Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro

The program “REFLORA - Brazilian Plants: Historic Rescue and Virtual Herbarium for Knowledge and Conservation of the Brazilian Flora” was established by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) in 2010, involved numerous participants at the international, federal, state, and private company levels, and included approximately 24.5 million reais in investments over a period of 5 years. It had the objective of rescuing and making available images and information about herbarium specimens of Brazilian plants deposited in foreign collections. Under the auspices of this program, research projects were financed with consumable, durable, and grant resources that covered aspects of taxonomy, evolution and phytogeographic adaptation, molecular biology, conservation, use, and historical details of expeditions and their relationship to the colonization of Brazil. Additionally, using subsidies from the REFLORA Program, the REFLORA Virtual Herbarium was created allowing the program to fulfill its initial objectives of receiving 500 thousand images and repatriating data from the RBG-Kew and MNHN-Paris herbaria, as well as data and images from other national and foreign herbaria that were subsequently added. This article describes the historical context of creating and implementing the REFLORA Virtual Herbarium, which has become one of the most important tools for research and advancing knowledge about the biodiversity of plants and fungi, in addition to being fundamental to fulfill international goals and agreements assumed by Brazil, such as Flora of Brazil 2020.

“I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the seashore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.” This quote is attributed to one of the most important scientists of our society, Sir Isaac Newton. However, it could easily be attributed to Gilberto M. Amado-Filho by those who have had the opportunity to know him. Pebbles (or gravels) were how extensive areas of the Brazilian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) had been classified before Dr. Amado-Filho took his diver gears down into several turbid waters of this portion of the Western Atlantic.

Brazilian rhodolith-associated flora and fauna are abundant and diverse, providing a scenario of multicolored marine forests. The Brazilian coast has a high diversity of seaweeds, with 381 taxa associated with rhodolith beds. This includes the Phylum Chlorophyta (65), Ochrophyta (46), and Rhodophyta (270), comprising ~30% of seaweed taxa known to Brazil. In this context, the cryptofauna associated with Brazilian rhodoliths is significantly more abundant, with eight times higher density and greater taxonomic richness than the unconsolidated sediment. The rhodolith beds are an oasis of diversity in the Brazilian continental shelf with many singularities, interacting with different coastal and ocean ecosystems, with countless relationships and species intertwined by the evolutionary history and environments built by coralline algae. All these biodiversity and ecological functions are threatened due to the combined effects of global and local stressors, mainly represented by oil exploitation, trawling, ocean warming, and acidification.

Habitat loss can lead to biotic homogenization (decrease in β diversity) or differentiation (increase in β diversity) of biological communities. However, it is unclear which of these ecological processes predominates in human‐modified landscapes. We used data on vertebrates, invertebrates, and plants to quantify β diversity based on species occurrence and abundance among communities in 1367 landscapes with varying amounts of habitat (<30%, 30−60%, or >60% of forest cover) throughout the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Decreases in habitat amount below 30% led to increased compositional similarity of vertebrate and invertebrate communities, which may indicate a process of biotic homogenization throughout the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. No pattern was detected in plant communities. We found that habitat loss was associated with a deterministic increase in faunal community similarity, which is consistent with a selected subset of species being capable of thriving in human‐modified landscapes. The lack of pattern found in plants was consistent with known variation between taxa in community responses to habitat amount. Brazilian legislation requiring the preservation of 20% of Atlantic Forest native vegetation may be insufficient to prevent the biotic homogenization of faunal communities. Our results highlight the importance of preserving large amounts of habitat, providing source areas for the recolonization of deforested landscapes, and avoiding large‐scale impacts of homogenization of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest.

The increasing online availability of biodiversity data and advances in ecological modeling have led to a proliferation of open‐source modeling tools. In particular, R packages for species distribution modeling continue to multiply without guidance on how they can be employed together, resulting in high fidelity of researchers to one or several packages. Here, we assess the wide variety of software for species distribution models (SDMs) and highlight how packages can work together to diversify and expand analyses in each step of a modeling workflow. We also introduce the new R package ‘sdmverse' to catalog metadata for packages, cluster them based on their methodological functions, and visualize their relationships. To demonstrate how pluralism of software use helps improve SDM workflows, we provide three extensive and fully documented analyses that utilize tools for modeling and visualization from multiple packages, then score these tutorials according to recent methodological standards. We end by identifying gaps in the capabilities of current tools and highlighting outstanding challenges in the development of software for SDMs.

Hybrid zones offer unique insight into reproductive barriers and plant speciation mechanisms. This study investigated postzygotic reproductive isolation in the natural hybrid Epidendrum × purpureum , which occurs in sympatry with its parent species, Epidendrum denticulatum and E. orchidiflorum . We examined the development of male and female gametophytes and the events leading to seed formation in this hybrid zone. Floral buds and flowers from E . × purpureum individuals were collected at various stages of development. Both self‐pollination and backcrosses between hybrids and parental species were performed to follow ovule and seed development up to 60 days after pollination. The material was analysed using optical and confocal microscopy. In most hybrids, microsporogenesis and microgametogenesis occur regularly, forming viable male gametophytes. Non‐viable male gametophytes were also observed and are the result of symmetrical mitotic division. The development of the female gametophyte occurs after self‐pollination, and proceeds regularly, resulting in a reduced female gametophyte. Embryo development in the parental species occurs without abnormalities, while in backcrosses between hybrids and parental species, most embryos degenerate. Embryo degeneration in the crosses between hybrids can be explained by genetic incompatibilities. The co‐occurrence of viable embryos and degenerating embryos in backcrosses between hybrids and parental species point to incomplete postzygotic reproductive barriers between the hybrid and the progenitors. Our findings suggest that E . × purpureum could facilitate gene flow between parental species, as much of its embryological development occurs without abnormalities.

Peperomia is a species-rich genus, and one of its centers of richness and endemism is in the Atlantic Forest in Brazil. During field work in the Reserva Biológica de Duas Bocas, a protected area in Espírito Santo State in southeastern Brazil, a new species was discovered that is described here. Peperomia capixaba is a terrestrial herb with small, non-peltate leaves forming a rosette, each 5- (or obscurely 7) veined, with a concave lamina when living, having a cordate base and sinus overlapped by the lobes. This unique combination of features distinguishes it from the morphologically similar P. arifolia and related species. Peperomia capixaba is known only from the type locality, on the slopes of a mountainous region in Espírito Santo. Analyses of protologues and type images of related species resulted in novel taxonomic interpretations and nomenclatural changes in subgenus Multipalmata. Two new synonyms are proposed here: P. hydrocotyloides var. prolifera is synonymized with P. arifola, and P. rostulatiformis with P. clausenii.

Over the last two centuries, since the treatment of Leguminosae in Flora Brasiliensis, many new legume species and genera have been described, adding to the accumulated body of knowledge on species’ circumscriptions and distribution, published in monographs, taxonomic revisions and regional floristic treatments of specific Brazilian phytogeographic domains. The Flora do Brasil 2020 project was a collaborative effort conducted between 2008 and 2020 to meet the targets set by the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, an initiative of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The project aimed to inventory and revise the taxonomy of all plant species in Brazil, including Leguminosae. The monograph of the legume family was carried out by a team of 102 taxonomists (10% of the project’s total), who worked towards updating and verifying the taxonomy of these plants in an online platform. Information on the life forms, substrate, endemism level, and geographical distribution for all accepted taxa were provided, alongside morphological descriptions, identification keys, images of herbarium specimens and field photographs. In this work, we have extracted from the Flora do Brasil 2020 project the legume data consolidated on December 31st, 2020 to provide an overview of the species diversity of Leguminosae in Brazil and its distribution across phytogeographic domains. The results revealed that the family is represented by 220 genera, of which 19 are endemic, and a total of 2901 species (1576 endemic). After fully monographing 210 genera (95%), we showcased Leguminosae as the most diverse family in the country, representing 6% of the total vascular plant species documented in the Flora do Brasil 2020. The species are found in all phytogeographic domains, exhibiting a wide range of life forms. The Mata Atlântica and Caatinga domains together contain the largest number of endemic legume genera in Brazil, most of them monospecific. A discussion on the conservation status of the Brazilian legume species is also provided. Knowledge of the Brazilian flora is continuously advancing, particularly with regards to Leguminosae, demanding regular taxonomic and nomenclatural updates. Current collaborations have greatly improved our understanding of legume diversity and distribution, providing evidence to inform conservation prioritization and action for the Leguminosae in Brazil’s megadiverse flora.

In the Malveae tribe (Malvaceae), the axis supporting the flower has a joint at the upper third. This axis can be considered as an articulated pedicel, peduncle, peduncle-pedicel, or anthopodium. Such disparity in terminology reveals a duality in interpretation since this structure is classified as part of the inflorescence or part of the flower. In an effort to reach a consensus, this study aims to evaluate axes supporting the flowers of species from the Malveae tribe through ontogenetic, morphological, and histochemical analyses, using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Ontogenetic analyses indicated that the axis supporting the flower is an articulated pedicel, which is divided into proximal and distal parts owing to the presence of the constriction (joint). Simultaneously, the articulated pedicel arises from the floral meristem, along with the establishment of the calyx and androecium. As development progresses, we observed frequent abscissions of the floral bud, along with the distal portion of the pedicel, at the joint. After this, the remaining proximal portion of the pedicel becomes secretory, as an extrafloral nectary, often foraged by ants of the genus Wasmannia. Thus, this ontogenetic analysis of the articulated pedicel helps in understanding its functionality and morphological variability, highlighting the importance of standardized terminology since it would lead to conceptual clarity in different studies. Additionally, this study, for the first time, reveals the presence of extrafloral nectaries on articulated pedicels in Malveae, a previously undocumented feature in Malveae and Malvaceae.

Urbanization has reshaped the distribution of biodiversity on Earth, but we are only beginning to understand its effects on ecological communities. While urbanization may have homogenization effects strong enough to blur the large-scale patterns in interaction networks, urban community patterns may still be associated with climate gradients reflecting large-scale biogeographical processes. Using 103 hummingbird–plant mutualistic networks across continental Americas, including 176 hummingbird and 1,180 plant species, we asked how urbanization affects species interactions over large climate gradients. Urban networks were more generalized, exhibiting greater interaction overlap. Higher generalization was also associated with lower precipitation in both urban and natural areas, indicating that climate affects networks irrespective of habitat type. Urban habitats also showed lower hummingbird functional trait diversity and over/underrepresentation of specific clades. From the plant side, urban communities had a higher prevalence of nonnative nectar plants, which were more frequently visited by the hummingbird species occurring in both urban and natural areas. Therefore, urbanization affected hummingbird–plant interactions through both the composition of species and traits, as well as floral resource availability. Taken together, we show that urbanization consistently modifies ecological communities and their interactions, but climate still plays a role in affecting the structure of these novel communities over the scale of continents.

This study was initially driven by efforts to identify a species of Campomanesia from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest that was introduced into cultivation because of it excellent fruits, using seeds collected in 2007. Tentatively interpreted as a new taxon, after examination of the types of synonyms of its apparent close relatives, we found that this taxon corresponds closely to the type and original description of Abbevillea langsdorffii, which is currently considered a synonym of Campomanesia sessiliflora var. sessiliflora. Examination of original descriptions, types, historical and modern herbarium collections and cultivated individuals support the recognition of A. langsdorffii as a distinct species. The existence of C. langsdorffii prevents using this combination, and, therefore, we propose Campomanesia lorenziana as a necessary replacement name. We provide herein an updated morphological description for C. lor-enziana, including a report on fruit taste, morphological photographs and drawings and a taxonomic discussion. Campomanesia lorenziana is similar to C. hirsuta and C. phaea, so we provide morphological data to distinguish them and a brief historical overview regarding the cultivation of C. lorenziana is also presented.

This study was conducted in the context of a taxonomic treatment for Myrcia species occurring in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro. While revising current synonyms of endemic species of Myrcia sect. Gomidesia, we found consistent morphological separation between Myrcia gestasiana and Myrcia dolichopetala, presently treated as synonyms and detached here. Individuals co-occurring with M. dolichopetala are here recognized and described as a new species, Myrcia macrobracteosa, the specific epithet being allusive of its unusually showy, persistent and accrescent bracts and bracteoles. A taxonomic treatment is provided for each species based on herbarium collections and field data, and their diagnostic characters are contrasted in a comparative table. Morphological plates of fresh and dry material are also provided with notes on taxonomy and distribution , including a map of occurrence records. The three taxa occur in urban forest remnants under extreme threat in the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Region. In this context, preliminary conservation assessments are also provided for each species based on occurrence data from herbaria and field information.

Eperua is a genus of Neotropical trees that forms a major component of tropical lowland forests in Amazonia, especially in the Guiana Shield and on white-sand forests. One species occurs in the Cerrado-Caatinga ecotone, and the genus also inhabits riverine and terra firme forests. Species in Eperua exhibit one of two drastically different floral architectures and inflorescence types, each associated with distinct pollinators. Prior phylogenetic studies of Eperua have revealed an unstructured topology concerning floral architectures and inflorescence types. In addition, no investigation has been conducted on how the evolution of these traits and habitat preferences influenced the dispersal and diversification of Eperua. Using target capture sequencing, we inferred the most comprehensive phylogeny for Eperua to date, sampling all 19 known species, five for the first time. We used coalescence, concatenation, and network methods to infer the Eperua phylogeny and investigate sources of incongruence impacting resolution and support. We reconstructed the biogeographic history and ancestral states for the flower architecture, inflorescence type, and habitat preference. Our phylogenomic analyses successfully resolved relationships within Eperua, attributing conflicts between the species tree and concatenated tree to gene tree discordance linked to reticulation events. Biogeographical analyses indicate that Eperua originated and initially diversified in the white-sand forests of the Guiana Shield. A subsequent adaptation to riverine and terra firme forests enabled Eperua to expand into new habitats and regions. Still, its historical preference for whitesand forests probably accounts for its absence in the southern and western parts of Amazonia. Ancestral geographic areas and corolla morphotype reconstructions suggest that speciation in Eperua has occurred in sympatry, likely driven by pollinator shifts mediated by drastic changes in floral architecture.

Stachytarpheta eimeariae and S. praetermissa are newly described and included in the Radlkoferiana group due to their flowers with 2-toothed calyces and bright red to pinkish corollas. The first is a new species differentiated from the typical concept of S. ganevii by a set of mainly vegetative characteristics, while the second is a new status and name for S. radlkoferiana var. lanata due to a set of characteristics associated with the leaves and bracts. The two new species grow in campo rupestre vegetation, with S. eimeariae found in the Abaíra municipality and S. praetermissa in Mucugê of Bahia, Brazil. They should be considered threatened, which reinforces the need for activities to promote the conservation of campo rupestre in the Chapada Diamantina. With these additions, the Radlkoferiana group now includes 11 species; an identification key and a distribution map are provided, alongside illustrations and taxonomic notes.

Background The Parque Estadual do Forno Grande is a fully protected area in the southern Espírito Santo State, Brazil. It belongs to the Atlantic Forest domain, with predominantly dense, ombrophilous, seasonal semi-deciduous forests and herbaceous/shrubby vegetation on rock outcrops. The area is recognised as highly important for conservation, designated as a priority biological area for protecting the Atlantic Forest's biodiversity. Although the importance of Protected Areas in conserving the Atlantic Forest biodiversity is unquestionable, it is crucial to understand the floristic patterns within these regions to develop effective conservation strategies. We utilised national online databases to compile species lists containing relevant information about their biodiversity. The updated list of vascular plants recorded in the Parque Estadual do Forno Grande is available in the “Catálogo de Plantas das Unidades de Conservação do Brasil” and it is presented here with further information on richness, endemism and conservation status. New information The Parque Estadual do Forno Grande harbours 958 species of vascular plants, of which 79.2% are angiosperms, 18.4% are ferns and 2.4% are lycophytes. Amongst these species, 44% are endemic to the Atlantic Forest. There are 58 threatened species, of which six are Critically Endangered, 39 are Endangered and 13 are Vulnerable. Amongst the threatened species, 51 are endemic to the Atlantic Forest. The number of records and the species richness in this area are notably high for Atlantic Forest standards. Our findings suggest that floristic inventories of Brazilian Protected Areas are a key contribution to the general perception of how much we still do not know about our flora. It also highlights the necessity of supporting floristic surveys in poorly-known areas, especially those remaining as forest remnants.

Objective To evaluate the real-world long-term effectiveness and safety of the standalone use or in combination with cataract surgery of the second-generation trabecular implant, iStent inject®. Methods A retrospective longitudinal study was carried out on a series of cases that underwent iStent inject® trabecular implantation alone and associated with cataract surgery. In addition to sociodemographic data, the parameters evaluated included intraocular pressure, number of medications, visual acuity, and possible complications from surgical interventions throughout follow-up. The effectiveness of the procedure was measured through absolute success rates (without the use of hypotensive medication) and relative success (with or without the use of adjuvant medication) for different IOP targets (18, 15 and 12 mmHg). Safety considered the incidence of complications and reinterventions throughout the evaluated period. A comparative analysis was performed on eyes undergoing surgery alone versus surgery combined with cataract. Results The average age was 68.7 years with an average follow-up time of 40 months (12-72 months). Considering the entire studied population, an average reduction in IOP of 16.5% was observed at the end of follow-up (mean final IOP: 13.8 mmHg, p<0.001 in relation to baseline IOP). The final number of medications needed was also lower, with an average reduction of 72.8% (p<0.001). There were no differences in the final mean IOP between the groups; however, the combined surgery provided a significantly lower final mean number of medications (0.4 versus 1.5, p<0.001). Both groups achieved high success rates, with combined surgery showing a trend toward superiority. Conclusion The iStent inject® proved to be a safe and effective alternative as a therapeutic possibility for eyes with open-angle glaucoma when implanted independently or associated with cataract surgery. Furthermore, it demonstrated a sustained response up to 72 months of follow-up. Keywords: Glaucoma; open-angle; Cataract; Ophthalmological surgical procedures; Intraocular pressure

The dissolution of fertilisers is the initial process that takes place in soils following fertiliser application and influences the fate and effectiveness of fertilisers. Currently, there are only a few methods for studying fertiliser dissolution in soil. These approaches typically do not accurately represent real soil-fertiliser systems and are susceptible to errors, since they are influenced by processes associated with the loss or retention of the trace ions of the fertiliser. Low field NMR or time-domain NMR (1H-TDNMR) is typically employed for studying 1H in fluids (or mobile 1H), however, special pulse sequences enable the selective detection of 1H in solids. Furthermore, it is possible to filter out undesired signals like 1H from minerals and from soil organic matter. This allows for the detection and monitoring of 1H only from protonated fertilisers (e.g., ammonia, (di)-hydrogen phosphates, etc.). The aim of this study is to present an efficient procedure which monitors the dissolution of fertilisers in soils using 1H-TDNMR. For this, six contrasting New Zealand soils and four protonated fertilisers - NH4Cl, NH4NO3, NaH2PO4.H2O, and (NH4)2HPO4 - were utilised. The proposed method efficiently, accurately, and precisely, monitored the dissolution of the studied fertilisers in all the tested soils under different rain regimes, from violent rain (60 mm h− 1) to light rain (2 mm h− 1) with a time interval (temporal resolution) as short as 5 s.

Background and Aims Ambophily, an intriguing pollination system in which plant species present adaptations to both biotic and abiotic pollination, has been scarcely reported. Most studies have been conducted with a single or few related species from wind-pollinated genera. We here assess for the first time the frequency of ambophily at the community-level. Methods We evaluated pollen carried by wind in 63 animal-pollinated species from a Brazilian campos de altitude. For those with pollen carried by wind, we evaluated the contribution of wind and animals to seed production with controlled pollination experiments, as well as floral traits and floral visitor assemblages. Key results Pollen of 23 species was carried by wind (~37%). Animals and wind contributed to the reproduction of seven species (~11%), including one pollinated by hummingbirds, large bees and wind. These seven ambophilous species presented unrestrictive floral morphologies and generalist pollination. Conclusions We found a high frequency of ambophily in a single community (11%), which represented an increment of ~5% of species relative to all ambophilous species reported in the literature so far. Investigating pollen transport by wind in zoophilous species combined with controlled experiments helped detect ambophily in species that are usually ignored in wind-pollination studies. Our results showed that putative zoophilous species may actually be ambophilous, suggesting that the selective pressures towards ambophily also occur in zoophilous lineages.

Living plant collections play a crucial role in ex situ conservation, but their conservation value hinges on assessment of their composition, data quality and on strategic planning for optimization of the collection that takes into account species diversity, conservation status and allocation of resources. Cactaceae is one of the most threatened plant families globally and has a broad distribution in Brazil, with two of the seven centres of diversity for this group and a total of 276 known species. Climate change could escalate the threat to cacti, potentially placing 90% of species at risk by 2050. We conducted a case study of Cactaceae in the living Cactarium collection of the Rio de Janeiro Botanic Garden, evaluating the diversity of the collection and recommending strategic actions to enhance its conservation value. In 2022, we inventoried all specimens in the collection and cross-referenced them with the institutional specimen registry system, Jabot. The collection contains 156 cacti species that naturally occur in Brazil (57% of the total), including 43 species categorized as threatened on the Brazilian Red List and 57 categorized as threatened on the IUCN Red List. We recommend research to map cacti species that are threatened but not covered by in situ conservation in the country, list the priority species for acquisition by the collection, and make recommendations that will facilitate improved contribution of the Rio de Janeiro Botanic Garden to the conservation of the Brazilian flora.

Coral reefs are considered the habitat exhibiting the greatest biodiversity within the marine realm. Besides their ecological functions, coral reefs shelter one quarter to one third of all marine species, encompassing microorganisms, macroalgae and invertebrates of great economic importance, since they may be a source of inspiration for marine biotechnology. But coral reefs are also vulnerable to a variety of adversities, such as eutrophication, increased sedimentation, overfishing and overexploitation of other reef-based resources. This chapter presents an overview on marine biotechnology, although not exhaustive, exploring the origin and development of the Brazilian marine biotechnology and the biotechnological potential of marine organisms from coral reefs. The main focus herein is to discuss approaches of exploiting such biotechnological potential in an ecologically friendly or sustainable manner and, furthermore, on the means by which the products of processes obtained thereof can be used to improve the quality of human life and, also, in favor of the coral reefs themselves.