scholarly journals Conservation Paleobiology as a Tool to Define Reference Conditions in Naturally Stressed Transitional Settings: Micropaleontological Insights from the Holocene of the Po Coastal Plain (Italy)

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 3420
Author(s):  
Giulia Barbieri ◽  
Veronica Rossi ◽  
Anupam Ghosh ◽  
Stefano Claudio Vaiani
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Reference Conditions ◽  
Biological Indicators ◽  
Physical Parameters ◽  
Ecological Groups ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Holocene Sediment ◽  
Conservation Paleobiology ◽  
Definition Of

The key role of paralic environments as providers of ecosystem services, associated with their increasingly threatened state, led to the definition of international water management policies aimed to improve ecological quality status (EcoQs). Restoration actions rely on the definition of reference conditions, which is a particularly challenging task in naturally stressed transitional environments. In the present work, we apply the diversity index Exp(H’bc) on benthic foraminifer assemblages from two anthropogenically unimpacted transitional to coastal Holocene sediment successions of the Po coastal plain, in order to assess past EcoQs (PaleoEcoQs). Ostracod ecological groups provided detailed insights on naturally stressful paleoenvironmental conditions. We show that “poor” to “moderate” PaleoEcoQs are recorded by biological indicators at reference conditions under fluctuations of chemical-physical parameters and organic matter enrichment. We emphasize the importance of a site-specific paleobiological approach, as significant differences in diversity occur even on a short spatial scale. This study illustrates that early to mid-Holocene sediment successions resulted to be appropriate for conservation paleobiological purposes, providing a high-resolution paleoecological record under the influence of the Holocene sea-level rise in analogy with the present-day global change.

How can stratigraphy contribute to conservation paleobiology? Insights from a mid-Holocene to present-day transitional system of the Po coastal plain (N Italy)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Barbieri ◽  
Veronica Rossi ◽  
Éric Armynot du Châtelet ◽  
Simone Da Prato ◽  
Ilaria Mazzini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Reference Conditions ◽  
Biological Indicators ◽  
Natural State ◽  
Anthropogenic Pressures ◽  
Benthic Foraminifers ◽  
Shallow Subsurface ◽  
Conservation Paleobiology ◽  
Mud Flat ◽  
Definition Of

<p>The definition of reference conditions has a major role for the understanding of the present-day and paleoecological quality status on transitional environments. The estuarine quality paradox and the paucity of unimpacted sites make the definition of reference conditions a challenging task. In this context, the integration of biological indicators with stratigraphic data is essential, as the vertical stacking pattern of facies composing the shallow subsurface of modern coastal plains reflects changes in physical-chemical parameters which, in turn, affect (paleo-)biotic communities.</p><p>In the Po coastal plain (N Italy), the mid to late Holocene back-barrier succession of the Mezzano Lowland and the adjacent present-day Bellocchio Lagoon offer a unique example of pristine paralic system for comparing reference conditions defined in fossil and modern settings, respectively. Benthic foraminifers and ostracods from the Mezzano succession allowed us to investigate vertical (i.e., temporal) and lateral (i.e., spatial) changes in (paleo-)environmental conditions, in analogy to the lateral variations recorded at the Bellocchio Lagoon.</p><p>Both sites present subtidal channel sands almost barren in autochthonous meiofauna and fine-grained lagoon sediments with abundant benthic foraminifers and ostracods mostly represented by euryhaline taxa recording the highest diversity. Intertidal muddy deposits are also recorded, including mud flat clays with abundant oligotypic assemblages dominated by highly-confined benthic foraminifers. In the present study, we demonstrate that changes in modern benthic foraminifer assemblages diversity and composition often interpreted as perturbations of ecological conditions in response to anthropogenic pressures also occur under natural state, as confirmed by paleoenvironmental conditions recorded by ostracods. This reflects the effects of authogenic processes at short time and geographic scales.</p>

Ecological Impact of an Oil Spill: Utilization of Biological Indicators

1986 ◽  
Vol 18 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 203-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Glémarec
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Ecological Impact ◽  
Fine Sand ◽  
Biological Indicators ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Ecological Groups ◽  
Fish Juveniles ◽  
Points Of View ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Two Parameters

One of the major difficulties for science today is still the understanding of how a whole ecosystem operates. However, perturbations affecting the normal functioning of an ecosystem can be evaluated and monitored in time, from trophic or dimensional points of view, by studying the macrofauna which is found in the middle of the trophic or dimensional hierarchies of the ecosystem. Organisms in this category are greater than 1 mm in size, and sampling is effected by means of quantitative grabs. Most of these organisms have life cycles generally ranging between 1 and 3 years. They are distinct from other fauna of larger size and longer life cycle, but they are also scattered, and are therefore difficult to sample. The effects of the “Amoco Cadiz” oil spill on the fine sand ecosystem are evaluated by means of macrofauna which represent medium hydrodynamic conditions. Different species were classified in ecological groups according to their sensitivity to hydrocarbons and to organic matter overload. The two parameters, specific richness and abundance per square meter, indicate the structure of the macrofauna population, and a third parameter, the biomass, can also be used. The study of these factors and their evolution in time, as well as the ecological groups, enables definition of the degradation, recolonization and restructuring conditions. Finally, predators such as fish juveniles regulate these communities; six years after the “Amoco Cadiz” oil spill, even if this fine sand ecosystem reaches a new equilibrium, it is still too early for the regulation processes by predators to take place.

Carabidae of Barnaul city parks: ecological characteristics and species composition

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 348-353
Author(s):  
E. A. Kuchina ◽  
N. D. Ovcharenko ◽  
L. D. Vasileva
Keyword(s):  
Species Composition ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Similarity Index ◽  
Life Forms ◽  
Ground Beetles ◽  
Forest Steppe ◽  
Ecological Groups ◽  
Dominant Group ◽  
Species Diversity Index ◽  
Steppe Species

<p>Anthropogenic impact on the population of ground beetles leads to a change in their numbers, structure of dominance, density, species composition, spectrum of life forms. This makes the beetles Carabidae a convenient and informative bioindicator of the ecological state of biocenoses. The material for this work was the Carabidae collections conducted in June-August 2016-2017 in the park zone of different regions of Barnaul, differing in location, area, hydrological regime, vegetation cover, purpose and anthropogenic load. When processing the material, the quantitative, species and generic composition of the carabidae was determined, calculations were made for such indicators as the Berger-Parker dominance index, the Shannon species diversity index (Hs), and the Jacquard species similarity index. The fauna (Coleoptera, Carabidae) of the park zone of Barnaul is represented by 55 species belonging to 20 genera. The dominant group is represented by species belonging to steppe, forest and polyzonal groups. Forest-steppe species of ground beetles as dominants have not been identified in any of the investigated territories. The greatest variety of ecological groups was noted on the territory of the Yubileyny рark, which is explained by the presence of zones with various microclimatic conditions, the presence of a birch grove that flows through the park with the Pivovarka River, and a wide log in the park. Registered species belong to eight groups of life forms belonging to two classes - zoophagous and myxophytophagous. On the numerical and species abundance, zoophages predominate. The spectrum of life forms corresponds to the zonal spectrum characteristic of the forest-steppe zone.</p><p> </p>

INVESTIGATION OF THE INTERNAL STRUCTURE AND EVOLUTION OF THE HOLOCENE BARRIER OF MARICÁ (RIO DE JANEIRO)

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Pereira Silvestre ◽  
André Luiz Carvalho da Silva ◽  
Maria Augusta Martins da Silva ◽  
Amilsom Rangel Rodrigues
Keyword(s):  
Internal Structure ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Rio De Janeiro ◽  
The Holocene

ABSTRACT. The objective of this study is the identification of the internal structure of the Holocene barrier of the Maricá coastal plain (Rio de Janeiro) for the understanding of the... RESUMO. O presente estudo objetivou identificar a estrutura interna da barreira holocênica buscando compreender a evolução da planície costeira de Maricá (Rio de Janeiro). A geomorfologia regional...

scholarly journals Observations on Palaeogeographical Evolution of Akrotiri Salt Lake, Lemesos, Cyprus

Geosciences ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 321
Author(s):  
Miltiadis Polidorou ◽  
Niki Evelpidou ◽  
Theodora Tsourou ◽  
Hara Drinia ◽  
Ferréol Salomon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Landscape Evolution ◽  
Salt Lake ◽  
Active Tectonics ◽  
Scientific Interest ◽  
Progressive Change ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Holocene Sediment ◽  
First Time ◽  
The City

Akrotiri Salt Lake is located 5 km west of the city of Lemesos in the southernmost part of the island of Cyprus. The evolution of the Akrotiri Salt Lake is of great scientific interest, occurring during the Holocene when eustatic and isostatic movements combined with local active tectonics and climate change developed a unique geomorphological environment. The Salt Lake today is a closed lagoon, which is depicted in Venetian maps as being connected to the sea, provides evidence of the geological setting and landscape evolution of the area. In this study, for the first time, we investigated the development of the Akrotiri Salt Lake through a series of three cores which penetrated the Holocene sediment sequence. Sedimentological and micropaleontological analyses, as well as geochronological studies were performed on the deposited sediments, identifying the complexity of the evolution of the Salt Lake and the progressive change of the area from a maritime space to an open bay and finally to a closed salt lake.

Environmental evolution and anthropogenic forcing in the Garigliano coastal plain (Italy) during the Holocene

The Holocene ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 095968362110032
Author(s):  
Halinka Di Lorenzo ◽  
Pietro Aucelli ◽  
Giuseppe Corrado ◽  
Mario De Iorio ◽  
Marcello Schiattarella ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Activity ◽  
Coastal Plain ◽  
Forest Cover ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Pollen Data ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Natural Processes ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Rich

The Garigliano alluvial-coastal plain, at the Latium-Campania border (Italy), witnessed a long-lasting history of human-environment interactions, as demonstrated by the rich archaeological knowledge. With the aim of reconstructing the evolution of the landscape and its interaction with human activity during the last millennia, new pollen results from the coastal sector of the Garigliano Plain were compared with the available pollen data from other nearby sites. The use of pollen data from both the coastal and marine environment allowed integrating the local vegetation dynamics within a wider regional context spanning the last 8000 years. The new pollen data presented in this study derive from the analysis of a core, drilled in the coastal sector, which intercepted the lagoon-marshy environments that occurred in the plain as a response to the Holocene transgression and subsequent coastal progradation. Three radiocarbon ages indicate that the chronology of the analyzed core interval ranges from c. 7200 to c. 2000 cal yr BP. The whole data indicate that a dense forest cover characterized the landscape all along the Prehistoric period, when a few signs of human activity are recorded in the spectra, such as cereal crops, pasture activity and fires. The main environmental changes, forced by natural processes (coastal progradation) but probably enhanced by reclamation works, started from the Graeco-Roman period and led to the reduction of swampy areas that favoured the colonisation of the outer plain.

scholarly journals FLORISTIC, STRUCTURE AND ECOLOGICAL GROUPS OF A TREE COMMUNITY IN THE ATLANTIC RAINFOREST AT SERRA DO MAR, SP, BRAZIL

Nativa ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 706
Author(s):  
Vitor De Andrade Kamimura ◽  
Rodrigo Ferreira Morais ◽  
Carlos Alfredo Joly ◽  
Marco Antonio Assis
Keyword(s):  
Species Distribution ◽  
Diversity Index ◽  
Abundant Species ◽  
Atlantic Rainforest ◽  
Ecological Groups ◽  
Serra Do Mar ◽  
Palm Trees ◽  
Dispersal Syndromes ◽  
Tree Community ◽  
Euterpe Edulis

FLORÍSTICA, ESTRUTURA E GRUPOS ECOLÓGICOS DE UMA COMUNIDADE ARBÓREA NA FLORESTA ATLÂNTICA, SERRA DO MAR, SP, BRASIL Neste trabalho, avaliamos a composição florística e estrutural de uma comunidade arbórea em um contínuo da Floresta Atlântica das Terras Baixas no sudeste brasileiro, acessando a distribuição das espécies entre grupos ecológicos. Para tanto, foram amostrados todos os indivíduos arbóreos com PAP≥15 cm, incluindo palmeiras e samambaias arborescentes, em um hectare, dividido em sub-parcelas de 10x10 m. A comunidade foi analisada por meio do índice de diversidade de Shannon e equabilidade de Pielou, e distribuição de suas espécies entre síndromes de dispersão e classes sucessionais. Registramos 1.120 indivíduos vivos distribuídos em 133 espécies de 41 famílias. As famílias mais ricas em espécies foram Myrtaceae (32 espécies), Fabaceae (12) e Rubiaceae (11), e Euterpe edulis a espécie mais abundante (11,1% do total). Na área de estudo, foram encontradas quatro espécies na lista espécies ameaçadas do Livro Vermelho da Flora do Brasil, e registrada uma dominância de espécies Zoocóricas (86,7% das espécies classificadas) e Não Pioneiras (73,5%). Os resultados gerais da estrutura e composição de espécies da comunidade foram similares à de outros levantamentos realizados na mesma região deste estudo. Por fim, nossos resultados corroboram a grande diversidade arbórea e uma dominância de espécies Zoocóricas e Não-Pioneiras em contínuos de Floresta Atlântica.Palavras-chave: classe sucessional, floresta ombrófila densa, diversidade, síndrome de dispersão. ABSTRACT:The present study evaluated the floristic and structural composition of a tree community in a Lowland Atlantic Rainforest along a forest continuum in Brazilian southeast, assessing the species distribution among ecological groups. For this purpose, we sampled all trees with PBH≥15 cm, including palm trees and tree ferns, in a total area of one hectare, divided into subplots of 10x10 m. The studied community was also analyzed through the Shannon diversity index and Pielou equability, and its species distribution among dispersal syndromes and successional classes. We recorded 1,120 living individuals distributed in 131 species of 40 families. The richest families were Myrtaceae (32 species), Fabaceae (12) and Rubiaceae (11), and Euterpe edulis was the most abundant species (11.1% of the total). In the study area, there were found four species on the Livro Vermelho da Flora do Brasil and recorded a dominance of zoochoric species (86.7% of species classified) and non-pioneers (71.6%). The general results of the community structure and species composition were similar with other surveys carried out in the same region of this study. Finally, our results corroborate the great diversity of trees and a dominance of zoochoric and non-pioneer species in the Atlantic Rainforest continuous.Keywords: dispersal syndromes, diversity, ombrophilous dense forest, successional groups.

scholarly journals Holocene Sediment Production in Lillooet River Basin, British Colombia: A Sediment Budget Approach

2007 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Jordan ◽  
Olav Slaymaker
Keyword(s):  
Sediment Yield ◽  
Debris Flows ◽  
Sediment Budget ◽  
Sediment Supply ◽  
Volcanic Complex ◽  
Minor Importance ◽  
The Holocene ◽  
Sediment Production ◽  
Clastic Sediment ◽  
Holocene Sediment

ABSTRACTA sediment budget approach is used to investigate the sources, storage, and yield of clastic sediment in Lillooet River watershed, in the southern Coast Mountains. The 3150 km2basin is heavily glacierised, and includes a Quaternary volcanic complex which has been active in the Holocene. The sediment yield has been determined from the rate of advance of the delta at the basin outlet. The floodplain of the main river valley is aggrading as the delta advances, and probably has been through most of the Holocene. Major sediment sources in the basin include glaciers and Neoglacial deposits, debris flows, and landslides in the Quaternary volcanic complex. Soil and bedrock creep, bank erosion of Pleistocene glacial deposits, and sediment from logging and agriculture are probably of minor importance. Estimates of sediment production from these sources explain only about half the observed clastic sediment yield plus the rate of valley aggradation. The unexplained sediment production may be associated with paraglacial sediments exposed by glacial retreat from the nineteenth century Neoglacial maximum; alternatively the frequency of occurrence of intermediate scale debris flows and landslides has been seriously underestimated. Sediment supply is highly episodic over time scales of centuries to thousands of years. Major factors in the temporal pattern of Holocene sediment supply are periods of volcanism, large landslides, the retreat of glaciers from the Neoglacial maximum, and recent river engineering works.

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