International Journal of Avian & Wildlife Biology Research Article Open Access Assessment of avian occurrence in the Brazilian chaco Abstract Volume 2 Issue 4 - 2017 This study shows the magnitude of the avifauna occurring in the Brazilian Chaco Maristela Benites, Simone Mamede, Guto biome, located in the central region of South America. The Chaco formation is present in Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina, comprising a large phyto physiognomy Carvalho, Cleber JR Alho Analysis and Conservation of Biodiversity Wildlife, Brazil of nearly 800,000km², of which 9,000km² is located in Brazil, near the town of Porto Murtinho, a transition zone of the Pantanal wetland. It is formed by spiny trees which Correspondence: Cleber JR Alho, Análise e Conservação lose their small leaves during the dry season. During our field work we registered da Biodiversidade Manejo da Fauna Silvestre Diagnóstico e 326 species of wild birds, and, when added to other published surveys, this number Avaliação de Impactos Ambientais Lattes, Brazil, totalizes 355 species living within the Brazilian Chaco. The most common species Email [email protected] were Tyrannidae (13.2%), followed by Thraupidae (9.2%) and Icteridae (4.9%). Fourteen officially listed threatened bird species were detected during our field work. Received: April 30, 2017 | Published: October 18, 2017 Our results contribute to the knowledge on bird diversity living in the Brazilian Chaco, and to the potential attraction for sustainable tourism, as an incentive to protect the avifauna and their habitats, achieving conservation for the biodiversity of the region. Keywords: avifauna, birdwatching, chaco, conservation, threatened bird species Introduction birds. Some studies have even stressed the lack of avian surveys for that region.9,10 The last survey carried out in the Brazilian Chaco The Chaco is one of the largest biomes in South America, rich in region reached 282 bird species.11 This list of species includes biodiversity, but facing increasing environmental disruptions due to previously collected secondary data.9,12 The aim of the present study is demographic expansion and unsustainable use of natural resources. to contribute to the knowledge of the rich and diverse avifauna of the Wild species of birds can attract tourism as one element to conserve Brazilian Chaco region, to pursue conservation and to attract tourists nature, providing economic incentives since biodiversity can represent to the region, and thus to implement sustainable use through tourism 1,2 important socioeconomic and environmental activities. The and birdwatching activities. Chaco is an arid subtropical biome in the center of South America, dominated by savanna vegetation and rare low forest. It is the second Materials and methods largest biome in South America.3 This steppe Savanna vegetation formation, as it is known, comprises 520,000km² (46%) in Argentina, Study area 230,000km² (32%) in Paraguay, 90,000km² (15%) in Bolivia and This study was conducted throughout the Chaco region of Porto 9,000km² (7%) in Brazil. There is a predominance of xenomorphic Murtinho, in the southwestern part of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, 3–6 vegetation, with deciduous trees, cacti and bromeliads. The vast in Brazil.3 The regional climate is hot and dry, with annual average Quaternary plain between the Paraguay Parana rivers and the foothills rainfall of 970.3mm and temperature of 25°C, with a rainy season of the western ranges, known as the ‘Gran Chaco’, is a natural region, from November to February.13 The environmental seasonality within 700km wide in the east west direction and roughly 1,500km from this region is more marked by rainfall than by change in temperature. north to south, comprising an area estimated to range from 800,000 Different kinds of habitats were surveyed, including riparian forest, 3,4,7 to 1,000,000km². open dry and flooded fields, savanna (Cerrado) and steppe savanna In its extreme eastern portion is the Paraguay River in Brazilian (Chaco), forest and areas under human use, such as pastures (Figure territory,3 south of the Pantanal wetland, in the sub regions Porto 1). 5,8 Murtinho and Nabileque, and this comprises the wet Chaco. It is Field surveys a transition area among the surrounding biomes of the Pantanal wetland, namely the Cerrado (savanna), and the Dry Forests there is Short term and intensive bird surveys were carried out in the field an interception among the vegetation formations, forming ecotones from 2002 to 2015. Six expeditions were conducted with variable that cannot easily be identified by sight. There is high density of length of duration, covering terrestrial and fluvial routes, starting at the palm tree “caranda” (Copernicia alba Morong), and other trees 06h00 and going until 11h00, and then from 14h00 until 17h30. The such as “paratudo” (Handroanthus aureus Mattos) and “piuva” (H. search for nocturnal species ran from 19h00 until 22h00. Occasional heptaphylla (Vell.) Mattos).3,6 The Chaco forest in north eastern and opportunistic bird registers were also recorded during our Argentina and Paraguay, entering Brazilian territory, near the city journeys, including directed visual observation and bird vocalization of Porto Murtinho, is dominated by a hardwood tree red quebracho signals. The detected species were photographed whenever possible, (Schinopsis balansae Engl) which is typical of this region.3,8 The to serve as evidence of occurrence. The surveyed areas are shown in Brazilian Chaco has lately received increasing research attention, Table 1. especially in plant sciences, but there have been few studies on wild Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com Int J Avian & Wildlife Biol. 2017;2(4):99‒113. 99 © 2017 Benites et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially. Copyright: Assessment of avian occurrence in the Brazilian chaco ©2017 Benites et al. 100 Urban area of porto murtinho and paraguay river banks: The urban zone of the town of Porto Murtinho is located on the left bank of the Paraguay River, and despite the presence of 15,000 inhabitants, there are still some remnants of natural vegetation. Some key-trees are present: species of Prosopis, Zizyphus, Schinopsis, Aspidosperma and others. Barranco branco station: This site is characterized by typical Chaco vegetation, including the predominance of the caranda palm Copernicia alba (common in steppe park savanna) on the left bank of the Paraguay River. Flooded fields are present along with the typical phyto physiognomies of Chaco: woody-grassy savanna, steppe scrub savanna and forested steppe savanna. Ingazeira station: This area also presents typical Chaco vegetation such as riparian forest, deciduous forest, savanna forest; swamp sand flooded open fields with significant presence of woody-grassy savanna, steppe scrub savanna, steppe park savanna and forested steppe savanna. Dam to control flooding and rural area: The vegetation cover of this study site is mainly formed by steppe woody-grassy savanna, steppe park savanna, forest steppe savanna and steppe scrub savanna. Besides the presence of the palm caranda Copernicia alba, other trees were noted such as Proposis spp. and Zizyphus oblongifolius. Road BR-267/MS: Along this road and its surroundings there is vegetation cover like savanna (Cerrado), remnants of seasonal Figure 1 The Chaco in South America comprising the countries of Argentina, deciduous forest, and transitions to the Pantanal wetland. Bolivia, Paraguay and Brazil. Cerro pora cattle ranch: This region shows a predominance of Characteristics of the surveyed sites savanna (Cerrado), seasonal deciduous forest and gallery forest. The Cachoeirado apa municipal park: This Park is located at the Chaco vegetation is restricted to some transition to Cerrado. Open margins of the Perdido and Apa rivers, on the border between Brazil fields are present. The area is used for cattle ranching. and Paraguay. The habitats include gallery forest, seasonal forest and Cangalha cattle ranch: This area is also used for cattle ranching, with savanna formations (Cerrado) with influence of Chaco environment. some vegetation cover still present, including Cerrado and flooded The Park is included in the rural area, lying 85km from the urban zone fields. The species names and taxonomic arrangements adopted here of Porto Murtinho. follow.14 Table 1 Surveyed area covered by field work from 2002 to 2015 throughout the Brazilian Chaco region near Porto Murtinho Duration of the Geographic Surveyed sites Survey period survey (days) coordinates Cachoeira do Apa Municipal 22°10'21.08"S 4 August 2002, January 2003 Park 57°30'58.5"W August 2002, January 2003, February 2008, June 21°41'42.01"S Urban area of Porto Murtinho 2-Jan 2015, October 2015 57°52'42.2"W 21°42'37.7"S Margin of the Paraguay River 2-Jan 15-Oct 57°54'8.7"W 21°5'58.6"S Barranco Branco Station 4 February 2008, June 2015 57°50'37.8"W 22°4'53.6"S Ingazeira Station 3 February 2008, June 2015 57°56'23.1"W Dam to Control Flooding and 21°41'18.1"S 2-Jan February 2008, June 2015, October 2015 Rural Area 57°52'46.8"W 1 February 2008, June 2015, 21°41'59.33"S Road BR- 267/MS 15-Oct 57°51'47.38"W 22°01'44.0"S Cerro Pora Cattle Ranch 4 Dec-15 57°31'22.0"W 22°08'21"S Cangalha Cattle Ranch 4 Dec-15 57°34'50"W Citation: Benites M, Mamede S, Carvalho G, et al. Assessment of avian occurrence in the Brazilian chaco. Int J Avian & Wildlife Biol. 2017;2(4):99‒113. DOI: 10.15406/ijawb.2017.02.00026 Copyright: Assessment of avian occurrence in the Brazilian chaco ©2017 Benites et al. 101 Results and discussion representative or endemic species of the Chaco, previously registered by other researchers,7,20,22,23 such as Rhea americana (cf.