que as forças top-down foram encontradas apenas no primeiro nível trófico e as demais apresentaram efeito bottom-up. / Many experimental studies contributed for the development of the theory of the lacustrine food web, disclosing the important paper of the fish, for decades ignored by the limnology. These studies, in its majority, had been developed in Europe and North America and the generality of the hypotheses supporting the theory was not tested yet in subtropical and tropical environments. Although controversial, the trophic cascade and bottom-up: top-down hypotheses are the two main conceptual models presently used. This work is based on the hypothesis of the trophic cascade relations, particularly related to bottom-up and top-down effect can be detected in Itaipu Reservoir, a subtropical system. Using the made data available by Itaipu Binacional, from 1999 to 2004. Analyses of Covariance (ANCOVAs) were accomplished to determine the relationships of the dependent variable on the chlorophyll-a, cyanobacterias and transparency of the water (independent variables) and between the other limnologycal variables. Analyses of correlations were also accomplished to verify the existence of some effect type in the trophic cascade. The results show that the reservoir presented mesotrophic, and oligotrophic and characteristics in the lacustrine area. A negative effect was verified between the water transparency in relation to suspended solids and turbid. The chlorophyll presented positive relationship with total nitrogen, but didn\'t present any relationship with the total phosphorus. The omnivorous, and detritivorous and insectivorous fishes presented a negative effect (control) in the cyanobacteria concentrations and chlorophyll. The estimate of the production of fish in the reservoir was better related with the concentrations of cyanobacterias of the reservoir, generating a statistical model through this analysis. The top-down and bottom-up effect had been confirmed, the forces top-down had been found only in the first trophic level, and the others presented bottom-up effect.

Inúmeros estudos experimentais contribuíram para o desenvolvimento da teoria das redes tróficas lacustres, revelando o importante papel dos peixes, ignorados no campo da limnologia durante décadas. A maioria dos estudos foi desenvolvida na Europa e Estados Unidos e a generalidade da teoria ainda não foi amplamente testada em ambientes subtropicais e tropicais. Apesar das controversas, as hipóteses de cascata trófica e de bottom-up : top-down são os modelos conceituais mais utilizados. Neste contexto, este trabalho baseia-se na hipótese de que as relações tróficas em cascata, relacionadas aos efeitos bottom-up e top-down, podem ser encontradas no Reservatório de Itaipu, inserido em região subtropical. Com base em dados disponibilizados pela Itaipu Binacional, para o período de 1999 a 2004. Análises de Covariância (ANCOVAs) foram realizadas para determinar as relações das variáveis dependentes clorofila-a, cianobactéria e transparência da água sobre as demais variáveis limnológicas. Análises de correlações também foram realizadas para verificar a existência de algum tipo de efeito na cascata trófica. Os resultados obtidos caracterizam o reservatório como mesotrófico, com situações de oligotrofia na zona lacustre. Efeito negativo foi verificado para transparência da água em relação aos sólidos suspensos totais e turbidez. A clorofila apresentou relação positiva com nitrogênio total, mas não para fósforo total. Os peixes onívoros, detritívoros e insetívoros exerceram efeito negativo (controle) na densidade das cianobactérias e na concentração de clorofila. A estimativa da produção de peixes no reservatório foi melhor relacionada com as cianobactérias do reservatório, gerando um modelo estatístico através desta análise. Os efeitos top-down e bottom-up foram confirmados, sendo que as forças top-down foram encontradas apenas no primeiro nível trófico e as demais apresentaram efeito bottom-up. / Many experimental studies contributed for the development of the theory of the lacustrine food web, disclosing the important paper of the fish, for decades ignored by the limnology. These studies, in its majority, had been developed in Europe and North America and the generality of the hypotheses supporting the theory was not tested yet in subtropical and tropical environments. Although controversial, the trophic cascade and bottom-up: top-down hypotheses are the two main conceptual models presently used. This work is based on the hypothesis of the trophic cascade relations, particularly related to bottom-up and top-down effect can be detected in Itaipu Reservoir, a subtropical system. Using the made data available by Itaipu Binacional, from 1999 to 2004. Analyses of Covariance (ANCOVAs) were accomplished to determine the relationships of the dependent variable on the chlorophyll-a, cyanobacterias and transparency of the water (independent variables) and between the other limnologycal variables. Analyses of correlations were also accomplished to verify the existence of some effect type in the trophic cascade. The results show that the reservoir presented mesotrophic, and oligotrophic and characteristics in the lacustrine area. A negative effect was verified between the water transparency in relation to suspended solids and turbid. The chlorophyll presented positive relationship with total nitrogen, but didn\'t present any relationship with the total phosphorus. The omnivorous, and detritivorous and insectivorous fishes presented a negative effect (control) in the cyanobacteria concentrations and chlorophyll. The estimate of the production of fish in the reservoir was better related with the concentrations of cyanobacterias of the reservoir, generating a statistical model through this analysis. The top-down and bottom-up effect had been confirmed, the forces top-down had been found only in the first trophic level, and the others presented bottom-up effect.