Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Ichthyological knowledge of the Sorocaba River basin dates to the 19th century, with initial surveys by Johann Natterer. These were followed by expeditions at the turn of the 20th century by researchers from the University of São Paulo’s (USP) Zoology Museum, which resulted in the description of five new species. After a hiatus of nearly a century, research resumed in 1992. Here, we present a comprehensive review of 64 publications to assess the current state of knowledge on the basin’s ichthyofauna. The most frequently studied topics were community ecology (34.4%), followed by species inventory (14%), population ecology (12.5%), and feeding ecology (7.8%). The reviewed articles documented 109 fish species, with the majority belonging to the order Characiformes and the family Aces-trorhamphidae. This total comprises 93 native and 16 non-native species. Despite a recent increase in publications, we identify critical knowledge gaps. We conclude that the basin has a well-known ichthyofauna, meaning that future efforts should prioritize research on diet, reproduction, and invasive species, while also incorporating emerging topics such as microplastic pollution and modern techniques, such as stable isotope analysis, to effectively guide conservation and management.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract Environmental changes along altitudinal gradients strongly influence the distribution of aquatic insects. We conducted a scientometric review to assess the impact of altitude on Diptera communities, with a particular focus on Chironomidae and Simuliidae. Articles published until 2025 were retrieved from Scopus, Web of Science, and SciELO using multilingual (English, Spanish, and Portuguese) search strings combining insect groups (Diptera, Chironomidae, or Simuliidae), altitudinal terms (altitude or elevation), and freshwater habitat descriptors (river, stream, lotic, or freshwater). After screening 2,304 articles, 88 met the selection criteria. Most publications originated from South America, particularly Argentina and Brazil. Across 739 streams, Diptera showed no significant relationship between altitude and richness (family, genus, or species level) or density. Similarly, analyses of 345 streams indicated no clear altitudinal pattern for Chironomidae richness or density. In 455 streams, Simuliidae exhibited significant declines in species and subgenus richness with increasing elevation, whereas genus richness and density showed no clear altitudinal pattern. Despite regional advances, research on Diptera along altitudinal gradients remains scarce and fragmented. Expanding studies on these key insect groups is essential to improve understanding of their ecological responses to environmental change in mountain ecosystems.

Resumo em Inglês:

Abstract The high density of culturally relevant species is one example of the types of vegetation alterations that have been attributed to ancient human occupation and landscape management. This study aimed to evaluate the characteristics of the current vegetation at Serra de Carajás and identify possible effects of ancient human interventions. Were inventoried slope forest and capão forest plots in 14 areas around archaeological sites, and in 15 areas without material culture. Differences in floristic compositions were tested by analyses of one-way PERMANOVA, MDS, SIMPER methods, and a partial Mantel test used to separate the effects of human occupation, soils, and the distances between plots. The effects of human occupation on floristic composition were significant only for the slope forest sites. Among the species that contributed to the dissimilarities between plots near occupied sites and plots in areas without indication of occupation are: Aparisthmium cordatum, Matayba inelegans and Caraipa densifolia. Both the distance between plots and human occupation were significant in the variation of floristic composition for the slope forest sites. Our results suggest that past human impacts on the vegetation at Carajás were more intense on slopes, although they extended to varying degrees across the entire plateau.