Area of Concentration: ETHNOBIOLOGY AND NATURE CONSERVATION
Research Line 1: Cognitive Systems and use of natural resources - Study of the different forms of appropriation of natural resources, from the characterization of socio-ecological systems to their application for the management, conservation and bioprospecting of socio-biodiversity. This line of research consists not only of the analysis, description and interpretation of classification and perception systems, but also of understanding the different models of transmission and variation of local ecological knowledge. In addition, one of the strong components of this line of research is focused on the bioprospecting of natural resources (fungi, plants, animals) based on traditional knowledge, respecting all legal aspects required in this type of investigation. Therefore, teachers with training in ethnobiology, or those with a traditional training, interact with the former, work in this line of research.
--- Latest publications with students (in bold) of the program ---
Chaves, LS , RRN Alves, and UP Albuquerque. 2020. Hunters' preferences and perceptions as hunting predictors in a semiarid ecosystem. Science of The Total Environment 726:138494. ( link to article )
Filho, MLVB ., Ramires, J. da Silva Mourão, R. de Souza Rosa, RR Nobrega Alves, and E. Medeiros Costa-Neto. 2021. Ethnotaxonomy of sharks by expert fishers from South Bahia, Brazil: Implications for fisheries management and conservation. Ethnobiology and Conservation. (link to article)
Line of research 2: Ecological and evolutionary bases of the relationships between people and nature - Applications of theories and models of ecological and evolutionary nature in the studies of the relationships between people and nature, such as optimization theories and processes of domestication of plants and animals. This line of research, unlike the first, emphasizes ecology and evolution with modulating forces that can explain the relationship of people with natural resources, involving studies of incipient domestication of native plants, agrobiodiversity, transformation of natural landscapes and evolution of knowledge systems.
--- Latest publications with students (in bold) of the program ---
da Silva, RH , WS Ferreira Júnior, JMB Moura , and UP Albuquerque. 2020. The Link Between Adaptive Memory and Cultural Attraction: New Insights for Evolutionary Ethnobiology. Evolutionary Biology (link to article)
Line of research 3: Ecological Synthesis, Conservation and Management of Biodiversity - Application of principles, theories and methods of population biology, population genetics and community structure for the management of tropical biodiversity. This line includes studies involving the characterization of biodiversity, threats to its conservation, with a focus predominantly focused on understanding ecological processes, without losing sight of the human variable. This is not about traditional studies of zoology, ecology and botany, these will provide all the theoretical and methodological tools for professionals to think about how they can answer questions of conservation interest. Basically, this line is the responsibility of the program's professors with traditional training in botany, ecology or zoology.
--- Latest publications with students (in bold) of the program ---
Abreu, F. , A. Souto, and N. Schiel. 2020. Wild common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) employ spatial cognitive abilities to improve their food search and consumption: an experimental approach in small-scale space. Primates. (link to article)
Martins, PM , Poulin, R., and T. Gonçalves-Souza. 2020. Integrating climate and host richness as drivers of global parasite diversity. Global Ecology and Biogeography. (link to article)