In the list below you will find links to the following information:

• Activities from October, 2000 to October, 2001^New

• Activities from November, 1999 to October, 2000
• Preliminary Results
• Participation in events
• Cooperation with other Projects within the BIOTA Program

• 1. Geoprossessing team:
• 2. Botany team:
• 3. Economic team:
• 4. Divulgation team:

1. Geoprossessing team:

So far, we have been using Mesquita Jr (1998) model to classify the cerrado's physiognomies, to produce maps to help the botany team to select the areas to be visited in the field. That model has only the whole range of variation of each cerrado physiognomy, but not the way each landscape component contributes to the phenological variation observed in the NDVI range. Now Mesquita Jr is at the University of Edinburgh – Scotland, UK developing a dynamic model that incorporate seasonal variation over the spectral response. Another doctor student is developing a multisensor model including RADAR and videography products. With these two models we intend to improve the cerrado classification using satellite images. Within the same team there are two other students one developing a model on the antropic pressure over the cerrado's remnants and the other surveying the possibility of sustainable truism to be used as a conservation tool, both using field data from the mother project combined with geoprocessing techniques. To assist the Botany Team 15 set of maps were prepared to classifying 109 remnants appointed as cerrado in the IF Inventory. Using the field trip reports, that Team upgraded the remnants regards of size and vegetation classes and gets the final results regarding the gain and lost of cerrado's areas in the last decade. Another map covering the Paraiba do Sul River valley from São Jose dos Campos to Aparecida do Norte plus the 12 GPS points found to be cerrado by the student Andre Faure. To assist the Economic and Divulgation Teams, that Team made 5 maps with the previous landuse, in order to help the field access to the properties around the visited cerrado's remnants. Using their field trip reports the Team will improve the landuse maps that will be used to model the antropic pressure mentioned before.

2. Botany team:

In 80 days of field trips, within 24 municipalities all over the state, that Team did: Performed Quick Botanic Inventory – recognize the species in the field by collecting only the non-recognized species. To find the richness of the area a Species X Time Curve is build. That method uses a time interval of 15 minutes as the sampling unit and requires a previous flora list. Thus, the number of species found in each 15 minutes until no more new species appears represents the richness of species in the area. Defined the criteria to be used to characterize the conservation state – size; relation between perimeter and area; degree of connectivity; presence of water bodies (good for conservation); and presence of pasture, fire, erosion, and Brachiaria (bad for conservation); and landuse along at the edge. ade Preliminary Diagnostic – Among the visited remnants the biggest ones are located in big properties; There are close relation between conservation state and the landuse around the remnant; The best ones are located in raising cattle areas; On the other hand, the remnants located in sugar-cane areas or aside urban areas the pressure is stronger; Remnants presenting physiognomic patchwork presented bigger richness of species. Exempla of a remnant in good conservation state: remnant A1 – big continuous area with several cerrado's physiognomies; Exempla of a remnant seriously jeopardized: D20 – big area almost inside the Bauru city, pressured by Brachiaria invasion and rubbish; D14 – also a big area but with strong agrarian conflicts; G-18 which were fragmented in two others by a resettlement.

3. Economic team:

Selected 7 municipalities to be sampled: Campos Novos Paulista, Ocauçu, São Pedro do Turvo, Ubirajara, Martinópolis, Agudos, and Bauru. They were selected due to their antropic matrix differentiation. The land-use around each visited remnant was pre-mapped before the economic group went to the field. In that surrounding area the landowner profile will be constructed looking for: capitalization degree, production systems, and cerrado's perception. The plant species with economical potential will be in each region will be identified for future sustainable use recomendation. A strategy for environmental education will be built based on the available resources and the cerrado's importance within the community. So far they visited the Campos Novos Paulista and Martinopolis remnants.

4. Divulgation team:

During this year the team make: a) an extensive bibliographic review; b) define together with the economic team the work strategies and the municipalities selection; and c) elaborate the interview card together with the economic team. With that interview we intend to characterize the final landowner profile and the region differentiation. The final land-use map made by the geoprocessing team will be made in order to quantify each class. With that data the divulgation team expects to characterize the antropic pressure over the remnants and propose methodologies to access the rural population to promote the conservation and the preservation of the remaining remnants. So far they visited the Campos Novos Paulistas, Ocauçu and Martinopolis remnants.

Preliminary Results:

15 from 23 first priority zones for conservation (FPZ) were visited, 66 remnants were studied in detail, with the following physiognomies distribution: cerradão occur in 49 remnants; ecotone occur in 23 remnants; cerrado s.s. occur in 12 remnants. 412 cerrado's species with economical potential value were identified, 43 others remnants had their conservation stage described, 8 FPZ (F, I, J, K, L, M, N, and O) are not cerrado physiognomies but Seasonal semi-deciduous forest, According to Kronka et al. (1993) the cerrado total area was 29,608.96 hectares but today that area were reduced to 18,146.64 hectares – a lost of 34,27%. That lost is partially due to previous misclassification and partially due to cerrado destruction.

Participation in events:

Botany Team:
Durigan, G.; Ferreira, M.; Furlan, G. - "Caracterização florística, fisionômica e do estado de conservação dos remanescentes", at 51o Congresso Nacional de Botânica, in Brasília - Brazil - 22 to 29 of July, 2000.

Geoprocessing Team:
Bitencourt, M.D. - "PCA used to discriminate phenological variations in Cerrado physiognomy in São Paulo – Brazil.", at XIX Congress of the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing ISPRS, in Amsterdam – Holand, from 16 to 23 of July, 2000.;
Mesquita Jr, H.M - "NDVI measurements of neotropical savanna physiognomies a gradient of: biomass, strucure na phenology."- at XIX Congress of the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing ISPRS, in Amsterdam – Holand, from 16 to 23 of July, 2000.;

Geoprocessing, Botany and Divulgation Teams:
Bitencourt, M.D,; Mendonça, R.; Durigan, G.; Kronka, F.J. - "Viabilidade de conservação de remanescentes de cerrado lato sensu no estado de São Paulo.", at V Simpósio de Ecossistemas Brasileiros: Conservação, in Vitória – Espírito Santo – from 10 to 15 of October, 2000.

The first two project works in some of ours study areas with maps and vegetation classification support:
Thomas Lewinsohn, - URL www.unicamp.br/ib/biota/insento-planta
Humberto Ribeiro da Rocha, - URL www.iag.usp.br/meteo/biota_fapesp/pro_cerrado_cana.htm
These two research projects are a doctoral (Humberto Navarro Mesquita Jr.- FAPESP Process # 99/05041-8 and  Jorge Alberto Bustamante Becerra – FAPESP process # 00/07106-9)and scientific initiation levels (André Nunes Faure – FAPESP Process # 99/06973-1), respectively

The knowledge produced by this project were used to indicate areas with better biological importance, to mitigate the impact caused by the Canoas I and II, Três Irmãos and Ourinhos Hydroelectrical Power Plantation Projects.