READING INTEGRITY IN THE LANDSCAPE: METHODS’ COMPARISON ON TICINO AREA

The landscape is the system of both tangible and intangible heritage. A key element to evaluate a landscape is its integrity intended as the wholeness and intactness of natural and/or cultural heritage. The problem of identifying the integrity of a landscape is twofold: on one side it is necessary to identify the element that determines the intactness of a landscape and on the other side the methodology to study and quantify the integrity. Different methodologies have been developed in literature to assess and measure landscape integrity: some of them are more quantitative, while others are more qualitative. This paper presents two different methods for landscape integrity evaluation: the Valutazione Storico Ambientale (VASA) and the Landscape System Historical Analysis (LaHSA) one. The comparison of the two methodologies is carried out in a portion of the Ticino river (North Italy) and more specifically in the municipality of Morimondo. The two methods are compared considering a set of elements taking into account both the understanding of tangible and intangible permanencies and data accessibility/accuracy to carry out the analysis.

Predicting Fire Propagation across Heterogeneous Landscapes Using WyoFire: A Monte Carlo-Driven Wildfire Model

The scope of wildfires over the previous decade has brought these natural hazards to the forefront of risk management. Wildfires threaten human health, safety, and property, and there is a need for comprehensive and readily usable wildfire simulation platforms that can be applied effectively by wildfire experts to help preserve physical infrastructure, biodiversity, and landscape integrity. Evaluating such platforms is important, particularly in determining the platforms’ reliability in forecasting the spatiotemporal trajectories of wildfire events. This study evaluated the predictive performance of a wildfire simulation platform that implements a Monte Carlo-based wildfire model called WyoFire. WyoFire was used to predict the growth of 10 wildfires that occurred in Wyoming, USA, in 2017 and 2019. The predictive quality of this model was determined by comparing disagreement and agreement areas between the observed and simulated wildfire boundaries. Overestimation–underestimation was greatest in grassland fires (>32) and lowest in mixed-forest, woodland, and shrub-steppe fires (<−2.5). Spatial and statistical analyses of observed and predicted fire perimeters were conducted to measure the accuracy of the predicated outputs. The results indicate that simulations of wildfires that occurred in shrubland- and grassland-dominated environments had the tendency to over-predict, while simulations of fires that took place within forested and woodland-dominated environments displayed the tendency to under-predict.

Termite Ecology in the First Two Decades of the 21st Century: A Review of Reviews

Termite ecology came of age in 1978 with the seminal review of Wood and Sands which by considering the quantitative contributions made by termites to the carbon cycle at the landscape level concluded that they were major players in tropical ecosystems. Subsequent field work in the succeeding two decades was summarised in 2000 by Bignell and Eggleton, the most recent review which attempted to cover the entire topic in detail, which included 188 listed references and has been extensively cited for almost 20 years. Subsequent summaries more narrowly defined or in some cases more superficial are listed in the bibliography. In this overview, the main and subsidiary headings in Bignell and Eggleton are revisited and reclassified in the light of 186 selected articles added to the relevant literature since 2000, and some earlier work. While the literature on termite ecology remains buoyant, it has declined relative to publications on other aspects of termite biology. Overall, the thesis that termites have a major impact on, and are major indicators of soil health and landscape integrity in the tropics and sub-tropics is maintained, but the drivers of local diversity, abundance and biomass remain complex, with many biographical, edaphic and optimum sampling issues not completely resolved. The large increase in diversity and abundance data from Neotropical biomes can also be noted.

ECOSYSTEM SERVICES IN THE MID-HILL FOREST OF WESTERN NEPAL: A CASE OF PANCHASE PROTECTED FOREST

This paper identified ecosystem services of Panchase Protected Forest (PPF) in the mid-hills of western Nepal using the Economics of Ecosystem and Biodiversity (TEEB) framework. Transect walk, focus group discussion, key informants interview and expert’s consultation were used. This study revealed that PPF offered wide range of ecosystem services including provisioning, regulating habitat, and cultural and amenity services. Provisioning services offered by PPF included food (35 species), raw materials (22 species), energy (17 species), medicines (40 species), ornamental resources (3 species) and water resources. The forest was also a source of water for irrigation and domestic consumption. The regulating services offered by PPF included water flow regulation, erosion prevention, water purification, soil fertility maintenance, air quality regulation and climate regulation. PPF provided habitat for 589 species of flowering plants, 24 species of mammals and 262 species of birds maintaining life cycles and genetic diversity. By maintaining landscape integrity and heritages, PPF provided opportunities for recreation and tourism. A total of 3,600 tourists and 25,340 pilgrims visit PPF every year. The beneficiary of ecosystem services from PPF ranged from local level to sub-national, national and global levels.

Wetlands classification and assessment of Ramsar sites in China based on time series Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) imagery

Globally, wetland loss and degradation have become serious environmental and ecological issues. Wetland monitoring of Ramsar sites in China is important for developing reasonable strategies to protect wetlands. Satellite image time series may be used for the long-term monitoring of wetland ecosystems. The present study used moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) time series data collected in 2001 and 2013 for 20 Ramsar sites in China and assessed the environmental status of these reserves using landscape metrics. The results showed that specific seasonal wetland classes, such as flooded mud, permanent water and seasonal marshes, can be identified using MODIS time series data with acceptable accuracy. In addition to wetland area, we suggest using other landscape metrics, including landscape integrity and landscape disturbance or degradation indices, to assess wetland environmental quality. The slight wetland loss (0.8%) noted in the 20 reserves evaluated herein could indicate the effectiveness of efforts of the Chinese government and local government agencies to protect Ramsar sites. The existing unfavourable environmental conditions, which were manifested by low landscape integrity and high landscape disturbance or degradation for some reserves, were caused primarily by increasing water requirements outside the reserves and by agricultural development within reserves. Therefore, determining how to balance relationships between economic development and ecological protection of the reserves will be important in the future.

Fifteen novel microsatellites for the Louisiana Waterthrush (Aves: Parulidae: Parkesia motacilla) using MiSeq sequencing

The Louisiana Waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla) breeds along wooded streams throughout much of eastern North America, and winters in the Caribbean and Central America. Because of its dependence on stream macroinvertebrates—which are themselves dependent on high water quality—the Louisiana Waterthrush may serve as a useful bioindicator of both stream and landscape integrity. Perhaps unique among eastern North American songbirds, the Louisiana Waterthrush often maintains essentially linear territories along streams, and this provides a unique context in which to ask questions about the genetic (as opposed to social) mating system of this species. We developed 15 microsatellite loci for Louisiana Waterthrush using MiSeq sequencing. All loci presented here are polymorphic, with 3-15 alleles detected in a reference sample of 35-43 individuals. For parentage analyses, these loci have a combined non-exclusion probability of 0.0011 if neither parent is known a priori, and a non-exclusion probability of < 0.0001 if one parent is known. These 15 loci thus provide high discriminatory power to assign parentage to nestlings, and can also be used to examine population genetic structure within the species.

Fifteen novel microsatellites for the Louisiana Waterthrush (Aves: Parulidae: Parkesia motacilla) using MiSeq sequencing

The Louisiana Waterthrush (Parkesia motacilla) breeds along wooded streams throughout much of eastern North America, and winters in the Caribbean and Central America. Because of its dependence on stream macroinvertebrates—which are themselves dependent on high water quality—the Louisiana Waterthrush may serve as a useful bioindicator of both stream and landscape integrity. Perhaps unique among eastern North American songbirds, the Louisiana Waterthrush often maintains essentially linear territories along streams, and this provides a unique context in which to ask questions about the genetic (as opposed to social) mating system of this species. We developed 15 microsatellite loci for Louisiana Waterthrush using MiSeq sequencing. All loci presented here are polymorphic, with 3-15 alleles detected in a reference sample of 35-43 individuals. For parentage analyses, these loci have a combined non-exclusion probability of 0.0011 if neither parent is known a priori, and a non-exclusion probability of < 0.0001 if one parent is known. These 15 loci thus provide high discriminatory power to assign parentage to nestlings, and can also be used to examine population genetic structure within the species.