Search results for " Mediterranean islands"
showing 9 items of 19 documents
PRECIPITATION ESTIMATION THROUGH SATELLITE SYSTEM OVER THE MAJOR MEDITERRANEAN ISLANDS
2017
Reliable and accurate precipitation measurement or estimation is crucial for disaster monitoring and water resource management. Nowadays the scientific community expects significant improvements in precipitation monitoring by the continuous technological evolution of satellite-rainfall estimate systems which are able to produce data with global coverage and thus can provide low-cost information even in scarcely populated areas or places where for economic reasons ground measures are missing. The most recent satellite mission is the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM), which is an international constellation of ten partner satellites, and a source of rainfall estimates at high spatial and…
Assessment of the environmental quality of the Sicilian coast through a phytoecological and biogeographic analysis
2017
Large-scale habitat measurements have been aided greatly by advances in remote sensing and GIS software. However, the degree of resolution of this technique is still inadequate for many purposes, such as detail monitoring of many habitats that occur on the coast (e.g. temporary Mediterranean pools or ephemeral therophytic grasslands). Lists and distribution mapping of taxa are probably the most commonly used surrogate for overall biodiversity at both local and broader scales. For the Sicilian coasts a complete study, dating back more than 25 years ago and based on a multidisciplinary approach of flora, vegetation and fauna, exists (Raimondo & al. 1990. Quad. Bot. Amb. Appl. 1: 131-182).…
Stipa valdemonensis (Poaceae), a new species from Sicily
2012
A new species of Stipa, endemic to Sicily, is here described and named Stipa valdemonensis. The new taxon is related to S. crassiculmis. Owing to the small number of individuals observed, in few restricted localities only, it is assigned the IUCN threat status “vulnerable”
Valantia deltoidea (Rubiaceae) sulle Madonie (Sicilia)
2011
Valantia deltoidea, a therophyte endemic to Sicily, so far known only from its locus classicus on the Rocca Busambra (Palermo, Province) has recently been found at the foot of the Serre di Quacella (Madonie, on dolomite rock, about 1300 m altitude. Besides outlines of taxonomical characteristics of such species, the data on the new locality and the updated distribution are provided here.
Hydrophytic vegetation aspects in the Nebrodi Mountains (Sicily).
2011
A study of the hydrophyte communities of some small ponds in the beech-wood belt of the higher Nebrodi Mts is presented. A new association of shallow stagnant water bodies, the Utriculario-Potametum natantis, is described. Its biological structure, biogeographical characteristics, syntaxonomic position, phytosociological relationships and dynamic links are discussed.
"This is Babel": Sicily, The Mediterranean Islands and Southern Italy (1450-1550)
2016
This essay focuses on period from the 15th to the 16th centuries, a period, moreover rich in documents that can be related to many still extant monuments. This period regarded as a critical phases from European civilization, offers the opportunity to sched light on equally striking artistic achievements in the heart of the Mediterranean area: in Southern Italy, Sicily and the nearby islands. The topic of ornament is particolarly suitable for explicating the key features, boundaries, and tensions characteristics of this region, as well, as for addressing the presents of vernacular elements that ought to find their place in the larger artistic histories of the period. the choise of the subjec…
The impact of alien vascular plants in the aquatic habitats of a mediterranean island: preliminary data and observations in Sicily
2016
As is well known, invasive alien species pose a major global threat to the conservation of biodiversity, causing the extinction of native species and modifying ecosystem functions: this is true also for aquatic habitats, particularly susceptible to invasion due to usually high disturbance regimes and easy dispersal of propagules. The island of Sicily is one of the main hotspots of plant biodiversity, in the center of the Mediterranean basin; it hosts different types of freshwater habitats, both lentic (coastal wetlands, saltworks, temporary ponds, lakes, reservoirs) and lotic (springs, streams, permanent and seasonal rivers). As a first step of our analysis of the effects of the alien vascu…
Hybridization and competition between the endangered sea marigold (Calendula maritima, Asteraceae) and a more common congener
2013
Occurrences of hybridization between the rare, endangered Sicilian endemic, Calendula maritima, and other congeners in the wild have been suspected by several authors, but never demonstrated. In San Cusumano (Trapani), one of the only three Sicilian mainland populations, C. maritima occurs in close proximity to the more common congener C. suffruticosa subsp. fulgida, and individuals morphologically intermediate between the two taxa have been observed. In order to determine whether hybridization is occurring at this site, and, if so, begin to assess the impact it could have on C. maritima, two independent tests of hybridity were conducted by studying (1) the pollen morphology and viability a…
Tourism in Mediterranean Islands: a comparative analysis.
2011
This chapter analyses the main dimensions of 24 Mediterranean islands representing seven European countries. It highlights some of the economic barriers to sustainability. Islands are classified by area into large, medium, small and micro, and also by population density- from high to low. The Mediterranean islands represent a wide variety of situations and common problems, and every economic decision has had an immediate impact on the sustainability of the economies of each island.