Year-round multi-scale habitat selection by Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus) in lowland mixed forests (northern Italy)

Determining how animals respond to resource availability across spatial and temporal extents is crucial to understand ecological processes underpinning habitat selection. Here, we used a multi-scale approach to study the year-round habitat selection of the Crested Tit (Lophophanes cristatus) in a semi-natural lowland woodland of northern Italy, analysing different habitat features at each scale. We performed Crested Tit censuses at three different spatial scales. At the macrohabitat scale, we used geolocalized observations of individuals to compute Manly's habitat selection index, based on a detailed land-use map of the study area. At the microhabitat scale, the trees features were compared between presence and absence locations. At the foraging habitat scale, individual foraging birds and their specific position on trees were recorded using focal animal sampling. Censuses were performed during both the breeding (March to May) and wintering (December to January) seasons. At the macrohabitat scale, the Crested Tits significantly selected pure and mixed pine forests and avoided woods of alien plant species, farmlands and urban areas. At the microhabitat scale, old pine woods with dense cover were selected, with no significant difference in the features of tree selection between the two phenological phases. At the foraging habitat scale, the species was observed spending more time foraging in the canopies than in the understorey, using mostly the portion of Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) canopies closer to the trunk in winter, while during the breeding period, the whole canopy was visited. Overall, breeding and wintering habitats largely overlapped in the Crested Tit. Based on our findings, lowland Crested Tits can be well defined as true habitat specialists: they are strictly related to some specific coniferous woodland features. Noteworthily, compared to other tit species, which normally show generalist habits during winter, the Crested Tit behaves as a habitat specialist also out of the breeding season. Our study stressed the importance of considering multi-scale (both spatial and phenological) habitat selection in birds

Transnational trafficking networks of end-of-life vehicles and e-waste

Based on case studies and interviews, it appears that the transnational trafficking of various waste types follows distinct paths. However, this information only provides a partial view of the global waste trafficking network, as it has never been studied by combining all the known illegal flows of different waste types. To address this gap, we analysed data from the Basel Convention National Reports to reconstruct networks of countries that engaged in illegal exchanges of end-of-life vehicles, e-waste, or both between 2016 and 2019. Our findings suggest that the structure of these networks and the countries involved in the trafficking vary depending on the waste type, with some similarities. While there are a few reciprocal ties, illegal end-of-life vehicles and e-waste typically move in one direction between countries. Most illegal flows occur from the Global North to the Global South, but trafficking also takes place within each of these regions

Quaternary capable folds and seismic hazard in Lombardia (Northern Italy): the Castenedolo structure near Brescia.

We identify evidence of late Quaternary compressive tectonics in the Northern sector of the Central Po Plain through a systematic revision of the literature, new field mapping, and a new study of seismic reflection data obtained by ENI E&P. In particular, the reinterpretation of ca. 18.000 km of seismic profiles clearly shows a belt of segmented, 10 to 20 km long, fault propagation folds, controlled by the Plio-Quaternary growth of several out-of-sequence thrusts. As an example of this active structural style, in this paper we focus on a buried fold located just south of the Castenedolo Hill, a few km SE of Brescia. Although the Castenedolo anticline has long ago been described as a young compressional structure (e.g., DESIO, 1965), no detailed structural analysis of this feature has been performed until now. We calculated the uplift rates of this fold through the analysis of its syntectonic sedimentary record as imaged by the extremely high quality ENI E&P subsurface data available in the area. The evolution of this anticline was a discontinuous process characterized by several tectonic uplift pulses (with rates of ca. 0.1 mm/yr) of different duration, separated by periods of variable extent in which no fold growth occurred. The Quaternary growth history of this anticline and the presence of faulted and folded late Pleistocene to Holocene deposits at nearby sites (Ciliverghe and Monte Netto) demonstrate that the significant seismicity of this area (e.g., the December 25, 1222, Io = IX MCS Brescia earthquake, MAGRI & MOLIN, 1986; GUIDOBONI, 1986) must be related to active compressional structures within the Brescia piedmont belt. Our regional investigations show that the structural and paleoseismic setting illustrated near Castenedolo is typical of the whole Lombardia domain of the Southern Alps. This implies that the currently accepted seismotectonic model for this region, and related seismic hazard assessment, should be thoroughly and carefully re-evaluated

Intra-guild spatial niche overlap among three small falcon species in an area of recent sympatry

Climate warming and land-use change are reshuffling the distribution of wild organisms on a global scale. Some species may expand their ranges and colonize new regions, which may greatly affect ecological interactions among pre-existing species and colonizers. In the last decades, such processes have originated a unique condition of sympatry among three Eurasian small Falco species (common kestrel F. tinnunculus, lesser kestrel F. naumanni, red-footed falcon F. vespertinus) in the intensively cultivated farmland habitats of the Po Plain (Northern Italy). This provides an excellent opportunity to investigate patterns of spatial niche overlap during the initial phases of the establishment of sympatry. To investigate spatial niche overlap of the three falcon species, we relied on Environmental Niche Models (ENMs) based on widespread breeding occurrence data obtained through field surveys and citizen science programs (during the 2018-2020 period). ENMs were based on bioclimatic and land-use variables in an ensemble modelling framework. We estimated species-specific relative contributions of each climatic and land-use variable and its response curves effect. Eventually, we generated spatial correlation maps of the potential species' distributions to derive spatially-explicit predictions of potential co-occurrence areas among the three species. Overall, eco-climatic determinants of the distribution of lesser kestrel and red-footed falcon were similar, resulting in a strong association with intensive arable lands and dry continental climate. Consistently, we found a high spatial correlation between the suitability maps of the two species, with highly suitable areas located in the Central-Eastern area of the Po Plain, corresponding to the core range of both species. Conversely, the common kestrel emerged as a habitat generalist and was widely distributed throughout the Po Plain. Our findings suggest that the recent sympatry between lesser kestrels and red-footed falcons in the Po Plain may promote ecological interactions and intra-guild competition

Self-reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown on young patients with tic disorders: findings from a case\u2013control study

Background: Little is known about the perceived impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown measures on young patients with tic disorders. Previous studies focused on clinician and parent ratings of tic severity, whereas the only international self-report data are available for adult populations. We present the first findings from a case\u2013control study on children and adolescents with tics during lockdown in Italy. Methods: We surveyed 49 patients aged 6\u201318 years and 245 matched controls with a newly developed questionnaire covering socio-demographic and clinical data, as well as lockdown-related changes to daily life activities. Results: About half (53.2%) of the Italian school-age patients who took part in our survey experienced changes in tic severity during lockdown. Perceived increases in tic severity (29.8%) were reported more often than decreases (23.4%). Analogous trends were reported for perceived restlessness and, more significantly, irritability, whereas changes in pain symptoms were less common and were similar in both directions. The presence of tics was associated with increased difficulties with remote learning (p = 0.01), but decreased feelings of missing out on social interactions with schoolmates (p = 0.03). Conclusions: Self-reported data on the impact of COVID-19 lockdown in school-age patients with tic disorders indicate perceived changes in tic severity, as well as restlessness and irritability, in about half of the cases. These findings could guide both clinicians and teachers in the implementation of targeted adjustments in the delivery of care and educational strategies, respectively

Ground effects induced by the 2012 seismic sequence in Emilia: implications for seismic hazard assessment in the Po Plain

Since May 16, 2012, a seismic sequence has affected a wide portion of the Emilia Region (northern Italy), chiefly for the Modena and Ferrara Provinces. The first mainshock (Ml 5.9; focal depth, ca. 6 km) occurred on May 20, 2012, with the epicenter located a few kilometers north of Finale Emilia. A second main shock (Ml 5.8; focal depth, ca. 10 km) occurred on May 29, 2012, about 12 km west of the first earthquake, with the epicenter near Medolla. The seismic sequence has been characterized by five other Ml 655 events, and more than 2,300 aftershocks of lower magnitude, until the end July 2012. The distribution of the aftershocks identifies a WNW-ESE-trending zone ca. 40 km long that is characterized by NNE-SSW nearly pure compression, as indicated by the focal mechanisms. This report focuses on the many ground effects that were induced by this seismic sequence, as mainly cracks, liquefaction-type phenomena, and hydrological anomalies. The aim is to provide a complete representation of such effects, to: illustrate their type, size and areal distribution; identify the zones in the affected area that were most prone to the occurrence of ground effects (i.e., more susceptible to local geological instability in the case of earthquake occurrence); carry out an independent assessment of the intensities of the earthquakes through the ESI 2007 intensity scale, which is based only on coseismic effects on the natural environment

Prevalence of transmitted nucleoside analogue-resistant HIV-1 strains and pre-existing mutations in pol reverse transcriptase and protease region : outcome after treatment in recently infected individuals

We retrospectively studied 38 Italian recently HIV-1-infected subjects who seroconverted from 1994 to 1997 to investigate: (i) the prevalence of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTI)-related mutations at primary infection; (ii) the proportion of naturally occurring mutations in reverse transcriptase (RT) and protease regions of patients naive for non-nucleoside RT inhibitors (NNRTIs) and protease inhibitors (PIs); (iii) the drug-susceptibility to NRTIs and PIs in subjects with NRTI- and/or PI-related mutations; and (iv) the outcome of seroconverters treated with various NRTIs or NRTI/PI regimens. Baseline HIV-1 plasma viraemia and absolute CD4 count at baseline could not be used to distinguish patients with NRTI- and/or PI-related pre-existing mutations from those with wild-type virus (P = 0.693 and P = 0.542, respectively). The frequency of zidovudine-related mutations was 21% in the study period. The response to treatment was not significantly different in subjects with or without genotypic zidovudine-related mutations at primary infection (P = 0.744 for HIV-1 RNA and P = 0.102 for CD4 cells). Some natural variation (2.6%) was present within regions 98-108 and 179-190 of RT involved in NNRTI resistance. The high natural polymorphism in the protease region present in our patients was similar to that reported by others. In our study some PI-associated substitutions, thought to be compensatory in protease enzymatic function, could confer intermediate to high PI-resistance. As discrepancies between genotypic and phenotypic results may exist in recent seroconverters, our data suggest that the role of transmitted NRTI- and PI-resistant variants remain to be fully elucidated in vivo

Identification of two distinct subsets of long-term nonprogressors with divergent viral activity by stromal-derived factor 1 chemokine gene polymorphism analysis

Stromal-derived factor (SDF)-1, the natural ligand for CXCR4, is present in a common polymorphic variant defined by a G-->A transition in the 3' untranslated region of the gene. In persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), the homozygous genotype (SDF1-3'A/3'A) has been postulated to interfere with the appearance of T-tropic syncytium-inducing strains. The polymorphism of SDF1 was correlated with HIV-1 phenotype, plasma viremia, and unspliced and multiply spliced specific transcripts in 158 virologically characterized HIV-1-infected patients (39 recent seroconverters, 75 typical progressors, and 44 AIDS patients) and in 42 HIV-1-infected long-term nonprogressors (LTNPs). Analysis of SDF1 allele distribution revealed that SDF1-3'A/3'A status is associated with low CD4 cell count (P=.0449) but not with a specific HIV-1 phenotype. In LTNPs, SDF1-+/+ condition defined a subset of persons with lower HIV-1 replication than in heterozygous subjects. The low viral activity in SDF1-+/+ LTNPs suggests that other factors play a major role in vivo in determining the course of HIV-1 infection

Does size matter? The determinants of heroin flows in Europe

Several scholars recently investigated international drug trafficking using social network analysis (Chandra and Joba 2015; Boivin 2014). These studies do not quantify the volume of drug flows among countries thus analyzing networks with binary links. This study estimates the size of the heroin flows from and to European countries. Then, it exploits recent advances in statistical models for social networks to identify the factors shaping heroin trafficking. It first assesses the influence of such factors on the presence of a link between any two countries. It then introduces the edge weights (i.e. heroin exchanged) in the analysis, moving forward in the analysis of drug trafficking networks. The methodology adopted allows for a better understanding of the generative processes and potential evolution of trafficking routes. The study shows that opportunity theory and social proximity are keys in explaining the direction and the size of heroin flows in Europe. Moreover, it demonstrates the benefits of including weights in the analysis of drug networks