FISH AND WILDLIFE

Author: MUÑOZ IGUALADA JAIME.
Year: 2004.
University: POLITÉCNICA DE MADRID.
Place of defense: ETSI MONTES.
Place of preparation: ETSI MONTES.

Summary: Currently being developed numerous work-oriented recover depleted populations of rabbit bush. However, many of these jobs collide with the problem of lack of scientific and technical bases for tackled effectively and efficiently. This Doctoral Thesis arises in this context, developing three lines of work: I ecology and characterization system dens of a population of rabbits. II: pastoral improvements to promote natural populations of rabbits. III: reforestation techniques rabbit bush. The dens are essential for rabbits, so their knowledge is key to improving their populations. All these burrows into three parcels sampling 12.5 has been localized, geo-referenced characterized by different variables related to its spatial distribution, size and ecology. The value more frequent coverage bushy within dens was 25-50%. Most of them (81.4%) were located under some sort of natural protection. The average number of mouths to burrow was 5.8 (4.4 active). The highest values of positive selection occurred in the community of grass herbaceous Agrostio-Stipion. The characteristics of communities with ponding areas were less seasonal selected. The dens located on land carved were few and small. Considering that the conditions for food are closely linked to the breeding success and health status of rabbits, improving the food supply is one of the most important strategies to encourage their populations. Therefore, for three years have been conducted experiments designed to establish the scientific basis needed to develop a pasture management oriented to the promotion of rabbits. During the first year he worked with a small-scale, detail, allowing study preferences and level of use by rabbits of different grasses offered. In late winter, the relative scarcity of green biomass determines that the use come governed by the supply of grass available. In spring, possibly because the supply exceeds the demand of the population of rabbits, use and selection match and rabbits seem to find only high-quality grassland, rich in protein. In the summer, consumption focuses first on the grain cereal. During the second year were tested, scale management, pasture most appropriate in the light of the results of the previous year. The Meadow permanent treatment is used by more rabbits over the whole year. The veza serves as the prairie, but is unable to withstand high pressure rabbits. Cereals are used mainly in autumn and winter (state hojoso) and in summer, when only the grain is consumed. Overall, we can say that the rabbits responded clearly and strongly to the supply of quality pasture. In areas where the rabbit had disappeared or where its density is so low that can not respond to habitat improvements, the only alternative to try to recover their populations corto-medio term is the reintroduction of specimens from natural populations more stable. This paper presents the results of the monitoring for three years, from 10 stocking rabbit performed using some innovative artificial burrows underground. Except in soils susceptible to flooding, the methodology allows settle successfully evaluated rabbits in his new territory. However, continuity in time is not guaranteed, in most of the stocking there is a widespread decline towards the end of the follow-up period.

Author: UREÑA ROBLES ROCÍO.
Year: 2006.
University: VALENCIA.
Place of defense: INSTITUTO DE FÍSICA CORPUSCULAR (IFIC).
Place of preparation: FACULTAD DE CIENCIAS BIOLÓGICAS.

Summary: The conservation and restoration of aquatic environments epicontinental is one of the themes of Preferred action in all developed countries. The regulation and control of water use and quality improvement should be greater in those areas geogrcificas where their shortage is a problem of the first magnitude. One of the factors that deserves special attention in terms of monitoring and control is the contaminaci6n caused by discharges from agriculture, industry and urban. In order to exercise such control and surveillance in a way appropriate it is necessary to a correct assessment of the effects of pollutants on the environment acuatico. There are indicators based on physiological and biochemical changes (biomarkers) for aquatic organisms, whose advantages are speed of response to an episode of pollution and specificity with regard to the contaminant. The metalotioneina (MT) is a specific biomarcador of metal contamination. For this reason, many of bioseguimiento environmental studies has been included determining levels of this protein in the tissues of animals. This paper focuses on different aspects of the feasibility of using the MT biomarcador as in monitoring the effects of contaminaci6n metal epicontinental waters. In studies have been implemented and compared various methods determinaci6n of MT in fish and gastropods, analyzing the relationship between concentration of the same with the levels of certain metals in tissues. We conducted a field study in different sections of the middle course of the Ebro River basin, using tents, Cyprinues carpio, and barbels, Barbus graellsii as sentinel animals. This area receives the impact of both urban and industrial discharges. There was a high concentration of cadmium and mercury in the liver and carp caught in barbels Flix and Monsoon, indicating the existence of metal pollution in the stations mentioned. Concentrations of metallothionein identified in the liver of both species do not reflect the metal contamination, which limits the potential of MT as biomarcador in this tejido.El natural park of La Albufera is a zone subjected to various impacts that have resulted in the low quality of the lake's water. The European Eel, Anguilla anguilla, is one of the most representative species of Lake La Albufera and its population is declining. The increase in this kind of intensive aquaculture and the high local demand for the same causes that are marketed copies wild and cultivated. We found differences in the pattern of distribution as in the concentration of metals in the various organs of eels from both sources. The farmed eels had cadmium levels higher than those found in wild eels in all tissues, but the concentrations of mercury in the muscle exceeded the maximum levels permitted by the current legislation. The MT concentrations were higher in the kidney eel cultivated in the wild, there is a high correlation between the concentration of cadmium and MT. Chronic exposure to lead causes variations in the concentrations of metallothionein and essential metals, as well as in the activity acid -aminolevulínico deshidratasa (ALAD) from the tissues of eel, these effects being particularly evident in the rifi6n. The kidney A. Anguilla is proposed as an organ of choice in studies bioseguimiento pollution that consideration be metallothionein or activity as biomarcador ALAD. In all fish species studied, there is a 8 to c 76b orrelación between high levels of copper and metallothionein hepatica, showing the importance of this protein in the metabolism of copper in the liver. The determination of metallothionein by polarografía pulse differential (PDP) in the tissues of the gastropod Melanopsis dufouri presented as undesirable presence of thermostable compounds of high molecular weight that interfere with the determination. The introduction of ultrafiltration as an additional step in the procedure was appropriate for elirninación of these compounds. The accumulation of cadmium linear with time in M dufouri, chronically exposed to concentrations realisticas metal, indicating the potential of this species in the bioseguimiento of cadmium contamination. The physicochemical properties of the protein isolated and purified in the complex visceral M dufouri confirm that this is metalotioneina. The results obtained in different studies showed that pollen viability of the use of metalotioneina as biomarcador pollution depends largely on the species and the body selected, as well as an appropriate methodology for determination.