Banca de DEFESA: CARLOS SALUSTIO GOMES

Uma banca de DEFESA de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : CARLOS SALUSTIO GOMES
DATE: 27/03/2024
TIME: 09:00
LOCAL: YouTube (https://youtu.be/hKAh4eAbNIs)
TITLE:

VOCAL ACTIVITY, DETECTION, OCCUPANCY, AND POPULATION DENSITY OF OWLS IN FOREST PATCHES OF THE ATLANTIC FOREST

KEY WORDS:

Pernambuco Endemism Center;animal behavior;owl;deforestation;passive acoustic monitoring;multi-scale

PAGES: 84
BIG AREA: Ciências Biológicas
AREA: Ecologia
SUMMARY:

Understanding the activity and distribution patterns of animals about environmental factors is crucial for species conservation. In the Atlantic Forest domain, 72% of owl species show population declines, making it essential to conserve both species and habitats. The use of passive acoustic monitoring offers opportunities to collect data on the activity and habitat use of little-studied species, contributing to long-term monitoring and effective conservation. This work seeks to fill gaps in the understanding of vocal activity patterns, detection, and habitat use of owls that occur in the far north of the Atlantic Forest, more specifically, in the north of the Pernambuco Endemism Center, Brazil. Our objectives were: (1) to investigate the vocal activity and detection patterns of two nocturnal owls that occur in the Neotropical region, the Tropical Screech-Owl (Megascops choliba) and the Spectacled Owl (Pulsatrix perspicillata), to contribute to monitoring protocols for the conservation of both species; and (2) to identify the environmental factors that affect the occupancy of P. perspicillata, estimate its population density, and map the hotspots of occupancy and density of the species to aid locate priority conservation areas. In the first part of the study, we found that the vocal activity of P. perspicillata was highest at 9 pm, while that of M. choliba was highest at 7 pm, 1 am, and 4 am. The detection of P. perspicillata was best explained by the effective moon illumination index (p = 0.05) and tree density (p = 0.027) and of M. choliba by air temperature (p = 0.006) and tree density (p = 0.001). In the second part, we identified that P. perspicillata responds to environmental variations both at the patch scale and at the 1000 ha landscape scale, and its occupancy is positively affected by the presence of primary forests and areas with greater topographic roughness. The regions of high occupancy and density are concentrated in protected areas, indigenous lands, and other patches with high potential for conservation. The results of this study may aid to identify favorable scenarios for the efficient monitoring of forest night owls and to establish protocols for the conservation of species that are sensitive to the effects of forest loss and that lack information related to habitat use.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Externa à Instituição - PRISCILLA ESCLARSKI - UFV
Externo à Instituição - CARLOS BARROS DE ARAÚJO
Presidente - 1439088 - MAURO PICHORIM