Search results for " bioindicator"

Preliminary results on the distribution of benthic foraminifera in the lagoon like coastal basin Stagnone di Marsala (Trapani, Italy)

2010

Descriptors of Posidonia oceanica meadows: Use and application

2005

This work benefited partly from the financial support of the European program ΓNTERREG IIIA Corsica, Sardinia. Tuscany

SHORT-TERM RESPONSE OF SOIL MICROORGANISMS TO ESSENTIAL OILS WITH ALLELOPATHIC POTENTIAL EXTRACTED FROM MEDITERRANEAN PLANTS

2015

Essential oils (EOs) with allelopathic compounds have been used to reduce or avoid weed germination and growth. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential phytotoxic effects of EOs extracted from different Mediterranean plants on soil microbial biomass and activity. EOs were extracted from leaves of Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh (EUC); Eriocephalus africanus L. (ERI); Thymus capitatus (L.) Hoffmanns. & Link (TCP); Citrus reticulata Blanco var. ‘Clemenules’ (TAN) and Citrus limon (L.) Osbeck var. ‘Eureka’ (LEM). Each EO was supplied to pots containing 560 g of soil at three different doses (low, medium, high). After 15, 30, 90, 120 days the supply of EOs, soils were destructively a…

Ellenberg’s Indicator values for the Flora of Italy – first update: Pteridophyta, Gymnospermae and Monocotyledoneae

2012

Ellenberg’s indicator values are an useful tool to delineate the relationship between plants and environment, recognising to each species a functional role as biological indicator. In the frame of the second edition of the Pignatti’s “Flora d’Italia”, some new informative systems are under preparations, in order to support geobotanical/applied studies, including a complete and updated review of the Ellenberg’s indicator values for the whole bulk of species mentioned in the flora of Italy. This first contribution includes a list of 380 species of Pteridophyta, Gymnospermae and Monocotiledoneae that complete the first assignment of the Ellenberg’s indicator values to the flora of Italy, publi…

Funghi endofiti e micorrizici: bioindicatori dello stato fitosanitario in ambienti naturali e degradati.

2003

Soil profile dismantlement by land levelling and deep tillage damages soil functioning but not quality

2016

We investigated the effects of land levelling followed by deep tillage, thus inducing a drastic dismantlement of soil profile, on both soil functioning and quality by monitoring various bioindicators (microbial biomass and community structure, basal respiration, enzyme activities) expressed on either whole soil and TOC mass units, respectively. As expected, in disturbed soils all measured properties had much higher coefficients of variation (CVs), regardless of either whole soil or TOC mass basis, due to the induced spatial variability. The amount of total organic C in the first cubic meter of soil profile was of one order of magnitude greater in undisturbed soils compared to disturbed ones…

The morphological diversity within a species can obscure the correct identification

2022

Critical points of various diagnostic characters and a paucity of information relating to the geographical distribution of several marine species can hinder real species delimitation, particularly if they are supposed to be cosmopolitan. Such constraints characterize many amphipod species and are mainly due to the variation in morphological characters during growth. Specifically, the benthic filter-feeding corophiid Cheiriphotis mediterranea Myers, 1983 displays different shapes for the male gnathopod 2 as it grows. This variation has hitherto never been described but an extensive sampling has provided us with the opportunity of studying it in detail. More than six thousand individuals, bel…

Soil bioindicators and weed emergence as affected by essential oils extracted from leaves of three different Eucalyptus species

2017

The widespread use of synthetic herbicides has resulted in herbicide-resistant weeds, altered ecological balance and negative effects on human health. To overcome these problems, efforts are being made to reduce the reliance on synthetic herbicides and shift to natural products. Essential oils (EOs) extracted from plants have been demonstrated to have potential herbicide activity. EOs, composed by volatile organic compounds and characterized by a strong odor, are used in the cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industries as they are thought to be safe compounds for humans, animals, and the environment. EOs extracted from Eucalyptus leaves have antimicrobial, antiviral, fungicidal, insecticida…

Organic enrichment effects on a marine meiofauna community, with focus on Kinorhyncha

2016

Abstract Within the framework of a programme aimed at monitoring the impact of fish farming on the marine biota, we have had the opportunity to study the effect of the organic enrichment caused by the fish farm on meiofauna abundances and Kinorhyncha communities’ structure over two farming cycles. Up to now, studies on kinorhynchs have focussed mostly on the taxonomy, biogeography, and the ultrastructure, and, more recently, on the phylogenetic aspects of the taxon. Only few studies have dealt with the ecology of these creatures and studies focusing on the response of these animals to disturbances of anthropogenic origin are rare. The study took place in the Western Mediterranean and fauna …

Soil chemical and biochemical properties of a salt-marsh alluvial Spanish area after long-term reclamation

2009

Marisma, one of the largest salt-marsh alluvial areas in SW Spain, has been reclaimed since 1970 by artificial drainage and amendment with phosphogypsum (PG) so as to reduce Na+ saturation. Within the reclaimed area, two 250- × 20-m plots were treated as follows: (1) amendment with 25 Mg/ha of PG every 2 to 3 years between 1979 and 2003 (plot PY); (2) like PY but PG treatment stopped after 1997 (plot DR). A contiguous virgin Marisma salt-marsh plot (MV), neither drained nor amended, was the control. In MV, soil microbial biomass C, most enzyme activities and total organic C content were much greater than in PY and DR soils, despite the salinity stress. The decrease in soil organic matter co…