ABSTRACT. The sea cucumber Holothuria (Halodeima) grisea Selenka, 1867 is distributed from Florida (USA) to southern Brazil. Juveniles of this species are very hardly found in the wild. H. (H.) grisea is very common on sandstone reefs in some localities from the northern coast of Brazil. Because seagrass beds are a conspicuous feature in some of these localities, the authors have speculated that juveniles live in these habitats. Following this species' reproduction period, seagrass beds adjacent to sandstone reefs were inspected in search of juveniles from December to May. Sea cucumbers were found in one of them. Individuals were collected from two areas within the seagrass bed and two areas within neighboring rocky shores, and their contracted body lengths were measured. Mean sizes were significantly smaller in the seagrass areas than in reef areas (post-hoc Tuckey test, P < 0.05). Within the seagrass bed, more than 70% of individuals were smaller than 7.5 cm, whereas 84.9 and 93.3% in the two reef areas were larger than 7.5 cm -the first report of an H. (H.) grisea population dominated by juveniles. Therefore, seagrass meadows should be looked at as possible sources of juveniles for adult populations of H. (H.) grisea in the tropical western Atlantic. Also, given the rarity of juvenile sightings for this species anywhere within its distribution range, the results are very meaningful for future research on its ecology and local and regional fishery management.

RESUMO A fusariose ou podridão-das-raízes, principal doença na pimenteira-do-reino, causa severa limitação na produção, provocada pelo fungo (Fusarium solani f. sp. piperis). O objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de extratos brutos aquosos e fungicida no controle da fusariose em pimenta-do-reino. Foi avaliado a porcentagem de inibição micelial de F. solani em placas de Petri com meio BDA suplementado com extratos brutos aquosos de folhas (EBA) de pimenta-do-reino, mandioca, mamona, coentro e melão-de-são caetaneo, nas concentrações de 5, 10, 15 e 20% (v/v). A testemunha foi placa com meio BDA sem adição de produto. Para avaliação do efeito dos extratos sobre o desenvolvimento da fusariose, mudas de pimenta-do-reino foram inoculadas com o patógeno, sendo aspergidas com 20 mL dos extratos brutos aquosos de melão-de-são caetano e mandioca nas concentrações de 10 e 15%. O fungicida carbendazem foi pincelado no caules das plantas em forma de pasta na dose (0,2 g.100 mL-1). A avaliação da incidência da doença foi realizada aos 30 dias após a inoculação. Os resultados mostraram que os extratos de melão-de-são caetano e mandioca nas concentrações de 10 e 15%, proporcionaram os maiores percentuais de inibição micelial (61,01 e 57,61% e 51,55 e 55,48%) respectivamente. O EBA de melão-de-são caetano na concentração de 15% e o fungicida foram eficientes em reduzirem a incidência da fusariose em mudas de pimenta-do-reino.

ABSTRACT Fusarium or root rot, the main disease affecting black pepper, leads to severe production limitation caused by the fungus (Fusarium solani f. sp. piperis). The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of crude aqueous extracts and fungicide on the control of fusariosis in black pepper. The percentage of F. solani mycelial inhibition in Petri dishes with PDA medium supplemented with crude aqueous leaf extracts (EBA) of black pepper, cassava, castor bean, coriander and bitter melon were evaluated at the concentrations 5, 10, 15 and 20% (v/v). Control was the plate containing PDA medium without addition of any product. To evaluate the effect of extracts on the development of fusariosis, black pepper seedlings were inoculated with the pathogen and sprayed with 20 mL crude aqueous extracts of bitter melon and cassava at the concentrations 10 and 15%. The fungicide carbendazim was brushed as paste on the stems of plants at one dose (0.2 g.100 mL-1). The disease incidence was evaluated 30 days after inoculation. Results showed that the extracts of bitter melon and cassava at the concentrations 10 and 15% provided the highest percentages of mycelial inhibition (61.01 and 57.61% and 51.55 and 55.48%, respectively). The EBA of bitter melon at the concentration of 15% and the fungicide were efficient in reducing fusariosis incidence in black pepper seedlings.