scholarly journals Variation in zoogeographical composition along an elevational gradient: the tenebrionid beetles of Latium (Central Italy)

Entomologia ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. e6 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Fattorini
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Elevational Gradient ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Species Abundances ◽  
History Of ◽  
Evenness Indices ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

The aim of this paper is to propose the use of chorotype analysis of species assemblages on an elevational gradient to detect the main historical and ecological factors responsible for current faunal settings. A comprehensive faunistic database was used to assess species abundance across 100 m belts in Latium (Central Italy). Species were assigned to chorotypes according to their ranges. Entropy and evenness indices were applied to both species abundances and chorotype frequencies recorded in each belt. Both species and chorotype entropy decreased with elevation, whereas species and chorotype evenness increased. Chorotypes centred on the Mediterranean basin decreased with increasing elevation, chorotypes centred in Europe and Asia had similar frequencies among belts and endemic species increased with elevation. A cluster analysis with species presence/absence data, revealed three main clusters grouping respectively: i) all belts above 1700 m; ii) belts between 901 and 1500 m; and iii) belts between 0 and 900 m. An analysis based on chorotype frequencies produced very similar results. We can conclude that: high elevation assemblages are less diversified, but more balanced than lowland assemblages, in terms of both species and chorological composition. Belts similar in species composition (presence/absence) are also similar in zoogeographical composition (frequency of chorotypes). This indicates that elevation is a factor that strongly selects species’ attributes and especially their geographical distribution. Variations in chorotype composition along an elevational gradient may be used to trace the history of biotas.

scholarly journals Population genomics of wall lizards reflects the dynamic history of the Mediterranean Basin

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weizhao Yang ◽  
Nathalie Feiner ◽  
Daniele Salvi ◽  
Hanna Laakkonen ◽  
Daniel Jablonski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Structure ◽  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Hybrid Origin ◽  
Recent Common Ancestor ◽  
Extant Species ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

The Mediterranean Basin has experienced extensive change in geology and climate over the past six million years. Yet, the relative importance of key geological events for the distribution and genetic structure of the Mediterranean fauna remains poorly understood. Here, we use population genomic and phylogenomic analyses to establish the evolutionary history and genetic structure of common wall lizards (Podarcis muralis). This species is particularly informative because, in contrast to other Mediterranean lizards, it is widespread across the Iberian, Italian, and Balkan peninsulas, and in extra-Mediterranean regions. We found strong support for six major lineages within P. muralis, which were largely discordant with the phylogenetic relationship of mitochondrial DNA. The most recent common ancestor of extant P. muralis was likely distributed in the Italian Peninsula, and experienced an Out-of-Italy expansion following the Messinian salinity crisis (~5 Mya), resulting in the differentiation into the extant lineages on the Iberian, Italian and Balkan peninsulas. Introgression analysis revealed that both inter- and intraspecific gene flow have been pervasive throughout the evolutionary history of P. muralis. For example, the Southern Italy lineage has a hybrid origin, formed through admixture between the Central Italy lineage and an ancient lineage that was the sister to all other P. muralis. More recent genetic differentiation is associated with the onset of the Quaternary glaciations, which influenced population dynamics and genetic diversity of contemporary lineages. These results demonstrate the pervasive role of Mediterranean geology and climate for the evolutionary history and population genetic structure of extant species.

scholarly journals Range dynamics of mountain plants decrease with elevation

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (8) ◽  
pp. 1848-1853 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabine B. Rumpf ◽  
Karl Hülber ◽  
Günther Klonner ◽  
Dietmar Moser ◽  
Martin Schütz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Elevational Gradient ◽  
High Elevation ◽  
Range Limits ◽  
European Alps ◽  
Cold Adapted ◽  
Recent Climate ◽  
Range Dynamics ◽  
Mountain Plant

Many studies report that mountain plant species are shifting upward in elevation. However, the majority of these reports focus on shifts of upper limits. Here, we expand the focus and simultaneously analyze changes of both range limits, optima, and abundances of 183 mountain plant species. We therefore resurveyed 1,576 vegetation plots first recorded before 1970 in the European Alps. We found that both range limits and optima shifted upward in elevation, but the most pronounced trend was a mean increase in species abundance. Despite huge species-specific variation, range dynamics showed a consistent trend along the elevational gradient: Both range limits and optima shifted upslope faster the lower they were situated historically, and species’ abundance increased more for species from lower elevations. Traits affecting the species’ dispersal and persistence capacity were not related to their range dynamics. Using indicator values to stratify species by their thermal and nutrient demands revealed that elevational ranges of thermophilic species tended to expand, while those of cold-adapted species tended to contract. Abundance increases were strongest for nutriphilous species. These results suggest that recent climate warming interacted with airborne nitrogen deposition in driving the observed dynamics. So far, the majority of species appear as “winners” of recent changes, yet “losers” are overrepresented among high-elevation, cold-adapted species with low nutrient demands. In the decades to come, high-alpine species may hence face the double pressure of climatic changes and novel, superior competitors that move up faster than they themselves can escape to even higher elevations.

scholarly journals Palaega pisana n. sp. (Crustacea, Isopoda, Cirolanidae) from the Pliocene of Orciano Pisano, Pisa (Toscana, Central Italy)

2012 ◽  
Vol 153 (1) ◽  
pp. 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanni Pasini ◽  
Alessandro Garassino
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Late Cenozoic ◽  
New Form ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

We report a new form of cirolanid ascribed to<em> Palaega pisana</em> n. sp. (Crustacea, Isopoda, Cirolanidae) from the Pliocene of Orciano Pisano, Pisa (Toscana, Central Italy). This is the second species of <em>Palaega Woodward</em>, 1870, reported from the Pliocene of Tuscany and Italy, increasing the very sparce palaeontological data on presence and distribution of the genus in the Mediterranean Basin during the Late Cenozoic.

scholarly journals BURSAPHELENCHUS SPECIES (NEMATODA: APHELENCHIDA) ASSOCIATED WITH AN OLIVE TREE IN CENTRAL ITALY

Redia ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 103 ◽  
pp. 121-127
Author(s):  
GIULIA TORRINI ◽  
AGOSTINO STRANGI ◽  
STEFANIA SIMONCINI ◽  
ILARIA CUTINO ◽  
GIUSEPPE MAZZA ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
Central Italy ◽  
Olive Tree ◽  
Dead Tree ◽  
Phytoparasitic Nematodes ◽  
Olive Cultivation ◽  
Cultural Interest ◽  
Olive Trees ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

Olive cultivation is of great economic, ecological, and cultural interest in Italy, as well as in the rest of the Mediterranean basin. Among the pests of olive trees, several groups of insects, mites, and nematodes have been reported. Phytoparasitic nematodes especially of the genera Meloidogyne, Pratylenchus, Helicotylenchus, Xiphinema, Tylenchulus, Rotylenchulus, and Heterodera have usually been extracted from roots and soil around trees. On the other hand, no information is available concerning nematodes directly associated with the wood. At the end of September 2018, in a high-density cultivated olive grove in Tuscany (central Italy), several olive trees with decline symptoms were observed. Three Bursaphelenchus species, B. fungivorus, B. minutus, and B. sexdentati were extracted from the wood of one dead tree. Even though these species had already been reported in Italy, these findings were the first ones recorded in olive wood. Moreover, another undescribed Bursaphelenchusspecies was found associated with the bark beetle Hylesinus fraxini collected from olive trunks and branches. Further research is needed to investigate the role of insects and Bursaphelenchus spp. in the decline processes of olive trees.

Bluetongue in Europe and the Mediterranean Basin: History of occurrence prior to 2006

2008 ◽  
Vol 87 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 4-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip S. Mellor ◽  
Simon Carpenter ◽  
Lara Harrup ◽  
Matthew Baylis ◽  
Peter P.C. Mertens
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

scholarly journals The Italian genome reflects the history of Europe and the Mediterranean basin

2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 1056-1062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovanni Fiorito ◽  
Cornelia Di Gaetano ◽  
Simonetta Guarrera ◽  
Fabio Rosa ◽  
Marcus W Feldman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
History Of Europe ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

scholarly journals Stereotomy and the Mediterranean: Notes Toward an Architectural History

2017 ◽  
pp. 73 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara GALLETTI
Keyword(s):  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
Eleventh Century ◽  
Architectural History ◽  
Third Century ◽  
The Third ◽  
Region I ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Mediterranean ◽  
Hellenistic Greece ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

Stereotomy, the art of cutting stones into particular shapes for the construction of vaulted structures, is an ancient art that has been practiced over a wide chronological and geographical span, from Hellenistic Greece to contemporary Apulia and across the Mediterranean Basin. Yet the history of ancient and medieval stereotomy is little understood, and nineteenth- century theories about the art’s Syrian origins, its introduction into Europe via France and the crusaders, and the intrinsic Frenchness of medieval stereotomy are still largely accepted. In this essay, I question these theories with the help of a work-in-progress database and database-driven maps that consolidate evidence of stereotomic practice from the third century BCE through the eleventh century CE and across the Mediterranean region. I argue that the history of stereotomy is far more complex than what historians have assumed so far and that, for the most part, it has yet to be written.

Naghi, Mohamed Musa (1888–1956)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Davies
Keyword(s):  
Intellectual History ◽  
Mediterranean Basin ◽  
First Generation ◽  
State Intervention ◽  
High Ranking ◽  
The Core ◽  
History Of ◽  
Shared Culture ◽  
Islamic Golden Age ◽  
The Mediterranean Basin

The painter Mohamed Naghi is remembered today alongside Mahmoud Mukhtar (1891–1934) and Mahmoud Said (1897–1964) as one of the core members of the so-called first generation of Egyptian artists. His early nationalist paintings executed after the Uprising of 1919 won him recognition. Paintings produced in 1931–1932 while Naghi was in Ethiopia brought him further acclaim. After the system of foreign privileges was abolished in 1937, a number of Egyptian artists, including Naghi, were assigned high-ranking positions in state art institutions. A "Pioneer" artist, Mohamed Naghi sought to develop a school of modern Egyptian art that was true to what he perceived as art’s universal foundations (and especially an equilibrium both formal and moral in nature) and the roots of an Egyptian identity grounded in a metaphysics of the collective. Like many of his contemporaries, his work drew on motifs referencing the art and intellectual history of Pharaonic Egypt, Egypt’s Islamic Golden Age, and a shared culture of the Mediterranean basin, as well as important contemporary literary and artistic figures. However, it was his interest in Egyptian folk art (al-fann al-sha‘abi) that would prove most influential for subsequent generations. Despite early setbacks in his dealings with the art establishment, he eventually became a powerful figure in Egypt’s new state arts sector and argued for the need for state intervention in cultivating an Egyptian artistic renaissance.

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