0000000000170331
AUTHOR
S. Russotto
First observations of oophagy in a wild population of the sand boa (Eryx jaculus)
The sand boa Eryx jaculus (Linnaeus, 1758) is found in the southern Balkans, Middle East and North Africa (Sindaco et al., 2013). Only recently The presence of this species has been confirmed in Italy, in a small area of southern Sicily (Insacco et al., 2015). Knowledge of the sand boa in Sicily is limited with few data on geographical distribution, morphology, and habitat (Insacco et al., 2015; Faraone et al., 2017). Even at a global scale the biology of this species is little known due to its secretive habits (Tokar & Obst, 1993).
ANNUAL ACTIVITY CYCLE OF THE JAVELIN SAND BOA ERYX JACULUS (LINNAEUS, 1758) IN SICILY
The Javelin sand Boa Eryx jaculus is a snake little known from an eco-ethological point of view. Here, some aspects of its phenology are described for the first time. 229 observations were collected in Sicily, with the aim of describing the annual activity of this population. The activity of adult males and juveniles presents a similar trend, with a sharp peak between May and July. Juveniles sharply declined in the following months. Adult females have three peaks of activity of similar amplitude. The activity cycle of the Javelin sand Boa could be modulated by some aspects of his trophic behaviour. In fact, juveniles and adult males prefer prey types highly available only during their maxim…
A novel identification procedure from ambient vibration data
AbstractAmbient vibration modal identification, also known as Operational Modal Analysis, aims to identify the modal properties of a structure based on vibration data collected when the structure is under its operating conditions, i.e., no initial excitation or known artificial excitation. This procedure for testing and/or monitoring historic buildings, is particularly attractive for civil engineers concerned with the safety of complex historic structures. However, since the external force is not recorded, the identification methods have to be more sophisticated and based on stochastic mechanics. In this context, this contribution will introduce an innovative ambient identification method b…