Short communication: Savanna-forest boundary on Mount Rinjani, Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

© 2021, Society for Indonesian Biodiversity. All rights reserved. Sutomo, van Etten E, Iryadi R. 2020. Short communication: Savanna-forest boundary on Mount Rinjani, Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 21: 726-731. Seasonally dry tropical forests tend to be bordered by or are mixed with savanna ecosystems. This research investigates the location and nature of forest-savanna boundary on Mt. Rinjani and hypothesizes on potential causes of such boundary formation. The field survey locations were based on MODIS burnt area data. We made 30 plots (50 x 50 m) established along transects to obtain vegetation and environment data across boundaries. For data analysis, we use community correspondence index (CCI), vegetation composition using Importance Value Index (IVI), and Analysis of Similarity (ANOSIM) to detect differences in floristic and environmental characteristics across boundaries. Species composition in the transition zone (based on highest IVI results) comprises Ficus septica, Macaranga tanarius, Lindera sp., Engelhardia spicata, Saurauria sp., Rytidosperma penicillatum, and Athyrium sp. The Non-Metric Multi-Dimensional Scaling (NMDS) based on environmental data showed clear separation between savanna and forest, although boundaries were floristically similar to forest. Micro-and macro-environmental factors, as well as, fire disturbances, are also important features of the forest-savanna boundary on Mt. Rinjani. We present evidence of boundary dynamics in the form of forest advance on the Mt. Rinjani south-west slope

Analysis of olive grove destruction by xylella fastidiosa bacterium on the land surface temperature in Salento detected using satellite images

Agricultural activity replaces natural vegetation with cultivated land and it is a major cause of local and global climate change. Highly specialized agricultural production leads to extensive monoculture farming with a low biodiversity that may cause low landscape resilience. This is the case on the Salento peninsula, in the Apulia Region of Italy, where the Xylella fastidiosa bacterium has caused the mass destruction of olive trees, many of them in monumental groves. The historical land cover that characterized the landscape is currently in a transition phase and can strongly affect climate conditions. This study aims to analyze how the destruction of olive groves by X. fastidiosa affects local climate change. Land surface temperature (LST) data detected by Landsat 8 and MODIS satellites are used as a proxies for microclimate mitigation ecosystem services linked to the evolution of the land cover. Moreover, recurrence quantification analysis was applied to the study of LST evolution. The results showed that olive groves are the least capable forest type for mitigating LST, but they are more capable than farmland, above all in the summer when the air temperature is the highest. The differences in the average LST from 2014 to 2020 between olive groves and farmland ranges from 2.8 °C to 0.8 °C. Furthermore, the recurrence analysis showed that X. fastidiosa was rapidly changing the LST of the olive groves into values to those of farmland, with a difference in LST reduced to less than a third from the time when the bacterium was identified in Apulia six years ago. The change generated by X. fastidiosa started in 2009 and showed more or less constant behavior after 2010 without substantial variation; therefore, this can serve as the index of a static situation, which can indicate non-recovery or non-transformation of the dying olive groves. Failure to restore the initial environmental conditions can be connected with the slow progress of the uprooting and replacing infected plants, probably due to attempts to save the historic aspect of the landscape by looking for solutions that avoid uprooting the diseased plants. This suggests that social-ecological systems have to be more responsive to phytosanitary epidemics and adapt to ecological processes, which cannot always be easily controlled, to produce more resilient landscapes and avoid unwanted transformations

Rehabilitation planning in an oilfield in the Monte Austral: Mapping sand-sized sediment availability and assessing its effect on microtopography rehabilitation

In drylands, the microtopography is formed by mound-shaped dunes of eolian deposition that occur around shrubs or other vegetation in clumps. These mounds are characteristic of the Monte Austral, which covers 20% of Argentina (approximately 50 million ha), has a strong water deficit and is subjected to land degradation by the oil industry. Considering the biogeomorphological approach, oilfield rehabilitation should begin with regeneration of the mounds as they provide safe sites for vegetation. Since rehabilitation success may be influenced by sand-sized sediment availability, we addressed two objectives: mapping the sediment availability in an oilfield and evaluating its effect on microtopography rehabilitation. We used a Sentinel-2 MSI scene and assessed three approaches to map the sediments: two expressions of the Normalized Difference Sand Index and the feature Brightness of the Tasselled Cap Transformation. We validated the three maps using a geomorphological map. Two maps showed the highest agreement with the geomorphological map and errors were associated with the detection of bright lithified or cohesive material not available for sediment transportation. Then, we evaluated the effect of sediments on microtopography rehabilitation. We compared the morphometric traits of mounds (height, maximum and minimum length) located in areas of low and high sediment availability, in both natural and scarified areas. We considered the time since scarification was applied (8–13, 4–8, or <4 years ago). The mounds in the natural areas were larger than the mounds in the scarified areas, so complete microtopography rehabilitation is not achieved 13 years after scarification. The mounds in high-sediment-availability areas were different from the initial condition 4 years after scarification, whereas differences took 8 years to become evident with low sediment availability. Sediment availability must be considered when designing rehabilitation techniques to ensure the success and sustainability of the project. Our results have implications for the development of a biogeomorphological model to guide rehabilitation planning.Fil: Ciancio, Matías Ezequiel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Maimonides. Area de Invest.biomédicas y Biotecnológicas. Cent.d/est.biomedic.,biotecn.,ambient.y Diagnost.. Departamento de Ecología y Cs.ambientales; Argentina. BfU de Argentina S.A.; ArgentinaFil: Guida Johnson, Bárbara. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Provincia de Mendoza. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo. Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales; ArgentinaFil: Zuleta, Gustavo Adolfo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Maimonides. Area de Invest.biomédicas y Biotecnológicas. Cent.d/est.biomedic.,biotecn.,ambient.y Diagnost.. Departamento de Ecología y Cs.ambientales; Argentin

Urban Wetlands: A Review on Ecological and Cultural Values

Wetlands are a critical part of natural environments that offer a wide range of ecosystem services. In urban areas, wetlands contribute to the livability of cities through improving the water quality, carbon sequestration, providing habitats for wildlife species, reducing the effects of urban heat islands, and creating recreation opportunities. However, maintaining wetlands in urban areas faces many challenges, such as the reduction of hydrological functions, changed water regimes due to barriers, contamination by wastewater, habitat loss due to land-use change, and loss of biodiversity due to the entry of alien species. In this article, we review the theoretical background of wetlands in urban areas through the existing studies in the literature. We provide knowledge on urban wetlands and highlight the benefits of these wetlands in urban areas. These benefits include sustainability, biodiversity, urban heat islands, social perception, and recreation values. We also summarize the objectives, methodologies, and findings of the reviewed articles in five tables. In addition, we summarize the critical research gaps addressed in the reviewed articles. Our review study addresses the research gaps by performing a rigorous analysis to identify significant open research challenges, showing the path toward future research in the field. We further discuss and highlight the role of policymakers and stakeholders in preserving wetlands and finally present our conclusions

Urban Wetlands: A Review on Ecological and Cultural Values

Wetlands are a critical part of natural environments that offer a wide range of ecosystem services. In urban areas, wetlands contribute to the livability of cities through improving the water quality, carbon sequestration, providing habitats for wildlife species, reducing the effects of urban heat islands, and creating recreation opportunities. However, maintaining wetlands in urban areas faces many challenges, such as the reduction of hydrological functions, changed water regimes due to barriers, contamination by wastewater, habitat loss due to land-use change, and loss of biodiversity due to the entry of alien species. In this article, we review the theoretical background of wetlands in urban areas through the existing studies in the literature. We provide knowledge on urban wetlands and highlight the benefits of these wetlands in urban areas. These benefits include sustainability, biodiversity, urban heat islands, social perception, and recreation values. We also summarize the objectives, methodologies, and findings of the reviewed articles in five tables. In addition, we summarize the critical research gaps addressed in the reviewed articles. Our review study addresses the research gaps by performing a rigorous analysis to identify significant open research challenges, showing the path toward future research in the field. We further discuss and highlight the role of policymakers and stakeholders in preserving wetlands and finally present our conclusions

Green roofs and cool materials as retrofitting strategies for urban heat island mitigation case study in Belgrade, Serbia

The effect of extensive and intensive green roofs on improving outdoor microclimate parameters of urban built environments is currently a worldwide focus of research. Due to the lack of reliable data for Belgrade, the impact of extensive and intensive green roof systems on mitigating the effects of urban heat islands and improving microclimatic conditions by utilizing high albedo materials in public spaces were studied. Research was conducted on four chosen urban units within existing residential blocks in the city that were representative of typical urban planning and construction within the Belgrade metropolitan area. Five different models (baseline model and four potential models of retrofitting) were designed, for which the temperature changes at pedestrian and roof levels at 07:00, 13:00, 19:00 h, on a typical summer day, and at 01:00 h, the following night in Belgrade were investigated. The ENVI-met software was used to model the simulations. The results of numerical modeling showed that utilizing green roofs in the Belgrade climatic area could reduce air temperatures in the surroundings up to 0.47, 1.51, 1.60, 1.80 degrees C at pedestrian level and up to 0.53, 1.45, 0.90, 1.45 degrees C at roof level for four potential retrofitting strategies, respectively

Deserts and Desertification

A desert is an ecosystem in an arid zone in which sand dunes cover the land and sandstorms often occur. Although desert vegetation is sparse, it plays an important role in ecosystem structure and function. Desertification is one of the most severe environmental problems today. Land desertification can be controlled through many measures, such as eco-villages, eco-agriculture, biodiversity conservation, and the combination of engineering and biology. This edited volume provides new insights into the pattern of desert ecosystems and the progress of desertification control. It is a useful resource for researchers in ecology, forestry, and land desertification control