Goodbye Azores part 2: spiders, what else?

After the first seven months in the Azores my job was little more than fieldwork logistical tasks. After the sorting of samples belonging to the BALA II project commenced, I was finally getting in touch with the native fauna on the microscope, and soon realized that the diversity was so small that nearly all Azorean endemics and native spider species could be easily recognized and distinguished from each other.

In the field, it is similarly easy to distinguish the few Azorean endemics. At canopy level (bear in mind that I only refer to samples made in native laurel forest) you find Savigniorrhipis acoreensis (Linyphiidae), Rugathodes acoreensis (Theridiidae), Sancus acoreensis (Tetragnathidae), Gibbaranea occidentalis (Araneidae), Lasaeola oceanica (Theriidae) and Acorigone acoreensis (Linyphiidae), all of them, even the tiny ones, being sufficiently different to be distinguished in the field. Just above ground level in exposed areas, you can find the nursery webs of Pisaura acoreensis, the largest endemic spider of the archipelago, especially between July and September. At ground level, several cryptic endemic species are not so easily found, like the erigonines Porrhomma borgesi, Walckenaeria grandis or Minicia floresensis, the later of which can also be found at canopy level sometimes. The small jumping spider Neon acoreensis was caught only twice bye me by direct hand sampling near the ground level.

At soil level in shady places you can also find the delicate sheet-webs of the linyphiine spider Leptyphantes acoreensis. All the mentioned spiders were supposed to be spread throughout the entire archipelago, and that sticks at the truth for all but one.

Other endemics are single-island endemics, and of these there aren’t much. Aditionally, I investigated some of them in collaboration with other specialists and at least one of them seems to be a synonymy with a species present in the Mediterranean. Other of these single-island endemics are subject to a somewhat suspicious view, being described in the basis of very small morphological differences by an author widely known for being a careless “splitter” and others remain unquestioned like Meioneta depigmentata (Linyphiidae) from Flores, Acorigone acoreensis (Linyphiidae) from São Jorge or Turinyphia cavernicola from Terceira (Linyphiidae).

Now, the new stuff:

Since these are all unpublished species, I will not write relevant information regarding their habitat and location. Please understand this.

A new species, sister of Savigniorrhipis acoreensis, was found present in one island only. Incorrectly identified material was present from previous works. This new species, more than morphologically, is ecologically separated from S. acoreensis, because it is present at ground level, while the latter is present at canopy level. This finding   provides a new look on the genus Savigniorrhipis, and hopefully it will either be validated or synonymised, but with a better analysis that that provided in its original description. Here it is the new species, it has a name, but I can’t reveal it by now as this would unmask the location of this tiny erigonine spider (on the bottom, the previously known endemic species S. acoreensis, both are females):

Also in the family Linyphiidae, one endemic species is now separated into 3 different species, one in each group of islands. The scientific work regarding these 3 species will take some time to be prepared and by now I can’t even confirm their genus with certainty.

These last fellas will be one of the major concerns regarding manuscripts in the next months for me. For these spiders I need the help on a more experienced arachnologist. When that publication sees the light of day, I will post here some further info on these little guys.

GOODBYE AZORES: PART 1, the wilderness

Not long now until my return to the mainland. My stay in the Azores will end in 2 weeks and although I know that I must be back in April and May and later again for my Masters’ viva, the bulk of my Azorean experience is done. I arrived in June 1st 2010, which accounts for 1 and half year in Terceira. I sense that it was a very positive episode in my life. I will write some thoughts, while I psychologically prepare myself to get back to base…

I feel that I had a great privilege, in the sense that my work allowed me to know much more than what the regular tourist does, like the last remnants of native laurel forest in the Azores, and many of the biological entities of this particular habitat. While the word “forest” is sometimes inappropriate to describe the shrub-like appearance of native forests, especially those in high altitudes, the singularity of this landscape is remarkable. It changes the concept of what we imagine when we think of the word “forest”. Plant diversity is not great, given the size and isolation of this archipelago (as well as most other groups of organisms), but several species give the native forest an especially different view of all the other forests present in the Portuguese territory. Twisted logs of Juniperus brevifolia, topped by a bonsai-like canopy give the Azorean forest quite the looks, in all the islands where it can be found. Usually, the ground is covered with Sphagnum mosses, and it’s very comfy to sit down in a natural pillow, considering you don’t care about wetting your butt! Other dominant arboreal endemic species or subspecies are Ilex perado azorica, Laurus azorica, Vaccinium cylindraceum, Frangula azorica, Erica azorica. I will always remember the day when to do beatings in Terra Brava Reserve in Terceira I, Sandra and François Rigal had to climb Ilex trees like we were kids, otherwise we wouldn’t reach the canopy and the task at hand would be left incomplete. It’s not easy to find places where climbing the Azorean native forest is a challenge, especially when you are many kilos heavier than what you were the last time you attempted this.

If you go to Pico look in the margins of the longitudinal road that crosses the island: you may find patches of another endemic plant that is seldom found in the other islands, Euphorbia stygiana. It should be the largest euphorb in Portugal. The dead twigs and logs of this plant are the preferred house of several species of endemic insects that either are xylophagous and eat the dead wood themselves (weevil Calacalles droeuti) or mycophagous beetles of the genus Tarphius that feed on the fungi growing in the dead wood.

Unfortunately, native forest patches are relics, occupying about 0,5% of the total Azorean area. These remnants exist mostly due to the hard accessibility and high altitudes, which rendered these sites free of the reach of cattle industry. In nearly all the lowlands the landscape is very dull, with green squares of herbs separated by walls or patches of Cryptomeria japonica, an exotic tree brought to the islands to produce wood. Speaking of which, the wood is not good, but in the past decades, the regional forestry services planted this tree carelessly throughout the islands, and in very rainy seasons it is common to see some of these trees down, especially in steep places. Also, very little plant life grows in Cryptomeria forest other than Cryptomeria itself, due to the great shadow that these large trees provide.

Besides this exotic tree, the native forest is now dealing with several other invasions, being the worst cases those of Hedychium gardnerianum and Pittosporum undulatum. Both of these plants came to the Azores due to its ornamental factor, and escaped from urban areas. The former came from Asia and the latter from Australia. Larges areas are now affected by these aggressive invaders and although some eradication efforts are being made, one is very pessimistic about the future of the Azorean native forest.

To finish this, I point out 3 “Natural Places You Must See in the Azores”:

• Morro Assombrado in Terceira: one of the most spectacular patches of native forest. The rugged geomorphology of these volcanic ridges is amazing! You must take care here, you can get lost easily, take someone experient in these places with you and be careful not to fall down one of the many holes.
• Caldeira of Serra de Santa Bárbara: this is the largest natural reserve in the Azores, and the Caldeira, its center. To be down there in the middle of this pristine site may not be easy in the future due to the upcoming restrictions and management by the Natural Park of Terceira. Hiking down there is also not easy! Watch out for holes.
• Morro Alto in Flores: this is the Sphagnum paradise! Once you reach the top you soon realize that the ground is made of bryophites, even if you are just following the road, because sometimes huge Sphagnum “pillows” made of several colors hang just above the road, dripping large amounts of water. If you add the lagoons and waterfalls on Fajã Grande, you can spend one week wandering about this nice little island, and you have plenty of nature to see. Being able to take a photo in a workplace like this is a privilege (yes, I just finished working).

Ugly dogs @ Terra-Chã

Given the international aspect of the team currently present at the Azorean Biodiversity Group I will type this in english. This is a small post dedicated to the 2 ugly dogs that reside at the Terra-Chã "campus/WW II hospital", which is currently having its last days as a part of the University of the Azores since we are now moving to a new building, closer to Angra. The one thing about these dogs that really amazes me, and perhaps my colleague François Rigal, is that they are sooooo ugly!!! It really makes the day begin with a smile on the face once we see these dogs because we think "how can you be so ugly?" and these dogs should be quite a feat of nature! We will surely miss them when we leave in some days/weeks/months/years/centuries(?).
The short one s the dominant male, and according to Pedro Cardoso, his name is Javali ("wild boar"). :)
Forgive my mobile phone quality for these photos.
Well, I need to get back to sorting and packing arthropods for DNA analyzis. Reminder: need to ask Pardal for the frickin' photos for the remaining posts for the BALA II expeditions.

São Jorge (II)

Some days after Faial (II), off I went with Pardal back to São Jorge, to collect the final samples for Bala II. Like in Faial, I finally had the time to do some sightseeing with Pardal, with geocaching as a direction to some spots.One of the most impressive places in São Jorge that I went to was the Lighthouse of Rosais, which is now inactive due to the last earthquake, that destroyed most of the building. A cache was located in the most Western tip of the island, just above a huge cliff! If there is one island that calls for landslides in the Azores, that is São Jorge.

A very nice stop was when we went to Fajã dos Vimes. In São Jorge you have several Fajãs, which I have described earlier as small pieces of flat land caused by a big landslide. In many fajãs, people don't live there all year round, but in São Jorge, you can find a decent amount of people living in these beautiful but dangerous pieces of land all year round. Here we logged a cache with a very nice wooden container.We didn't have the time to visit the most beautiful and known Fajã of the entire archipelago, Fajã do Santo Cristo, located in the Caldeira with the same name, as this place is only acessible by foot and we didn't have enough time to go to this nice place, that we could see from the plane. In the photo: I, logging a cache in the beginning of the trail that leads to the Caldeira do Santo Cristo.
The last stop was Morro de Velas, a volcanic tuft in the vicinities of Velas. One more hike, one more cache, one more view over the landscape, and we were finished. Here I caught an adult female of Arctosa perita, which wasn't reported to São Jorge yet.

Faial (II)

Just some days after the expedition to São Jorge, it was time to go back to Faial to get the pitfall traps, with Pardal. We decided to head first to the Cabeço do Fogo transects. On day 1 we did these transects and on day 2 we did the Caldeira transects (ahh the Caldeira, what a nice hike again) and so, we had 1 free day to have a touristic tour around the island, with a lot of stops for geocaching - of course!
We visited Praia do Almoxarife and the North-East area of the island, where there were many wrecked buildings to the common earthquakes. According to Pardal, that area is one of the most unstable areas of the island and it is not recommended to live there.
Among the most interesting sites of Faial, the Capelinhos area is by far one of the most interesting as from one moment you are in a typical humid azorean area, with loads of green, and suddenly you see yourself in the desert! Very nice!
Not very far Capelinhos and Cabeço do Fogo there is Furna Ruim, where we stopped by to see the Furna and to log a cache.We took the time to go to Varadouro on our way back to Horta, where there were some natural pools. I didn't take my swim shorts, but maybe next time I visit the island I won't forget them because it was a nice place to swim. And yup - you guessed - another cache! After this stop, and still en route to Horta, Feteira had the next one, that was successfully found between Erica bushes guarded by a lot of Argiope bruennichi! Regarding geocaching, Faial contributed with 4 marbles to add to my marble collection.
A final note to the Horta marina, widely known for its paintings. I had the chance to visit this site previously, but since this expedition has a greater cultural and touristic component due to the interactions with Pardal, a great conoisseur of all the Azorean sites, and the absence of Paulo, so this is the the right post to insert a picture of the Marina.

São Jorge (I)

Right after the Faial expedition, and just after the weekend, off we were to São Jorge. The crew's itinerary was similar, with the difference that Kostas decided to take the plane, due to the traumatic experience of the last boat trip to Faial. This time we went on the Express Santorini (the ferry boat), which was slower, and the sea was smoother, so the trip was nice and not so long. In the photo: Cabras' Islets, south of Terceira.
We stayed in Casa do António hotel, in Velas. It was a very cosy place, as the place was more like a family home than an hotel. Here we could try to grab some araçás, a fruit from an introduced plant. It tastes a bit like a loquat (pt: nêspera). One very nice thing was the free cakes we could grab, when we got back to the hotel after a day full of fieldwork, especially the typical biscuits from São Jorge, "espécies" (see here), very nice! The field lab was located in a house that belongs to the Environmental Services (so I remember but not sure...).The first site we did was the Topo reserve, with 2 transects. After walking along some Cryptomeria plantations and pastures we arrived. It reminded me of Morro Alto in Flores or Graminhais in São Miguel, as the trees were very short. It was a very nice day here, as the sun was only intermittent with some foggy periods, especially in the morning. It was relatively easy to walk around here also, compared to other sites. The vegetation was the usual one, with the extra of some specimens of Euphorbia stygiana in one of the transects. Here I tasted the fruits of Vaccinium for the first time. Although a bit acid, they are quite good and juicy! Some extra food, organic and endemic!
The next day it was raining and we spent the day - or days, I don't recall - sorting in the field lab, like in Faial. The last site to be done would be the Pico do Pinheiro, with 2 transects on Erica dominated forest. We started off the days pretty well, with a shining sun above us. However, when we were finishing the last transect, one of the most huge rainfalls came down on us. We were only about 5 or 6 pitfalls from the end, so we decided to take it on. We were below tree cover, but still, there was no escape, as it was thick rain. Everybody was wet from head to toes. Sadly, there are no photos of this, but it was too stressfull for kodak moments here... Ironically, these were the last traps to be set in all the BALA II fieldwork, and this was the worst rainfall ever.
Later in the week, Isabel Amorim joined us to give an oral presentation to the locals on cave species of the Azores, but the whole staff but Paulo (who also had a presentation to give) returned to Terceira before that, as we finished the fieldwork in a good time. This was not a consensual decision but no big deal for me.

Faial (I)

After Sandra was with me the past 15 days, it was time to return to work (uhhh, I don't think I have left it in the past days, though... :/ ) and go to Faial, for another BALA II expedition.
This time, the team was upgraded to "International level" as François Rigal and Konstantinos Triantis (a.k.a. Kostas) joined me, Pardal and Paulo for the trip.

On the way to Faial, since - yet once again - someone had to take the propilene by boat, all of us except for Paulo (who else?) took a ride on the agitated sea of September 30th, with a stop in Pico and São Jorge. It was the most harsh boat ride so far, with many people in the Hellenic Wind barfing and seasick. Among the 4 of us, the only casualty was Kostas, who went to the bathroom 2 or 3 times. Gladly, there are no photos of this day...

We stayed at Hotel do Canal in Horta, and I must say that this was most likely the most luxuriant hotel that we have stayed in so far! And with a huge and diverse breakfast!
Our field lab was situated in the Botanical Garden of Faial, which was a nice place to see endemic plants of the Azorean archipelago. We decided to check the hardest site first, because of the unstable weather conditions latter on the week: the Caldeira! Its geomorphology is impressive, as it is large and all visible from its top. It is literally an island within an island, as there is no surrounding patch of laurel forest around it. The descend is more than the vertical 400 meters, it isn't much but the steepness is remarkable at some points (puff puff). Of course that going down is much easier, but if you consider that the ground is slippery because it's wet and you are carrying a load of materials for the fieldwork, you also gotta be careful because you can easily break a limb or something worse... As we started going down, we were greeted by the endemic tree species, like the Juniperus brevifolia, Erica azorica, Ilex perado spp azorica, Vaccinium cylindraceum and Frangula azorica, which is called "sanguinho" (small-blood) in portuguese, due to the red colour of the interior of the stems of this plant.
Once we reached the interior of the Caldeira, we needed to set up the first transect in an Erica forest, and after we were surrounded by spiny bushes (Rubus ulmifolis, les ronces, fait chier sa race!) we decided to relocate that transect closer to the margin of the Caldeira. After setting it up, with Paulo and Kostas doing the beating and the rest of us digging the pitfalls, we had a very nice and peaceful break to have some combat food, near a small water course.
The second transect was built as we started our way up, since it was in the path to and from the interior of the Caldeira. After we set up all the traps Paulo and Kostas had already finish the beating and the 3 of us started the climb up. It was a very sunny and pleasant day and when I and Pardal, the last ones of the whole crew, were reaching the top of the Caldeira and saw a lovely moment when the clouds literally invaded the Caldeira, in about 20 minutes, I never saw clouds moving so fast before!
And what a nice climb to finish the day! After this, only a bath, a nice free dinner and a good night of sleep would follow.
The next day, the weather got worse and he stayed in the Botanical Garden sorting some samples from the previous day. Right in the entrance of the Botanical Garden we could see some endemic Azorina (now Campanula, sorry Azores for losing its only endemic plant genus, according to Hanno Schaffer) vidali, a remarkable flower endemic to the Azores, which has probably named Flores when the first explorers stepped their foot in this island and saw the rocky shores covered by this beautiful plant.After this, we were left with the final site to do, with 2 more transects to set up, and this was Cabeço do Fogo, some kilometers to the West side of the island. The place was filled with the usual invasive species, Pittosporum undulatum and Hedychium gardnerianum, and, therefore, more degraded than the Caldeira. The pitfall trapping of the upper transect was troublesome, as there wasn't many suitable places in the ground, due to the big rhyzomes of Hedychium. La forêt açoriaine est trés enmerdé, as François would say! On one side of the Cabeço do Fogo, the landscape was very nice, as the black rocky ground was covered by a species of gray moss, very soft and fluffy.After these 2 transects were done, François and Kostas went to see Capelinhos but I decided to join Paulo and Pardal for another Tarphius hunt; as I was supposed to come back here in 2 weeks with Pardal to finish the work, I thought that I could do this in another time. This was a very nice week in Faial but also very tiresome because the transects demanded some patience and some effort to be done. My next expedition to this island would certainly be less demanding...
In the flight back to Terceira, note for the clearest sky ever above "the triangle": Faial, Pico and São Jorge were clear, with no clouds above them! Remarkable!

Sandra na Terceira

Nas duas semanas que se seguiram à última expedição a Santa Maria, estive na Terceira, e acompanhado pela minha Sandra, que me veio visitar. Dadas as contingências do trabalho, tive que a levar comigo para o trabalho de campo a realizar na Terceira, e acabou assim por ver alguma da vegetação nativa, uma vertente do turismo (biológico), que muitos turistas normalmente ignoram. Infelizmente, apanhámos alguns dias de maus tempo, e portanto tivemos muitas vezes que improvisar alguns planos pouco movimentados, mas ainda tivemos um tempo para ir visitar o Algar do Carvão, a Serra de Santa Bárbara, o Monte Brasil e a Praia da Vitória, entre outros recantos.

Pelo meio, algumas caches feitas; numa das do Monte Brasil até conseguimos provocar uma dança num salticideo do género Macaroeris, já que a Sandra tinha um espelho. O trabalho de campo aconteceu na Terra Brava, numa encosta repleta das árvores típicas, como o Juniperus brevifolia, o Laurus azorica, Ilex perado spp. azorica.

Para variar, nesta zona as árvores são grandes os suficientes para termos que trepar até às suas copas, e foi uma tarde bem passada, juntamente com o François Rigal, a recolher pitfalls e a fazer batimentos. No final deste dia, tivemos o episódio mais caricato da estadia da Sandra: como estávamos a usar o carro da Dra. Rosalina Gabriel, que é da idade da pedra (tem líquenes e tudo), e portanto não tem indicador luminoso ou sonoro das luzes estarem acesas, deixámos as luzes acesas quando saímos para ir fazer o trabalho de campo. Ora, certo está que quando voltámos ao carro, puff! Nem tossia, a ignição… Depois de alguns telefonemas com o Pardal, em situação limite de rede, lá conseguimos arranjar alguém para nos ir buscar porque já eram 8 da noite e qualquer opção de ressuscitação da bateria estava de parte. No dia seguinte, lá fui ressuscitar o Opel, com a preciosa ajuda do Chico de São Jorge (como o conheço), e estávamos prontos para outra!

Nesse dia fomos então procurar novas aventuras, e ir fazer batimentos na Lagoínha da Serreta. A perspectiva de novas aventuras não saiu defraudada, já que para dar com o sítio foi tramado, e o mega-bólide precisava de algum carinho, pelo que não foi nada fácil chegar lá, mas chegámos! O tempo não esteve perfeito dado o nevoeiro, mas sempre deu para a Sandra conhecer a vertente nebulosa do tempo imprevisível açoreano.

No fim-de-semana, tivemos a oportunidade de ir até à Serra de Santa Bárbara, desta vez sem ser em trabalho. Foi uma bela passeata! Novamente o tempo não esteve perfeito, mas não se pode dizer que esteve mau porque não choveu, apenas algum nevoeiro.

Estas duas semanas foram, por razões óbvias, espectaculares! :)

No dia 30, lá tive que ir para nova expedição, desta feita ao Faial.