scholarly journals Aedes aegypti in the Mediterranean container ports at the time of climate change: a time bomb on the mosquito vector map of Europe

Heliyon ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. e07981
Author(s):  
Attila J. Trájer
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-77
Author(s):  
Amos Watentena ◽  
Ikem Chris Okoye ◽  
Ikechukwu Eugene Onah ◽  
Onwude Cosmas Ogbonnaya ◽  
Emmanuel Ogudu

Mosquitoes of Aedes species are vectors of several arboviral diseases which continue to be a major public health problem in Nigeria. This study among other things, morphologically identified Aedes mosquitoes collected from Nsukka LGA and used an allele specific PCR amplification for discrimination of dengue vectors. Larval sampling, BG-sentinel traps and modified human landing catches were used for mosquito sampling in two selected autonomous communities of Nsukka LGA (Nsukka and Obimo). A total of 124 Aedes mosquitoes consisting of five (5) different species were collected from April to June, 2019 in a cross-sectional study that covered 126 households, under 76 distinct geographical coordinates. Larvae was mainly collected from plastic containers 73% (n=224), metallic containers 14% (n=43), earthen pots 9% (n=29) and used car tyres 3% (n=9), reared to adult stage 69.35% (n=86), and all mosquitoes were identified using standard morphological keys. Five (5) Aedes mosquito species were captured; Aedes aegypti 83(66.94%), Aedes albopictus 33(26.61%), Aedes simpsoni (4.48%), Aedes luteocephalus (≤1%) and Aedes vittatus (≤1%). Nsukka autonomous community had higher species diversity than Obimo. Allele specific amplification confirmed dengue vectors, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus species on a 2% agarose gel. Since the most recent re-emergence of arboviral diseases is closely associated with Aedes species, findings of this study, therefore, give further evidence about the presence of potential arboviral vectors in Nigeria and describe the role of a simple PCR in discriminating some. Further entomological studies should integrate PCR assays in mosquito vector surveillance.


Author(s):  
Karen J. Esler ◽  
Anna L. Jacobsen ◽  
R. Brandon Pratt

The world’s mediterranean-type climate regions (including areas within the Mediterranean, South Africa, Australia, California, and Chile) have long been of interest to biologists by virtue of their extraordinary biodiversity and the appearance of evolutionary convergence between these disparate regions. Comparisons between mediterranean-type climate regions have provided important insights into questions at the cutting edge of ecological, ecophysiological and evolutionary research. These regions, dominated by evergreen shrubland communities, contain many rare and endemic species. Their mild climate makes them appealing places to live and visit and this has resulted in numerous threats to the species and communities that occupy them. Threats include a wide range of factors such as habitat loss due to development and agriculture, disturbance, invasive species, and climate change. As a result, they continue to attract far more attention than their limited geographic area might suggest. This book provides a concise but comprehensive introduction to mediterranean-type ecosystems. As with other books in the Biology of Habitats Series, the emphasis in this book is on the organisms that dominate these regions although their management, conservation, and restoration are also considered.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alba de la Vara ◽  
William Cabos ◽  
Dmitry V. Sein ◽  
Claas Teichmann ◽  
Daniela Jacob

AbstractIn this work we use a regional atmosphere–ocean coupled model (RAOCM) and its stand-alone atmospheric component to gain insight into the impact of atmosphere–ocean coupling on the climate change signal over the Iberian Peninsula (IP). The IP climate is influenced by both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean sea. Complex interactions with the orography take place there and high-resolution models are required to realistically reproduce its current and future climate. We find that under the RCP8.5 scenario, the generalized 2-m air temperature (T2M) increase by the end of the twenty-first century (2070–2099) in the atmospheric-only simulation is tempered by the coupling. The impact of coupling is specially seen in summer, when the warming is stronger. Precipitation shows regionally-dependent changes in winter, whilst a drier climate is found in summer. The coupling generally reduces the magnitude of the changes. Differences in T2M and precipitation between the coupled and uncoupled simulations are caused by changes in the Atlantic large-scale circulation and in the Mediterranean Sea. Additionally, the differences in projected changes of T2M and precipitation with the RAOCM under the RCP8.5 and RCP4.5 scenarios are tackled. Results show that in winter and summer T2M increases less and precipitation changes are of a smaller magnitude with the RCP4.5. Whilst in summer changes present a similar regional distribution in both runs, in winter there are some differences in the NW of the IP due to differences in the North Atlantic circulation. The differences in the climate change signal from the RAOCM and the driving Global Coupled Model show that regionalization has an effect in terms of higher resolution over the land and ocean.


Agronomy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Helder Fraga ◽  
Marco Moriondo ◽  
Luisa Leolini ◽  
João A. Santos

The olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is an ancient traditional crop in the Mediterranean Basin. In the Mediterranean region, traditional olive orchards are distinguishable by their prevailing climatic conditions. Olive trees are indeed considered one of the most suitable and best-adapted species to the Mediterranean-type climate. However, new challenges are predicted to arise from climate change, threatening this traditional crop. The Mediterranean Basin is considered a climate change “hotspot,” as future projections hint at considerable warming and drying trends. Changes in olive tree suitability have already been reported over the last few decades. In this context, climate change may become particularly challenging for olive growers. The growing evidence for significant climate change in the upcoming decades urges adaptation measures to be taken. To effectively cope with the projected changes, both short and long-term adaptation strategies must be timely planned by the sector stakeholders and decision-makers to adapt for a warmer and dryer future. The current manuscript is devoted to illustrating the main impacts of climate change on olive tree cultivation in the Mediterranean Basin, by reviewing the most recent studies on this subject. Additionally, an analysis of possible adaptation strategies against the potentially negative impacts of climate change was also performed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 1934578X2199019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iris Stappen ◽  
Juergen Wanner ◽  
Nurhayat Tabanca ◽  
Ulrich R. Bernier ◽  
Paul E. Kendra

Blue tansy essential oil (BTEO) ( Tanacetum annuum L.) was analyzed by GC-MS and GC-FID using two different capillary column stationary phases. Sabinene (14.0%), camphor (13.6%), myrcene (8.0%), β-pinene (7.7%), and chamazulene (6.9%) were the main components using an SE52 column (non-polar). On a polar CW20M phase column, sabinene (15.1%), camphor (14.4%), α-phellandrene (7.9%), β-pinene (7.7%), and myrcene (6.9%) were the most abundant compounds. To assess the oil for potential applications in integrated pest management strategies, behavioral bioassays were conducted to test for repellency against yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti, and for attractant activity for Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata. Results showed that BTEO was not effective in repelling Ae. aegypti (minimum effective dosage [MED]: 0.625 ± 0.109 mg/cm2 compared with the standard insect repellent DEET (N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide). In assays with male C. capitata, BTEO displayed mild attraction compared with two positive controls (essential oils from tea tree Melaleuca alternifolia and African ginger bush Tetradenia riparia). Additional studies are needed to identify the specific attractant chemicals in BTEO and to determine if they confer a synergistic effect when combined with other known attractants for C. capitata. To the best of our knowledge, this study represents the first investigation of BTEO for repellency against the mosquito vector Ae. aegypti and for attractancy to C. capitata, a major agricultural pest worldwide.


2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (11) ◽  
pp. e1892 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew F. van den Hurk ◽  
Sonja Hall-Mendelin ◽  
Alyssa T. Pyke ◽  
Francesca D. Frentiu ◽  
Kate McElroy ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrián García Bruzón ◽  
Patricia Arrogante Funes ◽  
Laura Muñoz Moral

<p>The climate change has turned out to be a determining factor in the development of forest in Spain. Production systems have emitted polluting gases and other particles into the atmosphere, for which some plants have not yet developed adaptation systems. Among the most harmful pollutants for the environment are gases such as nitrous oxides, ozone, particulate matter.</p><p>However, this condition is not the same in Peninsular Spain, and the Balearic Islands since the plant compositions differ in the territory and the bioclimatic, topographic, and anthropic characteristics. Monitoring the vegetation with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution, studying variables conditioning plant health is a challenge from the nature of the variables and the amount of data to be handled. </p><p>The Mediterranean forest is one of the most ecosystem affected by climate change because of usually experimented long periods of drought that, in combination with increased temperatures, can drastically reduce the photosynthetic activity of trees and therefore the biomass of forests.</p><p>That is why the application of environmental technologies based on Remote Sensing (which provide plant health indices from passive sensors on satellite platforms and other variables of interest), Geographic Information Systems (to integrate, process, analyze spatial and temporal data) and machine learning models (which facilitate the extraction of relationships between variables, conditioning factors and predict patterns). </p><p>In this regard, this work's objective is to evaluate the possible effect that different pollutants have on the health of the vegetation, measured from the annual values of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), in the Mediterranean forests of Peninsular Spain. To achieve this, we are used machine learning techniques using the Random Forest algorithm. The study has also been done with various climatic, topographic, and anthropic variables that characterize the forest to carry it out. </p><p>The results showed that certain variables such as the aridity index had generated the NDVI values and therefore plant development, while others are limiting factors such as the concentration of certain pollutants and the direct relationship between them particulates and NOx. This study can verify how the Random Forest algorithm offers reliable results, even when working with heterogeneous variables. </p>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josep Cos ◽  
Francisco J Doblas-Reyes ◽  
Martin Jury

<p>The Mediterranean has been identified as a climate change hot-spot due to increased warming trends and precipitation decline. Recently, CMIP6 was found to show a higher climate sensitivity than its predecessor CMIP5, potentially further exacerbating related impacts on the Mediterranean region.</p><p>To estimate the impacts of the ongoing climate change on the region, we compare projections of various CMIP5 and CMIP6 experiments and scenarios. In particular, we focus on summer and winter changes in temperature and precipitation for the 21st century under RCP2.6/SSP1-2.6, RCP4.5/SSP2-4.5 and RCP8.5/SSP5-8.5 as well as the high resolution HighResMIP experiments. Additionally, to give robust estimates of projected changes we apply a novel model weighting scheme, accounting for historical performance and inter-independence of the multi-member multi-model ensembles, using ERA5, JRA55 and WFDE5 as observational reference. </p><p>Our results indicate a significant and robust warming over the Mediterranean during the 21st century irrespective of the used ensemble and experiments. Nevertheless, the often attested amplified Mediterranean warming is only found for summer. The projected changes vary between the CMIP5 and CMIP6, with the latter projecting a stronger warming. For the high emission scenarios and without weighting, CMIP5 indicates a warming between 4 and 7.7ºC in summer and 2.7 and 5ºC in winter, while CMIP6 projects temperature increases between 5.6 and 9.2ºC in summer and 3.2 to 6.8ºC in winter until 2081-2100 in respect to 1985-2005. In contrast to temperature, precipitation changes show a higher level of uncertainty and spatial heterogeneity. However, for the high emission scenario, a robust decline in precipitation is projected for large parts of the Mediterranean during summer. First results applying the model weighting scheme indicate reductions in CMIP6 and increases in CMIP5 warming trends, thereby reducing differences between the two ensembles.</p>


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