Improving the knowledge management of marine megafauna strandings.

Although the marine megafauna often strands on beaches around the world, such as sea turtles and whales, stranding data are poorly managed and incorporated into management and conservation strategies. Here we use a knowledge value chain framework to call attention for the urgent need to improve our data architecture and knowledge management on marine megafauna strandings. We use Brazil, a continental megadiverse federative republic, as study model. After describing the main components and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the current Brazilian data architecture, we propose 10 practical measures for its improvement involving researchers, companies, non-governmental organizations, legislators, policy makers, public agents, citizen scientists, and local communities. Although Brazil has notable strengths such as comprehensive environmental legislation, hundreds of scientists and dozens of prestigious research institutions, stranding data is not translated into technical-scientific knowledge; technical-scientific knowledge is not transformed into effective public regulations; deficient regulations lead to bad decisions and limited actions, which in turn result in ineffective management and conservation strategies. In light of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), we propose (1) expanding standardized beach monitoring projects to the entire Brazilian coast; (2) creating a governmental database with FAIR principles; (3) encouraging the development of broad citizen science initiatives; (4) funding scientists and research institutions; (5) boosting outreach activities among researchers to popularize the scientific knowledge; (6) raising awareness among legislators and policy makers on the problem of strandings; (7) updating the existing legal provisions on the environmental licensing of activities developed at sea; (8) hiring new environmental analysts and inspectors and improving the infrastructure of executing environmental agencies; (9) strengthening existing conservation networks with multiple stakeholders; and (10) making the results of the management and conservation strategies broadly accessible to society. These recommendations may also apply to other coastal countries around the world.

Morphology of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue in odontocetes.

This study describes the mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) in odontocetes from the Brazilian coast and freshwater systems. Seven species were evaluated and tissue samples were analyzed by light, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and immunohistochemistry. Laryngeal tonsil was a palpable oval mass located in the larynx, composed of a lymphoepithelial complex. Dense collections of lymphocytes were found in the skin of male fetus and calf. Clusters of lymphoid tissue were found in the uterine cervix of a reproductively active juvenile female and along the pulmonary artery of an adult female. Lymphoid tissues associated with the gastrointestinal tract were characterized by diffusely arranged or organized lymphocytes. The anal tonsil was composed of an aggregate of lymphoid tissue occurring exclusively in the anal canal, being composed of squamous epithelium branches. MALT was present in different tissues and organic systems of cetaceans, providing constant protection against mucosal pathogens present in their environment.