This research line develops projects and studies aimed at understanding biodiversity through the description of new taxa, taxonomic revisions, phylogenetic analyses using morphological and/or molecular data, studies on organism morphology, histology, phylogeography, biogeography, evolution, systematics, behavior, natural history, and the ecology of populations, communities, and ecosystems.

This research line is considered fundamental research in the field of biodiversity. Such studies serve as a foundation for applied research involving the same taxonomic groups or interdisciplinary studies.

Dissertations developed associated with this research line:

• On the Natural History of Cyclopes didactylus (Linnaeus 1758): Biology and Ecology of a Population from Ilha Grande de Santa Isabel, Parnaíba Delta, Piauí, Brazil (student: Alexandre Martins Costa Lopes)

• Morphology of the Gastric Mill and Diet of Brachyurans in a Reef Environment of Piauí (student: Andressa Freitas dos Santos Barreto)

• Butterflies (Lepidoptera) of the Maranhão Cerrado: Richness, Composition, and Illustrated Guide (student: Andressa Ramos Lima)

• Taxonomic Study of Terrestrial Isopods (Crustacea: Isopoda: Oniscidea) in Caatinga and Cerrado Areas of Piauí (student: Carlos Anderson Soares Bezerra Pereira)

• Biodiversity and Ecological Aspects of Ascidiacea (Tunicata) from the Piauí Coast, Brazil (student: Daiane de Fátima da Silva Mororó)

• New Records of Semionotiformes Woodward, 1890 from the Pastos Bons Formation (Upper Jurassic, Parnaíba Basin), Piauí, Brazil (student: Edenilson de Sousa)

• Richness, Distribution, and Conservation Status of Marsupials (Didelphimorphia: Didelphidae) in the State of Piauí (student: Francisco Danilo Carvalho Costa)

• Current and Future Geographic Distribution of Braconidae in Brazil: Conservation Perspectives (student: Gleidiany da Costa Moreira)

• Determinants of the Diversity of Understory Spider Communities in Riparian Zones of Northeastern Brazil (student: Guilherme Santana Lustosa)

• Systematics and Taxonomy of Schizomida (Arachnida: Pedipalpi): Evaluating the Role of Male Genitalia (student: Iara Siqueira Santos Silva)

• Taxonomy of Second Instar Immature Thrips (Insecta: Thysanoptera) from South America (student: Jaqueline Miranda Macedo)

• New Fossil Fin Spines of Chondrichthyes from the Parnaíba Basin, Pedra de Fogo Formation (Permian) in the State of Tocantins (student: Jhonathan Guimarães Sousa Costa)

• The State of the Art of Pleurodiran Turtles Pleurodira Cope, 1864 – Piauí, Brazil (student: Joara de Sousa Andrade)

• Taxonomy of Baetidae Leach, 1815 (Insecta, Ephemeroptera) from the Parnaíba River Basin, Northeastern Brazil (student: Laiane Jancielly de Souza Silva)

• Taxonomic Revision of Heliothrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae, Panchaetothripinae) in the Americas (student: Larinne de Maria Rocha Silva)

• Effects of Pitfall Trap Design on Spider Sampling in Chapada das Mesas National Park, Maranhão (student: Luana Silva Carvalho)

• Environmental Factors and Occurrence Patterns of the West Indian Manatee Trichechus manatus Linnaeus, 1758 (Sirenia: Trichechidae) in Estuaries of the Northeastern Brazilian Coast (student: Luanna Leticia Souza Maciel)

• Between Drought and Flood: Population Dynamics of Freshwater Gastropods in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region (student: Lucas Henrique Sousa da Silva)

• Unveiling the Effect of Intensive Agricultural Management on Rainfall Diversity and the Seed Bank in a Cerrado-Caatinga Ecotone in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region (student: Luiz Carlos Santiago Junior)

• Piauí Malacofauna: Statewide Checklist and Ecology of a Community in a Rocky Reef Environment (student: Mariana Soares Lima)

• Geometric Morphometrics in the Evaluation of Identity and Influence of Environmental Variables on Wing Morphology in Anomalon cotoi Gauld & Bradshaw, 1997 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae) (student: Murilo Madelman Silva Pereira)

• Foraging Areas of Sea Turtles on the Semi-Arid Coast of Brazil (student: Raquel Fonteles dos Santos)

• Microhabitat Selection by the Spider Ypypuera crucifera Vellard, 1924 (Araneae, Hersiliidae) (student: Vanessa Cardoso Pereira)

In this research line, projects will be developed to understand the multiple facets of interactions between humans and the biodiversity around them. Research associated with this line aims to measure human impact on biodiversity, assess and quantify the forms and levels of human-biodiversity interactions, or propose strategies to ensure biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.

These studies include, for example, ethnzoology, ethnobotany, ethnobiology, restoration of degraded areas, environmental impacts, epidemiology, parasitology, agricultural entomology, animal reproduction, and agroecology.

This research line supports projects characterized as both basic and applied research. These studies may be supported by or significantly interact with other research projects developed within the Knowledge of Biodiversity research line.

Dissertations developed associated with this research line:

• Taxonomic and Functional Diversity of the Tree and Shrub Community in Sanana Areas at Different Successional Stages (student: Ana Vitória Correia Diogenes)

• Biodiversity of Feijão-Fava Conserved On-Farm in Piauí (student: Bruna dos Santos Torres)

• Local Knowledge and the Impact of Harvesting on the Population Structure of Terminalia glabrescens Mart. in Northeastern Brazil (student: Clarissa Lessa Nascimento)

• Conservation of Intraspecific Biodiversity of Pepper Plants in the Germplasm Collection of CAFS/UFPI (student: Francisca Aparecida de Sousa Alves)

• Urban Arborization and Ethnobotany: A Study in a Municipality of Maranhão, Northeastern Brazil (student: Idaiany da Silva Costa)

• Does the Ecological Appearance Hypothesis Explain the Local Importance of Useful Plant Resources in an Area of Eastern Maranhão? (student: Karina Costa de Almeida)

• Negative Emotions Directed at Animals and Their Association with Memory: Implications for Fauna Conservation in Northeastern Brazil (student: Karina Shamia Ferreira de Andrade)

• Sandfly Fauna (Diptera: Psychodidae) in a Cave Environment of Eastern Maranhão, Brazil (student: Maria José Alves de Passos Barbosa)

• Characterization of Useful Plants Cultivated in Productive Home Gardens in the Fornos Community, Picos-PI, Brazil (student: Maria Nayane Batista de Sousa)

• Occurrence, Distribution, and Dispersion of Manson’s Schistosomiasis: Occurrence Scenarios of the Biomphalaria Genus in Piauí (student: Orianna dos Santos)

• Knowledge, Use, and Management Strategies Regarding Bark Regeneration of Two Useful Tree Species in the Semi-Arid Region (student: Orleane Cristine Marques Ozorio Peixoto)

• The Influence of Exotic and Native Plants on Local Medical Systems: A Look at Diseases of Physical and Spiritual Causes in a Rural Community in Piauí (student: Paulo Henrique da Silva)

• Influences of Intensive Agricultural Management on the Structure and Spatial Patterns of Tree and Shrub Vegetation in Regenerating Areas of a Cerrado-Caatinga Ecotone in the Brazilian Semi-Arid Region (student: Ronaldo de Araujo Ibiapina)