Research project
Biological invasions
The accidental or deliberate introduction of non-native species by different vectors is currently one of the main agents transforming the landscape and promoting devastating negative effects on biodiversity. In addition to the economic and social impacts, some of the main ecological impacts related to biological invasions are: modification of ecosystems, competition, predation, herbivory, pathogens / parasites and hybridization, which occur during the different stages of the process.
Commonly, studies on biological invasions in tropical and subtropical ecosystems in the southern hemisphere, focus only on the registration of non-native species in the environment or on the most obvious ecological impacts of these on native species. Our research seeks to test the various fundamental hypotheses and sub-hypotheses that are part of the biological invasion process, using mainly aquatic organisms in the Neotropical region, one of the richest regions on the planet, especially in relation to the functional diversity for freshwater fish. Ecology and monitoring of native and introduced species are also explored, as well as their interactions, considering that the rapid detection of basal patterns and processes guarantees the best research and responses to the management and prevention of the introduction of species in new regions.
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Biotic Homogenization
Global patterns in the distribution of biotas from different continents have been severely affected by climate change and, mainly, due to the destructive effect exerted by the human species on the environment. The intense elimination of biogeographic barriers, together with other anthropogenic actions such as habitat destruction, extinction of native species, as well as the translocation, introduction and dispersion of non-native species, have led to biological impoverishment and the uniformity of the planet's biota, resulting in the process called Biotic Homogenization. This process has been defined as the " increase in taxonomic, functional or genetic similarity between biotas over time ", and has been detected for the most diverse ecosystems and biological groups, also influencing the uniformity of other aspects of the current world: economic, cultural, social and technological. Given the importance of quantifying the conducting, biological and environmental mechanisms, as well as the ecological consequences of this process, our objective is to integrate the literature review and analysis of empirical data, aiming to find generalizations, fill knowledge gaps and direct future research.
