Ecological affinities of Brazil and the southeastern United States of America. A study in comparative physiological ecology.

Brazil and the southeastern United States have faunistic similarities and differences which are of fundamental interest to the environmental scientist. These similarities and differences provide natural experimental organisms and habitats which can provide answers to basic and applied questions. What are the lethal limits of organisms to environmental changes? How do animals functionally adjust to various ecological parameters? How have basic biological systems evolved in response to new environments? Although the comparative functional attributes of individual species has been stressed in this paper, knowledge of the comparative dynamics os is vitally needed before man can gain an understanding of how systems function, and, equally important, how to manage and manipulate coastal marine environments. This critical area is where man has the potential to exert his greatest influence on the future existence and evolution of specific organisms and ecosystems.