Search results for "VEGETATION"
showing 10 items of 1069 documents
The cork oak in the Mountains of Palermo (Italy): ecological insights from the south-eastern edge of its distribution range
2020
Abstract: The uneven presence of the cork oak (Quercus suber L.) within its distribution range is not only determined by its climatic requirements but also by specific edaphic needs. Although most of the natural populations thrive in acidic soils deriving from metamorphic or volcanic rock outcrops, some cork oak populations are found growing in soils deriving from calcareous bedrock, which are considered less suitable. We carried out a multidisciplinary investigation at the south eastern edge of the Q. suber distribution range (Mountains of Palermo, NW Sicily), including soil, floristic, and vegetation surveys, aimed at: (i) assessing the native or introduced origin of some peculiar cork oa…
The naturalization of the almond Prunus dulcis in different ecological contexts in the Mediterranean: An underestimated process?
2022
Although Prunus dulcis has been frequently listed in non-native floras all around the world, its naturalization has been rarely studied in the field. Probably, because this species has generally invaded synanthropic habitats. We assessed the density of natural regeneration of almond, biometric parameters (height and basal stem diameter), and the distribution in life stage classes in three different ecological contexts in Sicily (Mediterranean Italy): one natural habitat (maquis), one pine afforestation and two prickly pear orchards. We recorded 236 naturally regenerating almond individuals, with density ranging from 140 individuals per hectare (prickly pear orchard 1) up to 2,400 individual…
Shallow waters as ecological corridors: preliminary data on wind-exposure, physico-chemical features and vegetation structure of the Western Sicilian…
2004
The study was carried out in the Natural Reserve of Trapani and Paceco saltworks shallow system (western Sicily: 37° 52’ North; 12° 28’East).The main goal is to deepen our understanding of whether the alteration of the complexity of these particular ecosystems is manifested through a consequent reduction of the number of migrant species and their density. To achieve this, we focalized our attention on organic matter fluxes (in terms of origin and availability for apex consumers), and on the density and distribution of aquatic birds.
The ecological role of Pyrus Spinosa Forssk. in the ecosystem recovery and land restoration of Mediterranean woodlands
2021
In the Mediterranean basin, large areas still call for active reforestation, having a very low woody cover, thus resulting less resistant and resilient to climate change and suffering from a higher risk of soil degradation processes. Knowing the effects on soil fertility and carbon sequestration of single woody species can be of great practical importance, although being rarely tested. We aimed to assess the effect of Pyrus spinosa on soil fertility (soil carbon and nitrogen), microbial biomass and carbon sequestration (in aboveground stems) of Mediterranean pasturelands. The research was carried out in Ficuzza Nature Reserve (NW Sicily), where large areas are composed of extensive pasturel…
The Impact of Climate, Resource Availability, Natural Disturbances and Human Subsistence Strategies on Sicilian Landscape Dynamics During the Holocene
2022
This paper presents a multidisciplinary summary of the most recent discoveries and hypotheses concerning factors driving the human subsistence economy and landscape shaping in Sicily during the Holocene. A number of scientific papers have recently pointed out the key role played by paleogeography, resource (water, food) availability and natural disturbances (volcanic eruptions, tsunamis) in local human activities. Modern anthropology and archaeology increasingly use biological remains (e.g. soils, bones, wood, plant macroremains, pollen) to better understand how human communities managed to survive and spread. Likewise, refined reconstructions of past human demographic fluxes and socio-econ…
INFLUENCE OF POSIDONIA OCEANICA MEADOW DENSITY ON FLOW RESISTANCE IN SHALLOW WATERS
2008
Aquatic vegetation considerably affects circulation in water bodies with influence increasing as the depth decreases. On the other hand, increasing use of mathematical circulation models for management of coastal sea waters, lagoons and marshes requires determination of such effects and in particular of flow resistance. A typical plant of inshore sandy beds, less than 40 m deep, in the Mediterranean Sea is Posidonia oceanica, which is constituted by a tuft of very thin and flexible ribbon-like leaves about 1 cm wide and up to 1.5 m long. This plant forms meadows with areal density usually ranging between 500 and 1000 plants/m2. Because of its characteristics, Posidonia oceanica constitutes …
tRIBS-Erosion: combining mechanistic approaches for investigating eco-hydro-geomorphic response of river basins to climate change
2011
Vegetation interacts with hydrology, geomorphology and processes of a river basin in profound ways. Despite recent advances in hydrological modeling, the dynamic coupling between these processes is yet to be adequately captured at the basin scale to elucidate key features of process interaction and their role in the organization of vegetation and landscape morphology. In this study, a newly integrated geomorphic component of the physically-based, spatially distributed hydrological model, tRIBS, the TIN-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator, is presented. Hillslope and channel erosion processes are parsimoniously coupled with vegetation-hydrology dynamics, making it possible to study ho…
The use of vegetation for social housing renovations: A case study in the City of Palermo
2013
The paper shows the first results of a research carried out at the University of Palermo, which aims to indentify sustainable strategies for the renovation of social housing in the Mediterranean Basin, with focus on the use of vegetation as strategy for the enhancement of urban microclimate and thermal comfort. To achieve these goals the social housing complex of Medaglie d’Oro in the city of Palermo was chosen as case study in order to carry out some analyses for the assessment of outdoor comfort parameters of the area. By means of numerical simulations performed with the software ENVI-met, the actual state of the area was evaluated and four scenarios of renovation strategies through the i…
Il quartiere Cappuccinelli a Trapani: per un intervento di retrofit sostenibile attraverso l’uso della vegetazione
2018
La riduzione del consumo di energia primaria e delle emissioni di CO2 nell’aria sono due obiettivi chiave delle politiche internazionali, come dimostrato dagli standard sempre più restrittivi in tema di efficienza energetica degli edifici. Il settore edilizio è considerato, infatti, uno dei più importanti settori strategici al fine di raggiungere questi due obiettivi e per questa ragione le politiche energetiche a livello globale si stanno indirizzando sempre più nella promozione di strategie finalizzate alla regolamentazione della sua efficienza attraverso il progetto di edifici sostenibili. L’articolo intende dimostrare, tramite la presentazione di un caso studio, l’efficacia e la complem…
Green roofs for smart cities: experimental determination of the “fractional vegetation coverage” of six vegetated species
2015
Towards a de-carbonization of European countries, green roofs are becoming popular, due not only to aesthetic reasons but also to energy and environmental issues. Indeed, especially in summer periods, the building cooling demand might be sensibly cut thanks to such passive components often chosen for planning smart cities. To properly model the energy performances of buildings equipped with these components, a particular attention must be paid to radiative exchanges occurring among soil surface, leaves and outdoor surroundings. These thermal exchanges depend on parameters, like the “fractional vegetation coverage” whose literature data do not seem particularly suitable for the simulation ne…