Little is known about the spatial distribution and abundance of tree holes in New Zealand’s native forests, or the invertebrate communities that they support. I found that tree holes were common on five endemic tree species, belonging to the families Fagaceae and Podocarpaceae in the mixed broadleaf-podocarp rainforest of Orikaka Ecological Area, Buller District, New Zealand. However, tree holes were not uniformly distributed throughout the forest, with more holes found on the three podocarp species, Prumnopitys ferruginea, P. taxifolia and Dacrycarpus dacrydioides, than on Nothofagus fusca or N. menziesii. Nevertheless, Nothofagus fusca had the largest holes of any of the tree species sampled and larger trees generally had larger holes. Large, hole-bearing Nothofagus fusca trees support a specialist hole-dwelling vertebrate fauna in New Zealand and worldwide, tree holes provide habitat for a range of invertebrate species. Using specially-designed emergence traps, I collected invertebrates emerging from naturally-occurring dry tree holes and compared this assemblage with invertebrates inhabiting leaf litter on the forest floor and those dispersing aerially throughout the study area. At the higher taxonomic resolution (i.e., Order or Class), community composition within the tree holes was highly variable, and there was no strong distinction between invertebrates from tree holes, leaf litter or Malaise traps. Moreover, although some beetle species emerging from tree holes were found exclusively in tree holes, most of these were represented by a single individual. Consequently, only minor differences in species composition were detected between beetle assemblages from tree holes, leaf-litter and those aerially dispersing throughout the forest. In contrast, the aquatic invertebrate assemblage within water-filled tree holes was highly distinctive from that in ground-based freshwater ecosystems, with only six aquatic taxa in common between all freshwater habitats. Using experimental water-filled tree-hole microcosms, I found that species richness and community composition within these microcosms were primarily driven by resource concentration, although habitat quality (i.e., water chemistry parameters) was also an important determinant of the identity and composition of colonising species. Overall, my study has shown that tree holes are common in the study area, and are likely to be more abundant in New Zealand’s indigenous forests than previously thought. Moreover, these generally small, discrete forest ecosystems support a diverse array of terrestrial invertebrates as well as a distinctive aquatic invertebrate community that is primarily structured by organic matter resource availability. These findings not only represent an important advance in our knowledge of New Zealand’s freshwater invertebrate biodiversity, but also highlight the need for further investigation into these unique forest canopy habitats which may well be at risk from deforestation and land use change.

Ostracods are microcrustaceans distinguished by some very particular characteristics. They have a great diversity, occupy different environments - freshwater, marine or semi-terrestrial -, can be adapted to challenging environments as temporary or very restricted water bodies and have an extensive fossil record. All these traits make these animals great models to a variety of biological studies such as ecological, evolutionary or paleoenvironmental ones, just to name a few. In spite of this, studies with the group are not as representative when compared with other crustacean groups. When one dedicates its attention to ostracods living in small, restricted and temporary water bodies, this negligence becomes even more evident. One example of it are the ostracods that inhabit environments such as bamboos, tree holes or bromeliads - together called pythotelmata - and of which we know very little. Actually, solely 14 ostracods are known for phytotelmata from the whole world. From these, eight belong to Elpidium, a genus described in 1880 by Fritz Müller and that is still incredibly poorly understood due to the inconstancy on studies involving the genus. In recent years, however, an effort has been made to fill this gap and improve our knowledge about the genus. In this sense, studies are being made in order to have a clear panorama of what it is the real Elpidium diversity and also to go beyond and think in evolutionary and pluridisciplinary terms. In this work, we aim to continue this effort in understanding this neglected group. To that we planned a broad and pluridisciplinary work that could integrate different aspects of our genus of interest. We dedicate then to (1) ontogeny - clarifying poorly comprehended and/or misunderstood ontogenetic aspects of the type species Elpidium bromeliarum; (2) taxonomy - describing four new species and re-describing Elpidium laesslei; and (3) evolutionary history - proposing the first phylogenetic reconstruction for the genus. Ontogenetic developmental aspects of E. bromeliarum are discussed in chapter 1. In it, we analyzed the possibility - previously proposed on the literature - of an additional moult after the adult stage for this species. Such possibility was not corroborated: the species development is not an exception to the nine developmental stages of the three most important freshwater ostracods superfamilies and it is also in conformity with the well-established fact that ostracods do not moult after mature stage. Taxonomy and diversity are studied in chapters 2 and 3. Such chapters are dedicated to the descriptions of four new species - three from Jamaica and one from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - and the re-description of E. laesslei from Jamaica. Beyond it, these chapters also discuss about the hypothesis of high degree of diversity and endemism for the genus due to allopatric speciation favored by the relative bromeliad isolation. Chapter 3 is also dedicated to the genus evolutionary history, presenting a hypothesis to the evolutionary relationships between its species. Such phylogenetic reconstruction puts Elpidium as a monophyletic group and its species divided into two major clades. Finally, the need of a pluridisciplinary study to the complete comprehension of the genus and our expectations are discussed / Ostracódes são microcrustáceos acentuadamente diversos que habitam diferentes habitats dulciaquícolas, marinhos e semi-terrestres, evidenciando adaptações a ambientes desafiadores, tais como corpos d\'água temporários ou muito restritos quanto à quantidade de água acumulada. Ademais, têm um extenso registro fóssil. Tais características tornam esses animais bons modelos para estudos biológicos com abordagens ecológicas, evolutivas ou paleoambientais, somente para citar algumas. Apesar disso, investigações científicas envolvendo o grupo não são tão representativas se comparadas a outros grupos de crustáceos. Quando se observa ostrácodes que habitam corpos d\'água pequenos, restritos e temporários, essa negligência se torna ainda mais evidente. Um exemplo disso são ostrácodes que vivem em água acumulada em ocos de colmos de bambu e de árvores ou em tanques de bromélias - ambientes que em conjunto recebem o nome de fitotelmata - e sobre os quais se produziu pouco conhecimento até então. Em termos globais, somente 14 espécies de ostrácodes de fitotelmata foram descritas, das quais oito pertencem a Elpidium, um gênero descrito em 1880 por Fritz Müller e que continua muito pouco compreendido quanto a sua biologia e sistemática, devido à inconstância nos estudos envolvendo o gênero. Recentemente, entretanto, esforços estão sendo feitos para preencher essa lacuna e aprimorar o conhecimento sobre o gênero. Para tanto, estudos estão sendo feitos para verificação da diversidade de Elpidium. Neste trabalho, são apresentados dados inéditos tratando da (1) ontogenia - esclarecendo aspectos ontogenéticos pouco e/ou mal compreendidos da espécie-tipo Elpidium bromeliarum; (2) taxonomia - quatro novas espécies são descritas e Elpidium laesslei, redescrita; e (3) história evolutiva, com a proposição da primeira reconstrução filogenética para o gênero. Aspectos do desenvolvimento ontogenéticos de E. bromeliarum são abordados no capítulo 1. Neste, a possibilidade - proposta anteriormente na literatura - de uma muda adicional após o estágio adulto para a espécie é analisada. Tal possibilidade não foi corroborada e o desenvolvimento da espécie não configura uma exceção ao padrão de nove estágios de desenvolvimento das três principais superfamílias de ostrácodes de água doce e está também em conformidade com o já bem estabelecido fato de que ostrácodes não mudam após atingir a maturidade. Taxonomia e diversidade são abordadas nos capítulos 2 e 3. Tais capítulos são dedicados às descrições de quatro novas espécies - três provenientes da Jamaica e uma do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil - e redescrição de Elpidium laesslei, da Jamaica, além de discorrer sobre a hipótese de que o gênero apresentaria um alto grau de diversidade e endemismo devido à especiação alopátrica favorecida pelo relativo isolamento das bromélias. O capítulo 3 é ainda dedicado à história evolutiva do gênero, apresentando uma hipótese para as relações evolutivas entre suas espécies. Tal reconstrução filogenética coloca Elpidium como um grupo monofilético e suas espécies divididas em dois grandes clados. Finalmente, a necessidade de um estudo pluridisciplinar para o completo entendimento do gênero e nossas expectativas são discutidas

Tadpoles represent a key element in evolutionary history and the diversification of anurans. Through a two-phase life cycle, anurans can take advantage of the available resources in terrestrial and aquatic environments. Several studies have demonstrated that larval morphology may represent an important source of evidence for evolutionary studies. However, tadpoles are often ignored and little is known about their anatomy and biology. An example of this problem is the superfamily Dendrobatoidea, for which there is almost no information on tadpoles. This study aims to fill this gap. I performed a cladistic analysis of the superfamily Dendrobatoidae with emphasis on larval characters. The final dataset also included adult phenotypic characters and DNA sequences. The final matrix was composed of 621 terminals and more than 500 phenotypic characters of which 392 were individualized from larval systems, such as chondrocranium, cranial musculature and buccopharungeal anatomy. In my optimum hypothesis I recovered Dendrobatoidea as well as all its subfamilies and genera as monophyletic. Larval characters optimized as synapomorphies at different levels. Based on the topology and distribution of the characters, I discuss the evolution of several lifestyles and morphologies, such as oophagy, endotrophy, and carnivory in Dendrobatoidea / Girinos representam um elemento chave na história evolutiva e na diversificação dos anuros. Através de um ciclo de vida bifásico, os anuros conseguem aproveitar os recursos disponíveis tanto no ambiente terrestre como no aquático. Vários estudos demonstraram que a morfologia larvar pode representar uma importante fonte de evidências para estudos evolutivos. No entanto, girinos frequentemente são ignorados e pouco se sabe sobre sua anatomia e biologia. Um exemplo dessa problemática é a superfamília Dendrobatoidea, para a qual quase não há informações sobre seus girinos. O presente estudo visa contribuir para o preenchimento dessa lacuna. Eu realizei uma análise cladística da superfamília Dendrobatoidae, tendo como foco caracteres larvais. O dataset final também incluiu caracteres de adulto e sequências de DNA. A matriz final foi composta por 621 terminais e mais de 500 caracteres fenotípicos, dos quais 392 foram individualizados de sistemas larvais como condrocrânio, musculatura craniana e cavidade buccopharingeal. Em minha hipótese ótima, eu recuperei Dendrobatoidea bem como todas suas subfamílias e gêneros monofiléticos. Caracteres larvais otimizaram como sinapomorfias em diferentes níveis. Mediante a topologia e a distribuição dos caracteres, eu discuto a evolução de uma série de modos de vida e morfologias, como a oofagia, o endotrofismo e a carnivoria em Dendrobatoidea

Little is known about the spatial distribution and abundance of tree holes in New Zealand’s native forests, or the invertebrate communities that they support. I found that tree holes were common on five endemic tree species, belonging to the families Fagaceae and Podocarpaceae in the mixed broadleaf-podocarp rainforest of Orikaka Ecological Area, Buller District, New Zealand. However, tree holes were not uniformly distributed throughout the forest, with more holes found on the three podocarp species, Prumnopitys ferruginea, P. taxifolia and Dacrycarpus dacrydioides, than on Nothofagus fusca or N. menziesii. Nevertheless, Nothofagus fusca had the largest holes of any of the tree species sampled and larger trees generally had larger holes. Large, hole-bearing Nothofagus fusca trees support a specialist hole-dwelling vertebrate fauna in New Zealand and worldwide, tree holes provide habitat for a range of invertebrate species. Using specially-designed emergence traps, I collected invertebrates emerging from naturally-occurring dry tree holes and compared this assemblage with invertebrates inhabiting leaf litter on the forest floor and those dispersing aerially throughout the study area. At the higher taxonomic resolution (i.e., Order or Class), community composition within the tree holes was highly variable, and there was no strong distinction between invertebrates from tree holes, leaf litter or Malaise traps. Moreover, although some beetle species emerging from tree holes were found exclusively in tree holes, most of these were represented by a single individual. Consequently, only minor differences in species composition were detected between beetle assemblages from tree holes, leaf-litter and those aerially dispersing throughout the forest. In contrast, the aquatic invertebrate assemblage within water-filled tree holes was highly distinctive from that in ground-based freshwater ecosystems, with only six aquatic taxa in common between all freshwater habitats. Using experimental water-filled tree-hole microcosms, I found that species richness and community composition within these microcosms were primarily driven by resource concentration, although habitat quality (i.e., water chemistry parameters) was also an important determinant of the identity and composition of colonising species. Overall, my study has shown that tree holes are common in the study area, and are likely to be more abundant in New Zealand’s indigenous forests than previously thought. Moreover, these generally small, discrete forest ecosystems support a diverse array of terrestrial invertebrates as well as a distinctive aquatic invertebrate community that is primarily structured by organic matter resource availability. These findings not only represent an important advance in our knowledge of New Zealand’s freshwater invertebrate biodiversity, but also highlight the need for further investigation into these unique forest canopy habitats which may well be at risk from deforestation and land use change.

Submitted by (edna.saturno@ufrpe.br) on 2016-11-30T13:34:06Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Thais Ranielle Souza de Oliveira.pdf: 859605 bytes, checksum: 02ad1ada8031124aa7ff828082f64fb0 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-11-30T13:34:06Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Thais Ranielle Souza de Oliveira.pdf: 859605 bytes, checksum: 02ad1ada8031124aa7ff828082f64fb0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-02-01 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / The flowers and tropical ornamental plants segment are increasing in agribusiness all over the world. Following this trend, the sector has been expanding in Brazil too. The major tropical plants cultivate in Pernambuco are Heliconia species. Some Heliconia species accumulate exudates, water and floral parts in bracts that form a micro habitat called phytotelmata which favors the occurrence of insects. Immersion in insecticides conventional solutions, together with physical cleaning is currently the main way to control these insects in tropical flowers postharvest. The use of natural products derived from plants is an alternative to this method in recent years. The objective this study was to identify the insect families associated to Heliconia bihai (L.) L. and evaluate the insecticidal potential of Piper marginatum Jacq., Piper aduncum L. and Eucalyptus citriodora Hook essential oils in insects that occur after the post-harvest, and the effect of these oils in inflorescences durability. The order Diptera showed the greatest values for infestation, frequency, abundance and constancy indexes. Was observed that 51.1% of the insects were dipterous the family Psycodidae (two morphospecies) and 19.5% of the family Tipulidae (one morphospecies). In the insect control evaluation, Natuneem promoted, respectively, 66.6% and 41.6% Coleoptera insects removal. There was no significative difference in Diptera larvae percentage removed in treatments and controls as the mortality larvae. This does not rule out the insecticidal activity of these oils. Isnecessary to develop new experiments using different concentrations of these oils to establish what the most suitable to insects control in H. bihai postharvest. / O segmento de floricultura e plantas ornamentais tropicais tem se destacado dentro do agronegócio mundial, acompanhando essa tendência o setor vem se expandindo no Brasil. Entre os principais gêneros de plantas tropicais cultivadas em Pernambuco estão às espécies do gênero Heliconia. Algumas espécies de Heliconia acumulam exsudados, água e partes florais nas brácteas, formando um micro-habitat denominado de fitotelmata, que favorece a ocorrência de insetos. A imersão em soluções de inseticidas convencionais, associados aos processos físicos de limpeza é, atualmente, a principal forma de controle desses insetos em pós-colheita de flores tropicais. Sendo nos últimos anos estudados como uma alternativa a esse método o uso de produtos naturais obtidos a partir de plantas. O objetivo deste estudo foi de identificar as principais famílias de insetos associados a inflorescências de Heliconia bihai (L.) L. e avaliar o potencial inseticida de óleos essenciais de Piper marginatum Jacq., P. aduncum L. e Eucalyptus citriodora Hook em insetos que ocorrem na pós-colheita e o efeitos desses óleos na durabilidade das inflorescências. A ordem Diptera apresentou os maiores valores de infestação, freqüência, abundância e constância. Foi observado que 51,1% dos insetos foram dípteros da família Psycodidae (duas morfoespécies) e 19,5% da família Tipulidae (uma morfoespécie). Na avaliação do controle de insetos, o Natuneem promoveu aremoção de 41,6% de insetos da ordem Coleoptera, 55,5% Hemiptera e 100% Hymenoptera. A mortalidade dos insetos da ordem Hemiptera foi 100% nas brácteas imersas na solução de P. aducum. Não houve diferença significativa tanto no percentual de larvas de Diptera removidas nos tratamentos e nos controles como na mortalidade de larvas. O que não descarta a atividade inseticida desses óleos. Faz-se necessário o desenvolvimento de novos experimentos utilizando diferentes concentrações destes óleos para se estabelecer qual o mais indicado no controle de insetos na pós-colheita de H. bihai.

Les Broméliacées sont une vaste famille de plantes à fleurs néotropicales dont certaines ont la capacité de retenir de l’eau et des détritus grâce à l’agencement de leurs feuilles qui forment un phytotelme (du grec phyto : plante et telma : mare). Elles fournissent ainsi un habitat pour de nombreux organismes aquatiques, depuis les micro-organismes jusqu’aux vertébrés. Dans cet écosystème aquatique, les détritus collectés sont le plus souvent de la litière qui constitue la base du réseau trophique dont dépend la Broméliacée pour l’acquisition des nutriments. Ces phytotelmes forment des microcosmes aquatiques naturels très nombreux et distribués dans des environnements très divers, allant du sous-bois de la forêt tropicale à des sites très exposés comme les inselbergs. De plus, certaines espèces entretiennent des relations mutualistes très poussées avec des invertébrés terrestres tels que les fourmis, alors que d’autres, qui ont évolué dans des environnements très pauvres en nutriments, ont eu recours à l’insectivorie. Si les communautés d’invertébrés de ces phytotelmes ont fait l’objet de nombreux projets de recherche en écologie, nos connaissances sur la structure des communautés de micro-organismes sont très parcellaires, et les facteurs de contrôle qui façonnent ces communautés sont le plus souvent déduits d’études réalisées dans d’autres écosystèmes aquatiques. L’objectif général de ce travail de thèse a été d’analyser l’influence de facteurs environnementaux et biologiques sur la structure et la diversité des communautés microbiennes aquatiques des phytotelmes des Broméliacées localisées dans des environnements contrastés de Guyane française. Nous avons examiné les communautés aquatiques de 8 espèces de Broméliacées à réservoirs situées sur deux sites en Guyane française, en considérant différentes variables abiotiques et biotiques, tels que les traits végétatifs des plantes, la taille de l’habitat, les groupes fonctionnels d’invertébrés, l’association mutualiste avec des fourmis, etc. Les résultats obtenus mettent en lumière l’ubiquité de différents groupes de microorganismes (virus, bactéries, champignons, algues eucaryotes et cyanobactéries, protozoaires et micro-métazoaires) dans cet écosystème et l’importance fonctionnelle d’organismes autotrophes dans ce réseau trophique considéré jusque-là comme exclusivement détritique. Ces plantes procurent ainsi une grande variété d’environnements aquatiques, depuis des écosystèmes exclusivement hétérotrophes (e.g. Guzmania lingulata) jusqu’à des écosystèmes ayant un fonctionnement autotrophe dominant, en particulier chez les plantes les plus exposées (e.g.Catopsis berteroniana). La structure du réseau trophique microbien des Broméliacées dépend en grande partie (1) de la structure de l’habitat, c’est-à-dire des traits végétatifs des plantes tels que la taille de celles-ci et le nombre de réservoirs, et (2) des conditions environnementales dans lesquelles sont situées les plantes, à savoir l’exposition à la lumière et l’approvisionnement en ressources détritiques. Pour la Broméliacée de jardins de fourmis Aechmea mertensii, l’identité de la fourmi associée conditionne la structure de l’habitat et la localisation de la plante, ce qui influence indirectement la structure du réseau trophique microbien. Les invertébrés aquatiques sont impliqués dans le contrôle des communautés microbiennes de par leur filtration sur les micro-organismes. L’analyse des patterns de distribution suggère toutefois que leurs activités d’excrétion, de fragmentation des détritus et de recyclage de la matière organique ont un effet positif sur le réseau microbien. Les communautés bactériennes de la Broméliacée insectivore Catopsis berteroniana, sont principalement modulées par le nombre de carcasses de fourmis, qui constituent l’essentiel des proies de cette plante. (...) / Bromeliads are a large family of neotropical flowering plants. The leaves of many bromeliads are tightly interlocking, forming wells that collect water and organic detritus. These phytotelmata (plant-held water) provide habitat for numerous aquatic organisms ranging from microorganisms to vertebrates. In this aquatic ecosystem, detritus (usually leaf litter) form the basis of a food web upon which depends the nutrition of the bromeliad. In tropical forests, these phytotelmata form abundant natural aquatic microcosms, distributed in a large range of tropical environments, from understory to overstory. In addition, some species of tank-bromeliads share mutualistic relationships with terrestrial invertebrates such as ants, while others have evolved in nutrient-poor environments and have become insectivorous. Although numerous ecological studies have dealt with invertebrates communities, analyses of the structure of microbial communities in tank-bromeliads remain very scarce and factors that shape these communities derived mostly from studies of others aquatic ecosystems. Here, we analyzed the impact of environmental and biological factors on the structure and the diversity of aquatic microbial communities in tank-bromeliads located in contrasted environments in French Guiana. We examined aquatic communities inhabiting tanks of 8 bromeliad species located in two sites of French Guiana, and analyzed the impact of different abiotic and biotic variables, such as vegetative traits of plants, habitat size, functional feeding groups of invertebrates, mutualistic association with ants, etc. Our results highlight the ubiquity of microbial groups (virus, bacteria, fungi, eukaryotic algae and cyanobacteria, protozoans and micrometazoans) in this ecosystem and the significance of autotrophic organisms in this detritus-based system. These plants provide a wide variety of aquatic environments ; from strict heterotrophic systems (e.g. Guzmania lingulata) to mixed systems in which the autotrophic compartment sometimes dominates (e.g. Catopsis berteroniana). The structure of the microbial food web in tank-bromeliad largely depends on (1) the habitat structure (i.e. the vegetative traits of the plants such as plant height and the number of wells), and (2) the environmental conditions of the plants (i.e. light exposure and input of detrital organic matter). For the ant-garden bromeliad Aechmea mertensii, we found that the identity of the associated ant affects both habitat structure and plant location, which in turn influence the structure of the microbial food web. Through their filtration, aquatic invertebrates are involved in the control of microbial communities. However, the analysis of the distribution patterns suggests that their activities of excretion, detrital processing and nutrient cycling positively affect the microbial food web. In the insectivorous tank-bromeliad Catopsis berteroniana, bacterial communities were mostly driven by the number of dead ants, which represent the main trapped preys in this plant. This work highlights the huge diversity of aquatic ecosystems that are created by bromeliads, and their significance for the maintenance of taxonomic and functional diversity of microorganisms in tropical forests.