http://www.tede2.ufrpe.br:8080/tede2/handle/tede2/8711 2026-04-11T08:07:51Z 2026-04-11T08:07:51Z TORQUATO, Isabella Hevily Silva http://www.tede2.ufrpe.br:8080/tede2/handle/tede2/9711 2024-11-04T22:24:47Z 2024-07-26T00:00:00Z

Título: Redes de interações entre polinizadores e culturas agrícolas em diferentes escalas espaciais Autor: TORQUATO, Isabella Hevily Silva Primeiro orientador: CASTRO, Cibele Cardoso de Abstract: Pollination is a crucial ecosystem service for food production. One of the goals of the ONU 2030 agenda is to eradicate hunger, ensure food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. To achieve this, it is necessary to implement resilient agricultural practices that preserve ecosystems and conserve pollinators, which are essential for main food crops. Through network science, this thesis' main objective is to understand the structure of interactions between plants and pollinators at different spatial scales (global and local) and to investigate the main interactions that can favor the pollination of crops of food and economic importance. The thesis is structured into three chapters. In Chapter I, we seek to understand the pattern of interactions between pollinators and cultivated Malvaceae species (cotton, cocoa, cupuaçu and okra) on a global scale through a meta-network of interactions. We identified that the meta-network of Malvaceae-pollinator interactions has four modules, each module formed by a crop and a few shared pollinators. Apis mellifera was the only connecting species in the network. In this chapter we can conclude that each crop is pollinated by a very specific group of species, indicating that the maintenance of productivity can be favored by the conservation of the diversity of pollinators. In Chapter II, we investigated, through a literature review, the pollination of cocoa, describing the spatial and temporal distribution of studies, verifying the global distribution of pollinators (through a spatial network) and identifying the key pollinators for their production. 29 articles were included in the analyses. The years of publications found ranged from 1950 to 2024. The countries that had the highest number of studies were Ghana (21%) and Indonesia (17%). The network recorded a total of 39 links between 14 countries and 13 pollinators (nine flies, three ants and one bee). Flies of the genus Forcipomyia have been classified as key pollinators of cocoa flowers. In Chapter III, we aimed to identify the interactions between co-flowering cultivated plants (pumpkin, watermelon, melon, gherkin, tomato and pepper) and bees in a family farming area in the semi-arid region of Brazil and classify the functional roles of the species in the network. The network presented a modular structure, formed by four modules, apparently guided by floral attributes. No species of bee was classified as a hub of the network. Paratrigona incerta and Ceratina sp. were classified as module hubs. Paratrigona incerta showed the greatest number of interactions with crops, interacting with all crops, except pumpkin. Apis mellifera, was the second species with the highest number of interactions, being linked to all Cucurbitaceae. We realized, therefore, that the networks of interactions between pollinators and cultivated plants presented a modular structure regardless of the spatial scale (global or local) and that the composition of the modules may be related to floral attributes such as size and resources offered. Native bees have great potential for pollination in agricultural areas. Pollination networks can constitute an important criterion in making decisions about pollinator management and conservation, as they identify key pollinators. Instituição: Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco Tipo do documento: Tese

2024-07-26T00:00:00Z MAGALHÃES, Isabelle Cristina Santos http://www.tede2.ufrpe.br:8080/tede2/handle/tede2/9710 2024-11-04T22:17:32Z 2024-05-28T00:00:00Z

Título: Polinização e sua influência na produção de culturas de Cucurbitaceae Autor: MAGALHÃES, Isabelle Cristina Santos Primeiro orientador: CASTRO, Cibele Cardoso de Abstract: The production of many agricultural crops depends on pollinators, especially bees, considered primarily responsible for crop yields, influencing the size, weight, and chemical composition of fruits and seeds. However, although its importance is known, the presence of pollinating insects in crops has been decreasing, threatening global nutritional security. As a result, agricultural crops that are more dependent on pollinators are consequently the most affected, among those in the Cucurbitaceae family, such as pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata), due to their monoecy. Despite the importance of the family in global agricultural production, there are no studies that statistically integrate data on the interaction of Cucurbitaceae crops and their pollinators, nor indicate gaps in knowledge. Furthermore, given the importance of pollinators in pumpkin production, investigations into the influence of pollination on production are essential to assist with pollinator management and conservation actions. The objective of this work was to understand the trend of studies and plant-pollinator interactions of cucurbits of economic importance on a global scale, integrate global data on the pollination of zucchini (Cucurbita pepo) and evaluate the relationship between floral display, frequency of visits, quantity and quality of agricultural production, including analysis of fruit antioxidants, using pumpkin cultivation (Cucurbita moschata) as a model. The doctoral thesis is structured into three chapters. In the first chapter, a systematic review of the literature was carried out and, based on data from floral visitors, a meta-network was constructed. The meta-network was highly modular, with most species being peripheral, the module hub was Xenoglossa kansensis and the network hubs were Apis florea and A. mellifera. The formation of modules cannot be explained exclusively by functional characteristics of the species, because although the flowers are similar in color, they differ in other attributes, explaining the great diversity of insects observed. Our data reinforces the need to support native pollinators, contributing to mitigating the global pollinator crisis. In the second chapter, through a systematic review, we analyze the distribution of studies, build a network of countries and pollinators and compare data on the efficiency of specific pollinators. Studies have been carried out on almost every continent, where most studies have investigated the frequency and diversity of floral visitors. Zucchini flowers fed 116 species of pollinators, mainly bees. Many countries had almost exclusive groups of native pollinators, among which it is possible to find efficient and manageable species, capable of replacing exotic pollinators. The data compiled here will help in the development and improvement of strategies for the management and conservation of pollinators. Furthermore, future studies on the influence of pollinators on the chemical aspects of fruits and seed germination are necessary. In the third chapter, we verify floral biology, carry out focal observations and conduct pollination treatments (natural and cross). Seven species of visitors were recorded, with A. mellifera and T. spinipes being the most frequent. The fruit set resulting from natural pollination was greater than that from cross pollination and presented greater antioxidant activity of the fruits. Furthermore, the number of seeds was positively related to fruit weight. Thus, bees were the main pollinators of pumpkin produced in the semi-arid region of Northeast Brazil, with emphasis on T. spinipes and A. mellifera, which positively influenced the weight of the fruits. Furthermore, pollinators favored the antioxidant potential of the fruits. Instituição: Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco Tipo do documento: Tese

2024-05-28T00:00:00Z NUNES, Larisse Bianca Soares Pereira http://www.tede2.ufrpe.br:8080/tede2/handle/tede2/9709 2024-11-04T22:10:23Z 2024-03-27T00:00:00Z

Título: Efeitos da adição de nutrientes e da invasão por Megathyrsus maximus, na ecofisiologia de plantas nativas, em uma área da Caatinga em regeneração natural Autor: NUNES, Larisse Bianca Soares Pereira Primeiro orientador: SILVA, Cláudia Ulisses de Carvalho Abstract: Caatinga, the largest and most populous Seasonally Dry Tropical Forest in the world, is located predominantly in the Northeast of Brazil. This unique ecosystem is characterized by highly endemic vegetation, adapted to semi-arid climatic conditions and soils with low nutrient concentrations. However, it faces several threats, including the unsustainable use of resources by the population, the intensification of drought due to climate change and the invasion of exotic species. Such threats compromise local biodiversity and favor desertification processes. This study aims to evaluate the biochemical behavior of pioneer native plants in response to soil changes and increasing competition due to invasion by Megathyrsus maximus. We observed that plants with shorter roots tend to react more efficiently to changes in acidity and the accumulation of Al3+ in sandy soils in the Caatinga. Although the addition of NPK prior to the growing season, coupled with the invasion of M. maximus, did not cause significant changes to the soil over the course of a year, we suggest that these nutrients may have been leached or that the initial soil conditions may have been altered. restored due to high soil activity and absorption by the invasive plant. Even without detectable changes in soils, native plants showed signs of nitrogen reduction, especially in areas invaded by exotic species, indicating an increase in competition for resources. These results provide important insights into the responses of native plants to anthropogenic changes, which can be exacerbated by climate change, threatening the natural regeneration of the Caatinga and the survival of pioneering endemic species. For a more complete understanding of the effects of environmental fluctuations on these species, we recommend long-term studies, given the slow nature of responses to fertilization and invasion by exotic plants. Instituição: Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco Tipo do documento: Tese

2024-03-27T00:00:00Z SILVA, Leonardo Barbosa da http://www.tede2.ufrpe.br:8080/tede2/handle/tede2/9708 2024-11-04T21:57:18Z 2023-08-30T00:00:00Z

Título: Fragilidades nas interações entre aves e plantas em áreas prioritárias para a conservação Autor: SILVA, Leonardo Barbosa da Primeiro orientador: ALMEIDA, Natan Messias de Abstract: Seed dispersal is a fundamental process in the life cycle of plants. Flowering plants have developed different strategies to ensure the displacement of their diaspores. In tropical forests, dispersal is mainly accomplished through interactions with different groups of animals. Birds represent one of the most important of these groups. However, the Anthropocene is characterized by intense deforestation, defaunation, and particularly fragile ecological interactions. Significant effort has been devoted to trying to understand the aspects related to the loss of these interactions. Within this context, the general objective of this thesis was to investigate the factors that jeopardize the processes of seed dispersal by birds in two hotspots for biodiversity conservation. First, we analyzed the influence of environmental fragmentation by monitoring the interactions in two areas of Cerrado stricto sensu with different conservation states: a fragmented area and a continuous (conserved) area. We then evaluated how the morphological correspondence between the ingestion capacity (beak width) of dispersing birds and the size of ornithochoric diaspores (fruits and seeds with attributes attractive to birds) can influence dispersal processes in a fragment of Atlantic Forest. We interpret these results in light of the metrics used in the construction of interaction networks and through empirical observations of interactions. We found that, in Cerrado, environmental fragmentation had a negative influence on the diversity of the dispersing bird guild and plant communities, in addition to causing functional homogenization, favoring the predominance of interactions between generalist birds and plants with small diaspores (≤ 10 mm). Further, our results in forest fragments demonstrate that the relationship between diaspore size and bird beak width acts as a filter in the dispersal process. We observed that dispersive resilience is lower in interactions involving larger diaspores (≥ 15 mm). We also bring an interesting case study in which the morphological incompatibility between the width of the beak of Hemithraupis guira (Thraupidae) and the size of the seeds of Cupania oblongifolia (Sapindaceae) seems to act as a pressure (at the individual level) favoring the development of behavioral traits to optimize foraging. Finally, we bring an article of Instituição: Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco Tipo do documento: Tese

2023-08-30T00:00:00Z