Air Quality Assessment in the Central Mediterranean Sea (Tyrrhenian Sea): Anthropic Impact and Miscellaneous Natural Sources, including Volcanic Contribution, on the Budget of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

The results of air pollution assessment during a 2017 cruise of the research ship “Minerva Uno” in the Tyrrhenian Sea are reported. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Oxygenated Volatile Organic Compounds (OVOCs), and pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, ozone, and sulphur dioxide were monitored throughout the cruise. The shallow waters at ten sites of the investigated area were also analyzed. Organic compounds such as n-alkanes showed a bimodal distribution with a maximum at C5–C6 and C10–C11 at sites the most affected by anthropic impact, whereas remote sites showed a unimodal distribution with maximum at C10–C11. The most abundant atmospheric OVOC was acetone (3.66 μg/m3), accounting for 38%; formaldehyde (1.23 μg/m3) and acetaldehyde (0.99 μg/m3) made up about 22–29% of the total. The influence of some natural sources as volcanoes, in the southern part of the Tyrrhenian Sea near the Aeolian arc was studied. This source did not induce any noticeable effect on the total amount of hydrocarbons nor on the levels of trace gases such as CFCs, whereas the trends of sulphur dioxide seemed to confirm a possible contribution. The impact of underwater emissions was observed near the Panarea and Vulcano islands, where lower pHs, high levels of Fe and Mn, and diagnostic of vent activity, were measured.

Report of erucism caused by Automeris egeus Cramer (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) and a brief update on caterpillar envenomation in Brazil

We report a case of erucism provoked by the Automeris egeus Cramer caterpillar and update the distribution of caterpillar poisoning in Brazil, showing the regions with the highest incidence rates. We also correlated the incidence rate with anthropic impact rates in all Brazilian municipalities, taking as a reference the Human Footprint Index. The victim presented erucism, burning pain, itching, and local hyperthermia. The highest incidence rates were in southern Brazil. We suggest including A. egeus in the Brazilian list of animals with medical importance, and that Brazilian Ministry of Health indicates the genus of the animals involved in envenomation events on its platform.

The Effect of Land Use on the Richness and Composition of Species and Trophic Guilds of Bats (Mammalia, Chiroptera) in the Urban Area of Altamira – PA

Bats play important ecosystem roles. Anthropogenic activities cause the decrease and loss of biological diversity and, consequently, the loss of these ecosystem services. One way of measuring local habitat conditions and relating the landscape to biodiversity. Our objective is to investigate how the bat community is influenced by this change in the landscape. Collections were carried out at five points and 76 individuals of 12 species are sampled. Although the points present a high variation in relation to land use, we did not observe any correlation between species richness and guilds with land use. However, the difference in the composition of the guilds is related to the variation in land use, in which 74% of the variation in the abundance of guilds is related to the different patterns of land use. At SENAI, even though it was the place with the greatest anthropic impact, it was the one with the greatest abundance of species, while the points Module two and Sítio Jaburu had the greatest abundance of guilds. This result corroborates the idea that ecosystem services are dependent on habitat maintenance, since the greater the heterogeneity the greater the difference in the composition of the trophic guilds.

Persistence of Enterobacteriaceae Drawn into a Marine Saltern (Saline di Tarquinia, Italy) from the Adjacent Coastal Zone

Enterobacteriaceae is present in various niches worldwide (i.e., the gastrointestinal tracts of animals, clinical specimens, and diverse environments) and hosts some well-known pathogens (i.e., salmonellas, shigellas and pathogenic coliforms). No investigation has focused on its occurrence in marine salterns, and it is not clear if these hypersaline environments could be a reservoir for these bacteria including some potentially harmful members. In this study, a two-year metabarcoding survey was carried out on samples collected from different ponds of the “Saline di Tarquinia” salterns and the nearby coastal waters. Enterobacteriaceae was recorded almost constantly in the seawaters feeding the saltern. Its abundance was generally higher in the sea than in the ponds, probably due to the higher anthropic impact. The same trend was evidenced for the key genus (Escherichia/Shigella) and OTU (OTU 5) of the Enterobacteriaceae community. Various parameters affected taxon/OTU abundance: Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia/Shigella and OTU5 decreased with increasing salinity and rains; moreover, Escherichia/Shigella and OTU 5 were higher in autumn than in spring. Although Enterobacteriaceae did not seem to find the most favourable conditions for a high-abundance persistence in the saltern environment, it did not disappear. These observations suggested this environment as a potential reservoir for bacteria with possible important health implications.

A checklist of aquatic macrophytes of the Guaraguaçu river basin reveals a target for conservation in the Atlantic rainforest

Describing and understanding distribution of species in natural ecosystems is the first step to establish conservation efforts. In aquatic habitats, macrophytes play a central role in promoting biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. This study aimed to create the first checklist of aquatic macrophyte species occurring in the Guaraguaçu river, the largest river in Paraná State coast, Brazil. Species herborized, identified and incorporated into the Herbarium collection of the Universidade Federal do Paraná. A total of 47 species were registered corresponding to 37 genera and 29 botanical families; Cyperaceae and Poaceae were the most representative families. In addition, the wide invasion of the non-native species Urochloa arrecta (Hack. ex T. Durand & Schinz) Morrone & Zuloaga was registered and the presence of the floating-leaved non-native species Nymphaea caerulea Savugny was recorded. Even so, the inventory shows a noteworthy richness of aquatic macrophytes species in the Guaraguaçu river, and it is clear macrophyte species reflect a gradient of anthropic impact and salinity in this tidal estuarine river. Our study contributes to the creation of public policies to aid in the protection of this river that represents a central site for biological conservation efforts, yet is constantly threatened by anthropic activities.

Models to estimate river temperature. Example for Danube, at Oltenița in the context of climate change and anthropic impact

Daily variation of Danube River temperature measured at Oltenitț gauging station over 9 years (2008-2016) was analysed in comparison with the air temperature measured by satellite in the same location between 1979-2020. Air temperature shows a nearly 2°C increase over the 40-years period, which can be attributed to both climate warming and anthropic impact. Water temperature was modeled with a sinusoidal function and variation with discharge was discussed. Long-term trend of hourly surface air temperature variation was obtained from Open Weather data. Air - water temperature dependency was fitted with a logistic function with good approximation. Resulting correlations help predict water temperature as a function of satellite - measured air temperature.

A rapid ecological assessment for necrophagous flies (Diptera, Calyptratae) in a mosaic landscape of the Colombian Andes

A necrophagous flies ensemble (Diptera, Calyptratae) was rapidly assessed in four coverages of an anthropogenic landscape in the east range of the Colombian Andes. Ninety-seven individuals belonging to eight species were collected in only two hours of sampling. The highest diversity values and the occurrence of asynanthropic flies in the forest under conservation management may indicate a positive effect of the natural restoration process in the area assessed. Grassland, rural and urban coverages were similarly low in diversity and composition. A brief discussion about the flies’ bionomy and their environment association is offered. Necrophagous flies ensembles by coverage behave as an indicator of the anthropic impact on the landscape.

Spatiotemporal Evaluation of The Human Footprint in Colombia: Four Decades of Anthropic Impact in Highly Biodiverse Ecosystems

ABSTRACTThe maintenance of biodiversity and the capacity of natural systems to provide goods and services for people is affected on different levels by the intensity of human activities on ecosystems. In this study, we apply a Legacy-adjusted Human Footprint Index (LHFI) to evaluate the spatiotemporal variation of anthropic impact in Colombia in 1970, 1990, 2000 and 2015. We identified hotspots of change in LHFI and we evaluated the intensity of anthropic pressures in natural regions and ecosystems. We found that LHFI in Colombia increased between 1970 and 2015. The Andean and Caribbean regions presented the highest levels of anthropic impact, remaining stable over time. Hotspots of change were mainly located in the following regions: Andean (Antioquia, Cauca and Valle del Cauca states), Amazon (Amazonas, parts of Meta, Guaviare and Putumayo states) and Orinoco (Casanare and parts of Meta and Vichada states). In addition, ecosystems that under the IUCN ecosystem risk categories are Critically Endangered (CR) and Vulnerable (VU) were the most affected by a high level of human impact. Spatiotemporal evaluation of the human footprint in Colombia provides new insights about trends in human pressures on ecosystems and constitutes an analytical tool with high potential for harmonizing land use planning and biodiversity conservation.