Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Visual impairment affects a large part of the older adult population. These diseases are usually secondary ocular or systemic and congenital or idiopathic secondary pathologies, including presbyopia, cataracts, glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy. The objective of this work was to find out the experiences, perspectives and meanings that older adults with visual disability have for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Using a qualitative methodology with intentional sampling, in-depth interviews were conducted, following the ethical principles for health research. The phenomenon of disability showed five dimensions: economic impact due to diagnosis, experiences of mourning before T2DM, experiences of self-care (alternative treatment, pharmacological treatment and reflections on the value to the treatment), impact (economic, emotional and social) and experiences with disability and feelings of dependence vs. disability. These dimensions provided the necessary elements to make a guide in comprehensive care.

Social participation in the management of natural protected areas (NPA) is a fundamental aspect for the proper functioning of the land intended for the conservation of natural resources. Equally important is to involve younger generations; therefore, a participatory environmental assessment was held with a group of 16 teenagers from Dzoyaxche, Merida, Yucatan, located in the Cuxtal Ecological Reserve. The study was integrated by four methodological phases and one cross-cutting theme, which raised the socioenvironmental problems of the community: 17 main problems integrated in eight main themes. The results were used to design an Intercultural Plan of Non-Formal Environmental Education for teenagers from the Cuxtal Ecological Reserve. The plan was comprised by six action lines: 1) Education and training; 2) Production of intercultural didactic materials; 3) Projects Generation; 4) Research; 5) Monitoring and evaluation; 6) Coordination of efforts. The plan was accepted by the young participants, since they felt involved in the whole process and were motivated to implement it in their community at the Reserve.

This article, framed within the context of the project called Development of an expert system for the modelling and monitoring of surface cracks (triangular and rectangular type) in ferromagnetic pipes using the magnetic memory method, presents the analysis of the variation of the magnetic flux around rectangular and triangular defects in ferromagnetic plates. This analysis uses a methodology with an exploratory study of numerical models based on existing analytical models. The obtained numerical models will serve as a basis when comparing them with experimental results to quantify the magnitude of the defects. The results determined, through data analysis, that it is possible to detect and classify the size and shape of rectangular and triangular surface defects with a high degree of certainty and high levels of reliability using the tangential and normal components of these defects.

Calyptophractus retusus has a restricted distribution in South America, it inhabits- ing the Bolivian Chaco region, western Paraguay and northern Argentina. In Bolivia, records of the species are restricted to the department of Santa Cruz, although their potential distribution includes the Ddry Chaco ecosystems in the central and western departments of Chuquisaca and Tarija. This study presents the first records of C. etusus for the department of Tarija and contributes to the knowledge of the species in Bolivia and the South American Gran Chaco.

A new species of Spilococcus attacking roots of Gamochaeta spicata (Compositae) in the province of Tucumán is described. Spilococcus radicalis is the first species of this genus found in Argentina.

The terrestrial flatworm (Tricladida, Geoplanoidea), slug (Mollusca, Gastropoda) diplopodan (Myriapoda, Diplopoda), symphilan (Myriapoda, Symphylla) and spide (Chelicerata) faunas of Buenos Aires City (CABA, Argentina) are poorly known. The aim of the present contribution is to report new records of exotic species belonging to those clades. Collection and observation of specimens were made without systematic method. The following species are reported: Rhynchodemus sylvaticus (Tricladida, Geoplanidae; first record for Buenos Aires province and second record for tArgentina), Obama nungara (Tricladida, Geoplanidae; CABA), Imbira flavonigra (Tricladida, Geoplanidae; first record for Argentina), Milax gagates (Mollusca, Milacidae; first record for CABA), Cylindroiulus latestriatus (Diplopoda, Julidae; first recordfor Argentina), Ophyiulus pilosus (Diplopoda, Julidae; first record for Argentina), Brachydesmus superus (Diplopoda, Paradoxomatidae; first record for CABA and second record for tArgentina), Symphylella vulgaris (Symphyla, Scolopendrellidae; first record for Argentina), Cylisticus convexus (Oniscidea, Cylisticidae; second record for the city by most than 90 years), Uloborus plumipes (Arachnida, Uloboridae; second record for CABA and the country), and Leucauge argyra (Arachnida, Tetragnathidae; first record for Buenos Aires province and second record for Argentina). Several authors have indicated that the number of exotic invertebrates in European cities has been dramatically increased in the last years. This pattern should be extrapolated to rgentina. Unfortunately, up to the date we entirely lack information about dispersal and distribution of exotic invertebrates in the city. It is necessary to prioritize the study of exotic species, especially those that are potentially problematic for native environments.

Mites are usually common ectoparasites of vertebrates. Their body distribution can vary between species and can cause skin lesions. Liolaemus pacha mites belong to the genus Neopterygosoma and are located below the scales of its host. The few records on the ectoparasite-host relationship led us to propose ourselves as objectives, quan titatively define the body distribution and determine the possible damage caused by the mites at the insertion sites through histopathological studies. For the mite count, five body regions were defined and histological sections of the skin areas presenting mites were made. A total of 52 individuals of both sexes were analyzed. A higher concentration of mites was observed on the flanks and in the gular region. Histological analysis showed that there is not epidermal damage or inflammatory reactions in the host’s skin. Therefore, we conclude that L. pacha mites do not cause local skin damage and even their characteristic form of insertion cast doubt on the type of hematophagous feeding reported in other studies. The results obtained provide new information about the biology of Liolaemus pacha and Neoptorygosoma sp., allowing to improve the interpretation of their interaction.

In Santa Fe, a province with a strong agricultural expansion, the protected areas (PAs) play an important role in conservation. In particular, the Cuña Boscosa of Santa Fe, which is part of the Chaco Humedo region that extends to the distribution limit of the Quebracho colorado (Schinopsis balansae), is preserved by the La Loca Strict Nature Reserve (LLSNR) and the Potrero 7B Managed Nature Reserve (P7BMNR). Knowing the biodiversity of these PAs is essential to develop adequate management plans; however, the information available is scarce and, especially, the data avifauna is outdated. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to update the bird inventories in these PAs and detect priority species for conservation. The bird samplings were carried out using count points, MacKinnon lists and lists of non-systematized species between 2006 and 2019, and was complemented with other sources of information. The threatened species, those with restricted distribution in Santa Fe and those restricted to a biome were considered species with conservation value. One hundred ninety-five species were recorded in both PAs (85% resident and 15% migratory), 175 in the LLSNR and 162 in the P7BMNR. The species with conservation value are 5 threatened, 12 with restricted distribution in Santa Fe and 22 restricted to a biome. The richness detected represents 45% of the species in the province, 25% of the migratory species and 12% of the threatened species of Santa Fe. These results will serve for the management of both PAs and the monitoring of their bird populations.

The European Starling Sturnus vulgaris is one of the most invasive bird species in the world, as it causes drastic economic and biodiversity losses. In Argentina, its populations are established and in expansion. Negative interactions of this species with native species have already been recorded. Here, we describe its current distribution in La Pampa province from central Argentina, whose landscape belongs to two phytogeographic provinces where an extensive community of cavity-nesting birds occur. Also, the first nest box breeding record and the first nestling’s diet description is described for the region. Occurrence data were obtained from online databases of bird observations and from our own records. Based on these results, it is presumed that the expansion would be taking place in a western direction from the original populations in Buenos Aires province. Successful breeding confirmation, together with its ongoing expansion, should constitute an alert of the potential risk for some cavity user species. It is necessary to implement systematic surveys of the situation to assess the eventual execution of measures that mitigate the potential negative effects on native birds.

The Barn Owl, Tyto alba (Scopoli, 1769), is a nocturnal raptor species. Their diet includes small vertebrates, mainly rodents, and birds. To study their feeding in the desert area of Touggourt, we collected 153 pellets at the Ranou palm grove. We found 468 specimens belonging to 62 species. In terms of abundance, the item more consumed was Rodents (35.9%) followed by Insects (35.2%) and Birds (10.7%). In terms of absolute abundance, the prey more consumed was Brachytrypes megacephalus (21.4 %), followed by an undetermined Lacertidae species (9.2%) and Gerbillus nanus (8.8%). In terms of biomass, rodents contributed more to the diet of Tyto alba (44.66%) than birds (34.3%) and reptiles (12.06%). The highest value of biomass corresponded to Streptopelia sp. (15.7%), followed by Rattus rattus (14.1%) and an undetermined Lacertidae species (11.8%). To our knowledge, this is the first assess- ment of the diet composition of Tyto alba in the Saharan Touggourt area.