Search results for " ECOLOGIA"

Latitudinal- and local-scale variations in a rocky intertidal interaction web

2015

Natural assemblages are structured by a complex combination of positive and negative interactions, and the relative importance of each interaction can vary across spatial scales. By using a simple interaction web (barnacles-grazers-microphytobenthos) in a rocky intertidal system, we tested the hypothesis that the relative strength of positive and negative interactions would vary as a function of different environmental stress between 2 latitudinal levels and local environmental conditions. We manipulated the cover of barnacles and the presence of limpets at 2 sites in northern and southern Italy and non-destructively examined the response of microphyto - benthos (MPB) (photosynthetic biomas…

Do small marinas drive habitat specific impacts? A case study from Mediterranean Sea

2011

Many human activities add new structures to the marine landscape. Despite the fact that human structures cause some inevitable impacts, surprisingly little information exists on the effects of marina on natural marine assemblages. The aim of this paper is to assess habitat-specific response of benthic sessile organisms of rocky shores in relation to the presence of a small marina. Sampling was carried out at three coastal habitats (midshore, lowshore and subtidal) by means of visual censuses adopting an after-control-impact (ACI) experimental design. It appears that the marina affects the structure and composition of benthic communities of both the midshore and the lowshore. Little effect w…

Food resource partitioning between two sympatric temperate wrasses

2017

The present study analysed two sympatric wrasses, Thalassoma pavo and Coris julis, with similar sizes and morphologies, that are widespread in the reef habitats of the Mediterranean and the eastern Atlantic coast. Ocean warming has induced the northward movement of T. pavo, whereas C. julis has been moving to deeper habitats. In addition, under conditions of high slope of the sea bottom, T. pavo occupies shallow habitats and C. julis is in greater abundance in deeper habitats. By investigating stomach contents and prey availability in the benthos, we assessed whether the two wrasses exploit food resources by choosing different prey within the same habitat both under co-existence and segreg…

New Mediterranean Marine biodiversity records

2013

Based on recent biodiversity studies carried out in different parts of the Mediterranean, the following 19 species are included as new records on the floral or faunal lists of the relevant ecosystems: the green algae Penicillus capitatus (Maltese waters); the nemertean Amphiporus allucens (Iberian Peninsula, Spain); the salp Salpa maxima (Syria); the opistobranchs Felimida britoi and Berghia coerulescens (Aegean Sea, Greece); the dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus (central-west Mediterranean and Ionian Sea, Italy); Randall’s threadfin bream Nemipterus randalli, the broadbanded cardinalfish Apogon fasciatus and the goby Gobius kolombatovici (Aegean Sea, Turkey); the reticulated leatherjack St…

The new Access and Benefit Sharing Protocol under the CBD. Implications for non commercial research

2010

Mammiferi Insettivori, Roditori, Artiodattili e Carnivori

2008

Settlement performance of the Mediterranean reef-builders Dendropoma cristatum (Biondi 1859) in response to natural bacterial films

2018

The gastropod Dendropoma cristatum is a biogenic engineer of the central Mediterranean, forming reefs along the lower rocky intertidal fringe with a remarkable ecological role. To understand whether reef-associated biofilm cultivable bacterial and biofilm ageing may trigger the settlement of the juvenile snails, a combination of laboratory techniques and field experiments was used. Reef-associated biofilm cultivable bacteria were isolated, and a settlement-choice experiment was performed in situ on artificial biofilms composed of i) a mixture of six biofilm-forming selected isolates, ii) all the cultivable bacteria, and iii) 13-, 23-, 32-day old biofilms formed under naturalconditions. Overall,sett…

La teoria ecològica del desenvolupament: un marc teòric per a la comprensió del comportament humà

2008

L'any 2009 es van complir 30 anys de la publicació del llibre The Ecology of Human Development d'Urie Bronfenbrenner (1917-2005). Aquesta obra va signifi car la síntesi del pensament d'aquest autor, que ja havia esbossat en textos anteriors, i el punt de referència d'una teoria estimulant sobre el comportament humà. La idea bàsica de Bronfenbrenner és que el desenvolupament de l'individu es troba condicionat per les característiques dels entorns en què té lloc, és a dir, l'ésser humà es «fa» en interacció dinàmica amb els seus contextos i en el marc de les relacions entre aquests. Malgrat la rellevància teòrica i metodològica d'aquesta aportació, continua resultant poc coneguda per a una ma…

Regulating Internet Trade in CITES Species

2013

International trade in species that are or may be endangered by collection from the wild is regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora (CITES) for 176 member States (Parties). Internet commerce is a relatively new route for such trade. In 2007, the CITES Secretariat asked Parties to collect information on internet wildlife trade and report problems and implemented regulations. The reports indicated it was difficult to even approximate the influence of e-commerce on CITES-listed species (CITES Secretariat 2009). We report a case study in which we quantified international transactions over an internet auction site of CITES-listed cacti …

Role of two co-occurring Mediterranean sea urchins in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy

2015

Abstract In the Mediterranean Sea the co-occurring sea urchins Paracentrotus lividus and Arbacia lixula are usually considered to share the same ecological role in the formation of barren from Cystoseira canopy. However, their foraging ability may vary due to feeding behavior and species-specific morphological traits. The relative effects of P. lividus and A. lixula on Cystoseira canopy was tested experimentally both in the laboratory, at a density of about 20 ind./m 2 , and in the field by gut content analysis. Field and laboratory results show that A. lixula is unable to affect Cystoseira spp. Furthermore, these results confirmed the great ability of P. lividus to consume Cystoseira canop…